ORPHANHOOD IN UKRAINE: PSYCHOLOGICAL PECULIARITIES OF BIOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL CHILDREN-ORPHANS

Abstract

A brief analysis is carried out on the historical experience of Ukraine regarding the phenomenon of orphanhood, where the state fully assumed responsibility for the maintenance, provision and re-education, if necessary, of such a category of orphans. A short definitional analyses of keywords (psychological peculiarities, biological children-orphans, social children-orphans, euroorphans) is presented in the article. Psychological peculiarities include an individual character, temperament, reaction, ability, talent, etc. Biological children-orphans are children whose parents have been killed or died. Social children-orphans are orphans whose parents are alive. Euroorphans are children of migrant workers. Particular attention is paid to the psychological peculiarities of teenage-orphans who are raised and trained in orphanages, boarding schools. The following features are singled out: alertness, control of emotions, tendency to feel guilty; the presence of character accentuations (psychoasthenic, schizoid, hypertensive, psychopathic reactions, etc.), the phenomenon of «we», which is a peculiar identification of children with one another, undervalued or negative self-esteem, state of stress, anxiety, self-doubt and distrust to other people. The classification of characteristic problems related to social orphanage by O. Melnychenko and the collective of authors is highlighted: by scale, by reasons of occurance; the categories of social orphans are singled out and the state structures that are responsible for solving problems of orphans in Ukraine are identified.