ABSTRACT

Children raised in orphanage homes may experience difficulties in adjusting effectively to the wider society. These difficulties may be reflected in their dispositions and social behaviours, as some of them tend to be introverted and prefer to keep to themselves. In some cases, children raised in orphanage homes may experience delays in certain aspects of cognitive and verbal development. Growing up in an orphanage may also influence a child’s cultural traditions, religious beliefs, interests, ambitions, ideas, and general perception of life. These factors may subsequently affect personality development, as the behaviour of children raised in institutional settings may sometimes be less socially developed and more immature than that of children raised by their biological parents. Consequently, there has been increasing research interest in examining the effectiveness of orphanage homes and their influence on child personality development.

This study seeks to examine both the positive and negative impacts of orphanage homes on children’s personality development. Specifically, the study aims to determine the effect of orphanage homes on children’s personality development and examine the morals, attitudes, and behaviours of children raised in orphanage homes. The research is considered important to orphanage home administrators and other stakeholders whose objective is to support the development of children raised in institutional settings and ensure that they attain sound overall development. The population of the study comprises professionals, including social workers, sociologists, psychologists, and rehabilitative counsellors working at Wisdom Orphanage Home, Accra. The study adopts a survey research design. To obtain the necessary information concerning the subject matter, a self-developed questionnaire was administered to 150 respondents. The questionnaire contained questions relating to respondents’ sex, marital status, and their perceptions of the impact of orphanage homes on child personality development. The findings from the survey revealed that orphanage homes have a significant impact on children’s personality development and that orphanage homes can also make positive contributions to society generally.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Orphanage homes are among the numerous social institutions that have emerged over the years to provide care and respond to some of the social and developmental needs of orphaned and vulnerable children (Sarason & Sarason, 2017). These institutions provide accommodation, feeding, protection, education, healthcare, emotional support, and other forms of assistance to children who are unable to receive adequate care within their families.

Motherless and abandoned babies have increasingly become a concern in contemporary society. Some young people who are unable to adequately provide for themselves and their children may find themselves in situations where they abandon their innocent and helpless babies. Increasing economic hardship and social pressures may also place considerable strain on family relationships, resulting in weakened family structures and reduced parental control over family members (Vargo et al., 2014).

These circumstances have contributed to the increasing number of abandoned babies in some communities. Such children subsequently become a major focus of orphanage homes, which provide them with shelter and other forms of care. The existence of orphanage homes therefore raises important questions about their influence on children's personality development, particularly in relation to behavioural patterns and social interactions (Overmier, 2017).

The present study attempts to compare children between the ages of one month and three years who are raised in orphanage homes with children of similar ages who grow up with their parents. Children raised in orphanage homes may exhibit distinctive behavioural patterns and certain social attitudes that could be associated with their upbringing and institutional environment (Herbert, 2015). The study therefore seeks to examine the positive and negative aspects of orphanage homes and their general influence on children's personality development.

The loss of a parent, particularly the mother, can have considerable emotional and psychological consequences for a child. Children who lose parental care through death, abandonment, or other circumstances may require alternative forms of protection and support. In some cases, babies abandoned in hospitals or on the streets are taken into orphanage homes where they receive care and protection.

Social welfare services and the training of professional social workers in different areas can contribute significantly to the achievement of government objectives relating to the improvement of people's welfare. However, social workers can make meaningful contributions toward achieving these objectives only when they possess a clear understanding of the problems confronting vulnerable individuals and communities (Minde, 2018).

Understanding the causes and effects of orphanhood, child abandonment, and institutional upbringing on individuals and the wider community is therefore important. This study represents an attempt to examine these developments and document their implications. The study focuses specifically on the impact of orphanage homes on child personality development and considers how the experiences of children raised in such environments may influence their personality and behaviour in later stages of life.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Children who are raised in orphanage homes may experience difficulties in adapting effectively to life outside the institutional environment. Such difficulties may be reflected in their social dispositions and behaviours, as some children may become introverted and prefer to remain by themselves. In some cases, children raised in institutional settings may also experience challenges relating to cognitive development, communication, and verbal intelligence (Bledsoe, 2018).

According to Sigmund Freud (2015), the early experiences of children can have significant implications for their subsequent psychological and personality development. Children who grow up in orphanage homes may experience changes in their cultural traditions, religious orientations, interests, beliefs, ambitions, and ideas, all of which may influence their personality development. Their behaviours may sometimes be less socially developed or more immature when compared with children raised within their natural family environment (Hunter, 2015).

The increasing number of children living in orphanage homes has therefore generated interest in understanding the effectiveness of these institutions and their influence on children's development. While orphanage homes are established to provide protection, care, and support to vulnerable children, concerns remain about whether institutional care adequately meets children's emotional, psychological, social, cultural, and developmental needs.

The problem addressed by this study is therefore the need to determine the extent to which growing up in an orphanage home influences the personality development of children. It is also necessary to identify the positive and negative effects of institutional upbringing and examine the morals, attitudes, and social behaviours acquired by children raised in orphanage homes.

1.3 Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of orphanage homes on child personality development in Ghana. Specifically, the study seeks to:

1. Find out the positive and negative impacts of orphanage homes on children's personality development.

2. Determine the effect of orphanage homes on children's personality development.

3. Examine the morals and attitudes of children raised in orphanage homes.

1.4 Significance of the Study

This study seeks to provide an understanding of the effects of orphanage homes on children's personality development, with the aim of assisting researchers, orphanage home administrators, social workers, and other relevant stakeholders to pay appropriate attention to the developmental needs of children living in institutional settings.

The study will provide useful information that may enable orphanage home administrators to improve the conditions and quality of care provided to children. It may also encourage greater attention to children's psychological, emotional, social, cultural, educational, and behavioural development rather than focusing only on their basic physical needs.

Furthermore, the findings may assist stakeholders in developing appropriate strategies for supporting children raised in orphanage homes so that they can develop sound personalities, positive social behaviours, and desirable personality traits. The study may also serve as a useful reference for future researchers interested in orphanage care, child development, child welfare, and personality development.

1.5 Research Questions

The study seeks to provide answers to the following research questions:

1. What are the positive and negative impacts of orphanage homes on children's personality development?

2. What are the likely effects of orphanage homes on children's personality development?

3. What morals and attitudes are acquired by children raised in orphanage homes?

1.6 Research Hypotheses

The following hypotheses are formulated in the null and alternative forms to guide the study.

Hypothesis One

H₀: Orphanage homes do not have a positive impact on society in general.

H₁: Orphanage homes have a positive impact on society in general.

Hypothesis Two

H₀: Orphanage homes do not have a significant impact on children's personality development.

H₁: Orphanage homes have a significant impact on children's personality development.

1.7 Scope of the Study

This study is limited to orphanage homes in Accra, Ghana, with particular reference to Wisdom Orphanage Home, Accra. The study is specifically concerned with examining the impact of orphanage homes on children's personality development.

The scope of the study covers issues relating to children's behavioural patterns, attitudes, morals, social development, and general personality development within the context of institutional upbringing. The study also considers the positive and negative influences that orphanage homes may have on children and how these experiences may affect their development.