How the Learning Disabilities Cause Psychosocial Problems among children in South Sudan: A Case of Jamjang Refugee Camps
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Abstract:
The study on the learning disabilities and associated psychosocial
problems among children in South Sudan started in 2022 to 2024. The deepening loneliness
and vulnerability of the children with the learning disabilities that influence
the psychosocial problems among children resulted from the conflict in Sudan, which
scattered families, social fabric, community structures, and pushed the families
to seek international protection. The families have limited access to livelihood
and highly dependent on relief services that exacerbate the situation for nurturing
children. The study aimed at ascertaining the presence of the learning disabilities,
associated psychosocial problems and the ways to mitigate and address a growing
phenomenon among refugee children in Jamjang camps. The study employed qualitative,
quantitative, and ethnographical/anthropological method to explore the growing phenomenon.
The tools used in the design includes questionnaires, interviews, and observations.
The study ascertained the presence of the learning disabilities among children which
consists of dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder,
auditory processing disorder, visual and perceptual disorder. These conditions were
manifested in deficiency to write, spell, comprehend, articulate written point,
grammatical errors, arithmetic calculation, and inattention. The study confirmed
how the learning disabilities cause the psychosocial problems which includes low
self-esteem, lack of confidence, anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder,
bully, stigma, and neglect. The finding confirmed the phenomenon can be addressed
through mental health support, multisensory
approaches, and Skinner’s Operant conditioning theory; Cognitive Behavioral
theory of Bandura are crucial in reducing
the adverse effects of the phenomenon.
Keywords: Anxiety, Dyslexia, Depression, Dysgraphia, Learning Disabilities, Psychosocial.
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