The Effects of War in Childhood (DP IB Psychology): Revision Note

The effects of war in childhood

• Children have increasingly seen the devastating effects of war impact their lives

  • E.g., The ongoing conflicts in the Ukraine, Gaza, Syria

• War has impacted children in many different traumatic ways, including:

  • having to flee their home country due to danger or oppression

  • seeking refuge in other countries (often facing extreme danger to do so) either with or without their family

  • losing family members to the ravages of war

  • being injured and/or under threat every day

• The following research addresses the idea that:

  • children should not be viewed as vulnerable and incompetent victims of war

  • children should be viewed as agents of their own fate

  • children should be given respect based on their ability to be resilient in the face of terrible events

Research which supports the effects of war in childhood

Boyden (2003)

Aim:

• To challenge prevailing assumptions about children’s resilience and vulnerability in relation to their experiences of living in war zones

Procedure:

• A review article analysing traditional Western perspectives on childhood and war, questioning whether these assumptions accurately reflect children’s lived experiences

Results:

• Research on child development has typically focused on the early years, leaving middle and later childhood underexplored

  • This has reinforced the idea that children are fragile beings who require a lot of care from adults if they are to survive and thrive

    • Such assumptions may actually undermine resilience, preventing children from developing coping mechanisms or “resilient shells”

• War is not necessarily rare or unusual

  • Western researchers often treat it as an aberration, assuming children in conflict zones will inevitably develop PTSD

  • This reflects an individualistic bias, failing to consider collectivist or cultural coping strategies

• The concept of ‘suffering’ is culturally relative

  • What one society sees as unbearable hardship may be viewed by another as manageable or routine

  • Imposing one cultural lens on another is methodologically flawed

    • There is anecdotal evidence that children flourish in adversity, e.g., taking on caring roles, becoming the family ‘breadwinner’, keeping the family together, being resourceful

• Viewing children solely as helpless victims risks a self-fulfilling prophecy, reducing their agency and resilience

Conclusion:

• Children should be seen as active agents in their resilience, not passive victims

• They can develop coping strategies, insights, and opinions that may be as valid as those of adults

Evaluation of the effects of war in childhood

Strengths

• Boyden's ideas may be controversial, but she sheds a refreshing new light on the experience of children living in war zones

• By focusing on the drawbacks of Western, individualistic research in this field, Boyden has made a good case for there being a need for a more emic approach to the topic

Limitations

• Although Boyden has good intentions it may be that some of her ideas do not fully represent all children living in war zones

  • She underplays the traumatic, damaging effects of war on children which is something of an omission, given the subject

• Investigating the effects of war on children comes with many difficulties that may ultimately mean the research is compromised

  • E.g., finding enough participants; dealing with organisations or governments who may block access to information; treating participants with care so as not to add to any existing trauma

Link to concepts

Measurement

• A review article looks at a range of published research on a specific topic and comments on the findings, methodologies and conclusions contained within them, offering ideas and suggesting ways forward based on what the research has uncovered

  • One of the main advantages of this method is that it is less time-consuming than undertaking original research and it allows for an overview of what may be a complex and multi-layered topic

  • This method does, however mean that the author has to relinquish control of the research process which could mean a loss of credibility

Bias

• Boyden points out the need for cultural relativism and an emic approach in her review article

  • She strives to avoid culture bias by highlighting the often patronising approach taken by Western researchers when investigating collectivist cultures – particularly those who have suffered privations or disasters

  • However, there is the possibility that she looks for examples of findings that reflect her own ideas about children living in war zones, which would affect the validity of the findings (confirmation bias)