Beyond child soldiering: the interference of daily living conditions in former child soldiers' longer term psychosocial well-being in northern Uganda.

Given the various developments in former child soldiers' psychosocial well-being over time, the question arises as to which factors are associated with the prevalence of psychological distress. An ongoing debate points to the plausible importance of child soldiering-related and post-child soldiering factors. This study is an exploratory analysis of both types of association with former child soldiers' psychosocial well-being in the longer term. Follow-up data on a convenience sample of 424 northern Ugandan former child soldiers are analysed. Psychological symptoms are assessed by a review of the intake and assessment forms of the Rachele Rehabilitation Centre, which were not validated and did not include a standardised translation into the local language. These psychological symptoms and possible associated factors are analysed using binary logistic regression analysis. Thereby, both child soldiering-related and post-child soldiering variables are accounted for. The outcomes reveal almost no significant main effects of child soldiering-related variables, while a range of post-child soldiering variables (number of meals a day, school attendance, insults and professional support) are clearly associated with the prevalence of the measured psychological symptoms in the longer term. These exploratory conclusions should be further investigated in representative samples of former child soldiers using validated assessment tools.

Forced conscription of children during armed conflict: experiences of former child soldiers in northern Uganda.

OBJECTIVE: Child soldiering can be considered as one of the worst practices of institutionalized child abuse. However, little is known about the scope and nature of this abuse and the consequent experiences of children enrolled in an armed faction. This research aims at enriching the knowledge on the experiences of child soldiers in the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in northern Uganda. METHODS: The databases of 4 former Interim Care Centres for returned child soldiers in northern Uganda, comprising socio-demographic information of 8,790 returnees, and additional data from the Rachele Rehabilitation Centre on war-related experiences of 1,995 former child soldiers, are analyzed using descriptive statistics, analysis of covariance and regression analysis. RESULTS: During on average 1.5 years in captivity, nearly all participants had various war-related experiences, whereby 88% witnessed and 76% forcibly participated in atrocities. Variations in exposure to warfare appear to be mainly associated with age of abduction, duration of captivity, location of captivity, being military trained, and being a rebel's wife. CONCLUSIONS: These findings testify to the vastness of abuse lived through by the child soldiers in this study. They fulfilled a multifaceted position in the LRA, which delivers a range of potential direct and indirect consequences. The variables decisive in differential experiences unveil trends in the strategic abduction by the LRA and in differential exposure to warfare among child soldiers. IMPLICATIONS: The variation in exposure to warfare urges for an individualized approach and monitoring of returning child soldiers. In order to address the potential indirect impact of child soldiering, support also needs to be oriented towards the child's network, based on a socio-ecological approach.