Clinique développementale des troubles internalisés chez un enfant déplacé interne victime d’attaques terroristes

Abstract

The terrorist attacks in Burkina Faso can lead to changes in children's developmental trajectories. Thus, young children are at risk of developing internalized disorders. This article seeks to understand the developmental trajectory of internalizing disorders and its associated factors in an internally displaced child in Burkina Faso with a traumatic experience. To this end, a clinical case study was carried out using interviews and clinical observations supported by psychological tests. Our results show that the child's developmental trajectory was marked by an initial positive adaptation, followed by a traumatic experience that redirected the developmental trajectory towards internalized disorders. They also reveal an upward trajectory between the two survey periods, with the following associated factors: a deficit in social skills, low self-esteem, deactivated attachment representations and maternal depression. This article shows that the security crisis weakens children's psychic development and compromises the construction of their psychosocial identity. The results underline the need for psychological support for internally displaced children and their mothers to prevent psychopathological disorders. They can also serve as a guide in the care of children with internalized disorders.