Newswise — For girls in Sierra Leone who were associated with armed groups during that country's long civil war, a new study identifies culture-specific indicators of successful reintegration into society, reports the current issue of Intervention: International Journal of Mental Health, Psychosocial Work and Counselling in Areas of Armed Conflict. Intervention, a publication of the War Trauma Foundation, is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, professionals, and institutions in medicine, nursing, allied health, pharmacy and the pharmaceutical industry.
The study highlights the importance of developing "culturally relevant" indicators for specific countries and cultures. The lead researcher was Lindsay Stark, a Senior Research Associate with the Program on Forced Migration and Health at Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University.
'Focus Groups' Used to Rank Indicators of ReintegrationThe researchers conducted "participative ranking" sessions—comparable to focus groups—with 166 girls and young women who had been associated with an armed groups during Sierra Leone's decade-long civil war. Several studies have examined the war's impact on former child soldiers in Sierra Leone, but little is known about the experience of girls conscripted or abducted into armed groups. The girls, used as camp laborers or for sexual purposes, have been largely overlooked in the process of demobilizing former child soldiers.
In study sessions, the girls discussed and identified factors indicating that a person was "doing well," or successfully reintegrated into the community, after the war. The process was developed to identify the most important factors from the viewpoint of the Sierra Leonean girls themselves, rather than based on western tools and checklists.
The girls identified many factors associated with successful reintegration, such as earning enough money to provide for themselves and their children. They saw marriage as a critical aspect of being accepted by the community, especially since girls returning from armed groups are often considered undesirable partners.
Some factors could never have been identified by standard western checklists, the researchers point out. For example, the girls mentioned being included in the women's secret society, or bondu, which is "responsible for various rites and rituals...and is perceived as a key social support structure for most females living in villages." In contrast, certain "bad behaviors"—like stealing or being disrespectful to elders—were seen as indicators of poor reintegration.
Historically, girls associated with armed forces have been overlooked in humanitarian responses to complex emergencies. There is now interest in helping such girls successfully reintegrate into the community, but it is challenging to define such concepts as "reintegration." Focusing on western concepts of trauma may miss the importance of event war-related events to people in specific cultures.
The researchers used the rich insights provided by their study to help evaluate existing programs to help girls reintegrate after the war in Sierra Leone. They believe the participatory method used in the study will be useful in developing "culturally grounded indicators" in a wide range of cultures and situations.
About InterventionIntervention, published thrice yearly, is an international multi-disciplinary journal of mental health, psychosocial work and counseling in areas of armed conflict. The audience includes mental health workers such as psychiatrists, psychotherapists and psychiatric nurses, and also for counselors, psychosocial workers and community workers, staff members of NGO's developing mental health or psychosocial projects, and international experts in the field. Intervention is a publication of the War Trauma Foundation (http://www.wartraumafoundation.nl/). Visit the journal website at http://www.interventionjnl.com.
About Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW) is a leading international publisher for healthcare professionals and students with nearly 300 periodicals and 1,500 books in more than 100 disciplines publishing under the LWW brand, as well as content-based sites and online corporate and customer services. LWW is part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, professionals and institutions in medicine, nursing, allied health, pharmacy and the pharmaceutical industry.
Wolters Kluwer Health is a division of Wolters Kluwer, a leading global information services and publishing company. The company provides products and services for professionals in the health, tax, accounting, corporate, financial services, legal, and regulatory sectors. Wolters Kluwer had 2008 annual revenues of €3.4 billion ($4.9 billion), employs approximately 20,000 people worldwide, and maintains operations in over 35 countries across Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Its shares are quoted on Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices. Visit www.wolterskluwer.com for information about our market positions, customers, brands, and organization.
RSS