War Orphans

Jean C Ortiz Calderón

Universidad de Puerto Rico Recinto de Arecibo

Ingl 3012 MB5

War orphans worldwide

In Africa

In Asia

In Europe

In America

Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional, en Nicaragua

Psychopathology of the war orphans

Post-traumatic stress disorder Mood and anxiety disordersConduct disorderAttention deficit hyperactivity disorder 

Psychosocial development of war orphans

Most of the war orphans skip what we know as adolescence.

During the adolescence the brain is fully matured and it helps to improve the psychosocial development.

Kohlberg’s moral reasoningLevel 1 (Pre-Conventional) (4-10 years)

1. Obedience and punishment orientation (How can I avoid punishment?)

2. Self-interest orientation (What's in it for me?)(Paying for a benefit)

Level 2 (Conventional) (10-15 or more years)3 Interpersonal accord and conformity

(Social norms)(The good boy/good girl attitude)4. Authority and social-order maintaining orientation

(Law and order morality)

Level 3 (Post-Conventional) (Adulthood or may never be developed)5. Social contract orientation6. Universal ethical principles(Principled conscience)

Elkind’s description of immature thought

Idealism and criticalness Argumentativeness Indecisiveness Apparent hypocrisy Self-consciousness Specialness and vulnerability

Resilient war orphans

The ability to bounce back and function adaptively after facing traumatic events has been defined in the literature as resilience. 

Posttraumatic Resilience in Former Ugandan Child Soldiers

I want to get married, buy a bicycle, and put up a building. (13-year-old boy, former child soldier)

I want to get a sewing machine so that I keep on making clothes and sell them to get some money. (15-year-old girl, former child soldier)

I will be a person who is responsible in the community; I will be an honest person; I will be a person who helps people. (16-year-old boy, former child soldier)

The war orphans now

The war orphans from earlier generations are now the men and women that work, that have a family; that live: our society.

ConclusionShould war orphans or child

soldiers be prosecuted given the circumstances in which they develop their psychosocial skills (or the lack of development) for their crimes?

Should they be prosecuted even with enough evidence to prove they can become good citizens?