Structured family, protective family

Abstract

Using a clinical approach, this research explores the role of a structured family in protecting adolescents who experienced potentially traumatic extreme violence during the 1990s in Algeria.

This research is based on the analysis of family representations of ten young adults who experienced terrorism during their adolescence. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to explore the degree of structure within these families. The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) was also analysed in order to assess the subjects' defensive quality and intrapsychic adaptive capacity (by evaluating the coherence of the TAT narratives).

The analysis of the interviews and TAT protocols reveals a relationship between the degree of family structure and the psychological resilience of the subjects. In fact, subjects who come from structured families show resilience and the ability to develop defence mechanisms that contribute to adaptation.

On the other hand, subjects from unstructured families show significant psychological distress, leading to the use of defensive modes based on avoidance, inhibition or recourse to archaic mechanisms.