Conditioning and empowerment to professional activities among orphans of aids parents. Case study: youths aged 15 to 25 of Roger Milla Coeur d’Afrique Foundation

Abstract

This study entitled “conditioning and empowerment to professional activities among orphans of AIDS parents”. It is inscribed in the field of special education, particularly in the domain of social disabilities. It poses the problem of the fact that despite the efforts being put in place the Government, NGOs, capacity building centers, synergies and other partners to make sure OVC gain autonomy through acquisition of skills, thus favoring social integration of the latter, they still find it hard to have mastery over their lives and be autonomous. The main objective is to show how conditioning can help or facilitate empowerment of the latter and help them better cope or be resilient at life’s situations, as they integrate the society after acquiring skills in the capacity building centers. As a guide to the problem, we used behavioral theory of Watson; self-efficacy by Bandura and empowerment theory by Rappaport respectively. The research question that throws more light to our research is as follows “Does conditioning facilitates or favors empowerment process to professional activities among orphans whose parents died of HIV/AIDS?”. The answer to this question has given rise to the general hypothesis formulated as follows; “Conditioning favors during empowerment to professional activities among orphans whose parents died of HIV/AIDS”. The operalization have given rise to three research hypothesis. To test them, we used a sample of 10 selected OVC based on inclusive criteria established from the outset using theoretical sampling techniques. These OVC were met under Coeur D’Afrique Foundation of Roger Mila. We collected the data using semi-directive interviews. The data we collected was analyzed using the qualitative interpretation method which is simply analyzing the content. The process of analyses identified 3 themes which are behavioral conditioning (operant, classical, and observant conditioning), empowerment (support), and self-efficacy (verbal encouragement) respectively. To this effect, our results show that there are three ways through which empowerment to professional activities among OVC can be effective, thus showing some limitations in what is currently going on in the field. It is important to note that these findings contribute in Special Education practices by improving empowerment methods to be put in place in order to effectively help OVC gain their autonomy and as well socially integrate the society while being efficient in whatever they undertake despite their past experience. It will it will help ameliorate empowerment methods being put in place already, for rapid results in the future. Given the complexity of this phenomenon, it is worth reiterating a long term holistic program for the implementation of empowerment methods at capacity building centers for OVC which will of course render their autonomy at all levels easy to deal with after being empowered in a particular skill.