Influence Of Orphanage Homes On A Child’s Development And Personality

INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background Of Study
Children are a nation’s most valuable asset and its future. They should be provided with adequate opportunity for proper physical, mental, social, and moral development, as well as personality development and education, by society (Abro, 2012). Families are the ideal places for children to socialize, and it is the state’s responsibility to offer social services and safety, as well as to ensure the family’s integrity. Parents are responsible for caring for and supporting their children, and in the event that they are unable to do so, grandparents or other close relatives often step in to care for their grandkids. An orphan is a child whose parents are no longer alive (death), desertion, or unable to care for them (UNICEF, 2008). Orphans are vulnerable children under the age of eighteen who have experienced major issues and are at risk of abandoning their education due to risks to food, shelter, and health care. A large number of orphans exist around the world with no natural relatives due to a variety of factors such as parental death, parental separation, domestic damaging treatment, and disrespect. Poverty, lack of access to basic services, abuse, neglect, disease, impairments, and emergencies are the most common reasons for children being separated from their parents (Bilson & Cox; 2007). It is an embarrassment to all society members who do not pay attention to orphans or provide financial aid (Meintjes and Bray, 2006).If a child does not have any relatives who can help him, orphanages are one of the options for providing him with shelter, health care, food, education, and housing. An orphanage is a non-profit organization dedicated to caring for children whose parents have died or are otherwise unable to sustain them (The Faith to Action Initiative, 2014). In other terms, an orphanage is a facility that cares for children whose biological parents are deceased, incapable, or unwilling to care for their children (wisegeek, 2003-2015). It is a children’s housing care service that is designed to care for children from the moment of their admission until they reach adulthood or freedom, and which positions itself as a satisfactory or better alternative for the children’s families. The orphanages’ functions have been to provide a home for infants to be raised as alternative players in welfare, development, and to salvage the state’s failed role in child protection.
Orphaned children, according to UNESCO (2009), lose their childhood when they become breadwinners. It becomes impossible to obtain enough sustenance, basic health care, shelter, clothing, and education. Some households, on the other hand, are disbanded because the parents have died, and the children are handed to relatives for care and upbringing. According to the WORLD BANK (2011), poverty and the HIV/AIDS epidemic have taken a terrible toll on children and their families. According to a UNICEF research from 2014, over the thirty years of the global HIV and AIDS epidemic, an estimated 153 million children have lost one or both parents for various reasons. It was also stated that around 30 million youngsters under the age of fifteen are HIV positive. Consequently, despite a decrease in global frequency and better access to treatment, the number of children affected or vulnerable has increased, as they are more likely to be victims of abuse in institutions, on the streets, or in child-headed families. The economic crisis in African countries has had a significant impact on orphaned children’s lives. Economic pressures, according to Freidman (2000), can lead to parental depression or severe inconsistent parenting, both of which are linked to children’s socio-emotional issues. According to Buckner (2004), children may be placed with family members or strangers in a group or home with up to a dozen foster children living under the constant supervision of a parent or an institution. Maslow (1987) asserts in Biehler and Snowman (2000) that if a kid’s physiological needs are not met, the child will suffer socially, cognitively, and emotionally. Orphanage is a key risk factor for adult poverty, because of, among other things, a lack of human capital investments in children. Ainsworth and Filmer (2006) show significant variation in the orphan/non-orphan disparity between nations, concluding that generalizations about the extent to which orphans are disadvantaged are difficult to make. The orphanage home is only one of the many social institutions that have sprung up in recent years to meet the social requirements of orphans all over the world. Motherless kids have become more widespread in recent years as a result of society’s moral degradation. Young individuals who are unable to care for themselves are forced into the family system, where they end up leaving those vulnerable newborns. As a result of the current economic downturn, the incidence of stress in family relationships has increased, as has the subsequent loss of solid control of family members. As seen by the growing number of abandoned babies, these babies have tended to become the center of the orphanage home’s attention. The importance of an orphanage home on a child’s personality development, namely on the social behavior pattern of that child, can not be overstated.

