Alternative Ways of Capturing the Legacies of Traumatic Events: A Literature Review of Agency of Children Living in Countries Affected by Political Violence and Armed Conflicts

Abstract

Background: It has been revealed that the construct of agency plays a crucial role in contributing to children’s positive functioning and well-being despite their traumatic contexts. Yet there is little agreement within the literature about the definition of agency, how agency is displayed by children, or how it should be investigated. Aims: This study provides a synthetic overview of studies that have analyzed the agency of children living in contexts affected by political violence and armed conflict. In the process, it highlights major theoretical breakthroughs and findings in this area of research. The aim was to review research investigating the different ways in which children’s agency manifests itself within their everyday lives, as well as possible policy implications. Method: We identified published peer-reviewed studies relating to children’s agency in conflict-affected environments through a narrative literature review. An ecological framework was used to organize studies according to the different settings (personal, familial, cultural, or contextual) within which the children’s agency was displayed. Results: Of 682 studies identified from online searches of the literature and the three additional sources gathered through bibliography mining, 63 qualified for full review, with 15 studies included in the final synthesis. Overall, the literature focused mostly on the ways in which children’s ability to mobilize resources emerged in order to cope with their challenging contexts. Conclusion: Scholars advocated for community-oriented and child-centered programs that are aimed not only at promoting recovery from symptoms but also at fostering advocacy and a sense of agency in children.

How Do We Assess How Agentic We Are? A Literature Review of Existing Instruments to Evaluate and Measure Individuals' Agency

“…In the absence of common guidelines for narrative reviews, the quality of this review was improved by adopting methodologies from systematic reviews (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses criteria-PRISMA). Indeed, by following some of the PRISMA criteria (e.g., the flow diagram, eligibility criteria, information sources, study selection), the bias in the articles' selection was reduced (Cavazzoni et al, 2020;Ferrari, 2015;Omaleki & Reed, 2019). Hence, the review is a systematic mapping of current findings and an attempt to highlight ideas for future research and interventions (Marriott et al, 2014).…”

“…So far, several contributions have documented agency in people living in areas of conflict, poverty or marginalization (Gigengack, 2014;Klocker, 2007;Veronese et al, 2019aVeronese et al, , 2019b or among women across the globe (James-Hawkins et al, 2018;Kabeer, 1999;Martin & Phillips, 2017;Veronese et al, 2019a), highlighting participants' actions and reactions concerning situations of oppression or structural violations experienced in everyday life. Moreover, most recently, a major focus of agency also occurs within New Studies on Childhood (Prout & James, 1997), which have come to highlight children's abilities to give meaning to their life contexts and mobilize resources and survival skills to protect their well-being (Abebe, 2019;Cavazzoni et al, 2020;Edmonds, 2019;Tisdall & Punch, 2012). Within this multifaceted literature, agency has been associated with personal skills and competencies (e.g., cognitive competencies, optimism, self-esteem) as well as with social and community resources.…”

“…Within this multifaceted literature, agency has been associated with personal skills and competencies (e.g., cognitive competencies, optimism, self-esteem) as well as with social and community resources. It has also been documented as occurring within families, social structures, and the broader environment, highlighting its multi-dimensionality (Abebe, 2019;Cavazzoni et al, 2020;Spyrou, 2018).…”

“…This is an important outcome since, as previously outlined, the construct of agency is central in psychology and the human sciences, especially in the last two decades. Observing and evaluating people's agentic behaviors and practices (of women, men, children) allows for greater insight into the various modes of negotiating their life contexts, navigating difficulties, and utilizing the resources (personal, local, relational, community) present in their environment (Cavazzoni et al, 2020;Eteläpelto et al, 2013;Spyrou, 2018;Sutterlüty & Tisdall, 2019;Veronese et al, 2019aVeronese et al, , 2019b. Moreover, as the literature points out, investigating people's agency informs us about their well-being, their resilience, and their daily actions with respect to the structures in which their lives are embedded.…”

Measuring agency in children: the development and validation of the War Child Agency Assessment Scale - Palestinian version (WCAAS-Pal).

“…The assumption here is that if children were allowed to develop their own accord and act as agents of change in their realities, they would likely produce a better society (Oswell, 2013). Indeed, children have been depicted to be actively involved in assigning meaning to their reality and promoting their psychological well-being and functioning (Cavazzoni, Fiorini & Veronese, 2020;Veronese, Cavazzoni & Antenucci, 2018). In clinical psychology, it is possible to nd several studies uncovering the multidimensional aspects of children's agency, depicting it as a psychological source for mobilizing survival skills and personal well-being among children (Veronese et al, 2018).…”