title: Challenges faced by former child soldiers in the aftermath of war in Uganda.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Warfare takes a profound toll of all layers of society, creating multiple and multilevel challenges that impinge on the psychosocial well-being of affected individuals. This study aims to assess the scope and salience of challenges confronting former child soldiers and at identifying additional challenges they face compared to non-recruited young people in war-affected northern Uganda.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study was carried out with a stratified random sample of northern Ugandan adolescents (n = 1,008), of whom a third had formerly been recruited (n = 330). The mixed-method comparison design consisted of a constrained free listing task to determine the challenges; a free sorting task to categorize them into clusters; and statistical analysis of their prevalence among formerly recruited youth and of how they compare with those of nonrecruited youth.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Altogether, 237 challenges were identified and clustered into 15 categories, showing that formerly recruited participants mainly identified "emotional" and "training and skills"-related challenges. Compared with nonrecruited counterparts, they reported significantly more "emotional" and fewer "social and relational" challenges, with the exception of stigmatization. Overall, there was similarity between the challenges reported by both groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The challenges confronting formerly recruited youths reach well beyond the effects of direct war exposure and emerge mainly from multiple influence spheres surrounding them. These challenges are largely shared in common with nonrecruited youths. This multidimensional and collective character of challenges calls for comprehensive psychosocial interventions through which healing the psychological wounds of war is complemented by mending the war-affected surroundings at all levels and in all life areas.
authors: Department of Orthopedagogics, Centre for Children in Vulnerable Situations, Ghent University, Gent, Belgium. Sofie.Vindevogel@UGent.be
authors: Sofie
authors: S
authors: Vindevogel
authors: Maarten
authors: M
authors: De Schryver
authors: Eric
authors: E
authors: Broekaert
authors: Ilse
authors: I
authors: Derluyn
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003906:Developing Countries; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000523:psychology*; D000297:Psychology, Adolescent; D012917:Social Adjustment; D057545:Social Stigma; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D014454:Uganda; D014857:Warfare; D055815:Young Adult