La pratique des jeux de hasard et le décrochage scolaire : cas d'Ekounou dans l'arrondissement de Yaoundé iv (région du centre-Cameroun)

Abstract

In Cameroon, many young people are attracted by the quick gains offered by games of chance. However, the State of Cameroon prohibits these games for adolescents under 21 years of age, the majority of whom are present in high schools and colleges. However, it has been observed that in Ekounou, students in school uniform are seen near sports betting kiosks and engage in games of chance, without the police intervening. Based on this observation, the overall objective, which served as a guiding principle for this research, is to "explain and understand the motivation of students in Ekounou to participate in games of chance, despite the public policy in force to dissuade them and despite the perverse effects that result from it". And the main hypothesis is formulated as follows: "despite the public policy in place and despite the perverse effects, students in Ekounou engage more in games of chance because of several factors". The verification of this hypothesis was done on the basis of three main theories. First, E. Durkheim's theory of social control made it possible to show that Cameroonian policy to combat students' addiction to gambling is broken down into preventive and dissuasive measures and actions. Then, E. Durkheim's deterministic theory revealed its limitation by focusing exclusively on the social structure. Finally, R. Boudon's theory of methodological individualism made it possible to highlight the motivations that push students to leave school to gamble. To verify the main hypothesis, we used 95 documents and conducted 24 semi- directive interviews. Categorical content analysis facilitated the exploitation of the data collected. This methodological mobilization led to the obtaining of four (04) major results. First, sports betting is the game most practiced by students in the Ekounou district, especially those attending public institutions, who engage more in gambling. Then, the data collected by the documentary research show that Cameroon has equipped itself with a binding legal arsenal, in order to effectively combat the addiction of minors to gambling. In addition, two types of inadequacies in the public policy in question were noted. On the one hand, the inadequacies related to the application of laws, in particular by the laxity of the judicial authorities. And on the other hand, the inadequacies related to the implementation of the national strategy, mainly related to poor governance. Finally, two main factors explaining students' addiction to gambling were highlighted (endogenous and exogenous). Endogenous factors are mainly influenced by peer socialization, while exogenous factors are more related to competition between students. Furthermore, two types of harmful effects have been identified (endogenous and exogenous). Endogenous consequences are more reflected in school dropout, while exogenous ones are more related to theft.