1.2 Statement Of Problem
The children of a country are both its most valuable resource and its hope for the future. They should be provided by society with the opportunities necessary for healthy physical, mental, social, and moral development, as well as opportunities for the formation of their personalities and education (Abro, 2012). (Abro, 2012). It is the responsibility of the state to provide social services and a secure environment, as well as to protect the integrity of families while doing so. Families are the ideal settings in which children may connect with one another. Parents are the primary caregivers and financial providers for their offspring; but, in the event that the parents are unable to fulfill these responsibilities, it is common for grandparents or other close relatives to step in and take care of their grandkids. Orphans are children who have lost both of their biological parents due to circumstances such as death, abandonment, or incapacity to provide for them (UNICEF, 2008). (UNICEF, 2008). Orphans are vulnerable children under the age of eighteen who have been confronted with significant problems and are at risk of dropping out of school due to threats to their access to food, shelter, and medical care. Orphans are referred to as “vulnerable children.” There are a significant number of children across the world who have lost both of their biological parents and have no living relatives as a result of a variety of circumstances, including the passing of a parent, the dissolution of the family unit, abuse or neglect at home, or abandonment. The most common reasons for children to be taken away from their parents include things like poverty, a lack of access to essential services, physical or emotional abuse, neglect, illness or disability, and emergency situations (Bilson & Cox; 2007). (Bilson and Cox’s 2007 research). Those members of society who do not pay attention to orphans or offer financial assistance should be ashamed of themselves (Meintjes and Bray, 2006). (Meintjes and Bray, 2006). [Citation needed] Orphanages are one of the options available to a child who does not have any relatives who are able to aid him and who thus need accommodation, medical care, food, an education, or any combination of these things. Orphanages are charitable institutions that provide residential care for children whose biological parents are either no longer alive or are unable to provide for them in some other way. (A Faith to Action Initiative Report Was Published in 2014) (A Faith to Action Initiative Report Was Published in 2014) Or, to put it another way, an orphanage is a home for children without biological parents because those children’s parents have either passed away, become unable to care for them, or choose not to do so (wisegeek, 2003-2015). (wisegeek, 2003-2015). It is a children’s housing care service that is intended to care for children from the time of their entrance until they attain maturity or independence, and it presents itself as a suitable or better option for the families of the children. The children are meant to be cared for from the time of their entrance until they attain either maturity or independence. Orphanages have traditionally served the purpose of providing a home for infants so that they might be raised as alternative participants in welfare and development programs, as well as to rescue the failed role that the state plays in child protection.
According to UNESCO (2009), orphaned children lose their childhood once they become responsible for providing for themselves. It becomes more difficult to get basic necessities such as appropriate nourishment, basic medical treatment, shelter, clothing, and an education. On the other side, some families are no longer together because one or both of the parents has passed away, and the responsibility of raising the children is passed on to other members of the extended family. According to the World Bank (2011), children and their families have been subjected to a terrible amount of suffering as a direct result of the pandemic of HIV/AIDS. According to a research that was published by UNICEF in 2014, throughout the course of the thirty years that the global pandemic of HIV and AIDS has been ongoing, an estimated 153 million children have lost either one or both of their parents as a result of various circumstances. In addition to this, it was stated that there are around 30 million HIV-positive adolescents under the age of fifteen. Since children are more likely to be abused in institutions, on the streets, or in child-headed homes, the number of children who are either affected by the condition or susceptible to it has increased, despite the fact that the frequency of the condition has decreased around the world and that more people have access to treatment. Orphaned children’s lives have been profoundly impacted by the ongoing economic crisis that has gripped several countries in Africa. According to Freidman (2000), economic problems may lead to parental melancholy or severe inconsistent parenting, both of which are associated to children’s socio-emotional illnesses. Moreover, economic issues can also lead to unemployment. According to Buckner (2004), children may be put with relatives or with strangers in a group or house with up to a dozen other foster children living under the continuous supervision of a parent or an institution. This can take place in a foster home or in a group home. Maslow (1987) contends in Biehler and Snowman (2000) that if the physiologic needs of a child aren’t met, the child will have developmental setbacks in the areas of socialization, intellectual development, and emotional well-being. Orphanages are one of the most important risk factors for adult poverty because, among other things, they do not make enough investments in their children’s human capital. Ainsworth and Filmer (2006) discover that there is significant variation in the orphan/non-orphan disparity between nations. This indicates that it is difficult to make generalizations about the degree to which orphans are at a disadvantage. The orphanage home is only one of the many social institutions that have sprung up in recent years to handle the social needs of orphans all over the world. There are now a great number of these institutions. In recent years, there has been a rise in the number of infants who have been born without a mother as a direct result of the moral decay of society. Young people who are unable to care for themselves on their own are often coerced into entering the family system, where they eventually give up those helpless infants. The current state of the economy has led to an increase in the frequency of stressful situations that occur within family connections, which in turn has led to a loss of strong control over members of the family. These infants, as seen by the rise in the number of newborns who have been left behind, have a tendency to become the primary focus of the orphanage home’s care. It is impossible to understate the impact that growing up in an orphanage has on the formation of a child’s personality, particularly with regard to the youngster’s pattern of social conduct.

1.3 Objective Of Study
The general objective of the study is to examine the influence of orphanage homes on a child’s development and personality in Abuja. The following are specific objectives:
i. To investigate if orphanage homes influences a child’s personality and development .
ii. To assess if the morale and attitudes of a child is influenced by orphanage homes.
iii. To find out the strategies that are being employed by the orphanage homes to help in the development of children’s personality.

1.4 Research Question
The following questions have been prepared for the study:
i. Do orphanage homes influences a child’s personality and development ?
ii. Is the morale and attitudes of a child influenced by orphanage homes?
iii. What are the strategies that are being employed by the orphanage homes to help in the development of children’s personality?

1.5 Research Hypothesis
The following hypothesis have been formulated for the study
H01: Orphanage homes do not influences a child’s personality and development.
H02: The morale and attitudes of a child is not influenced by orphanage homes.

1.6 Significance Of Study
This study will be of significance to the Director or Administrators of orphanage homes as the guide children on having good morales and attitude that will imbibe in them good personalities and aid development in them.
The study will be significant to the academic community as it will contribute to the existing literature.