Expérience subjective de la surdité acquise et stratégies de coping chez l’adolescent déficient auditif.

Abstract

This study is entitled "Subjective experience of acquired deafness and coping strategies in hearing-impaired adolescents". It was found that some hearing-impaired people in our environment and in institutions in the grip of the developmental period of adolescence; showed signs of withdrawal, difficulties in relating to their immediate surroundings (family members, friends, peers, etc.). Also, the disability they presented had been acquired at this developmental age that is adolescence. For Bon (2013), adolescence and disability are complex schemes, because the subject who is in a situation of profound heterogenesis is also confronted with a deficiency, an incapacity and a disadvantage. The objective of the study is to study the way in which the traumatic experience of deafness participates in the establishment of an adaptive process in adolescents with acquired deafness. Taking into account the literature on the subjective experience of people with disabilities, the latter put in place certain changes. These different provisions call upon the way in which the person with disabilities activates coping strategies to overcome and bounce back from adversity. It is not just about adapting, but going beyond (Arnaut, 2005). This situation of disability, manifested by the loss of hearing, requires us to question its future and the strategies implemented to overcome adversity in such a context. The research question is: how does the subjective experience of acquired deafness lived by the hearing impaired adolescent account for the coping strategies implemented? From this question arises the following hypothesis: The subjective experience of acquired deafness accounts for the strategies through coping focused on the problem, on emotion and on positive coping mechanisms. Following the clinical method, the use of semi-directed interviews and the Davidson trauma test allowed data to be collected from four adolescents met at the Nlongkak Adventist school complex in Yaoundé. The analysis of the thematic content of the verbatims and the Davidson trauma test allowed us to obtain the results according to which the subjects of the study experience the stages of grieving work as announced by Kulber-Ross (2003) and Hanus (2001) namely: denial, shock, the major depressive period and acceptance; including confrontation, distancing, self-control, seeking social support, acceptance of responsibilities, avoidance, problem solving and positive reevaluation as stated by Lazarus and Folkman (1984). Resilient mechanisms and coping strategies are observed in all our participants. During this study, through the ability to mobilize resources for a harmonious life, bounce back and improve the quality of life of everyone.