ABSTRACT

Young people in orphanages are exposed to compounding structural inequalities tied to local, national, and global processes. Popular criticisms of orphanages highlight the potential harm of institutionalised living, including abuse and exploitation associated with the global rise of voluntourism and the intensified disadvantages young people face when transitioning out of institutionalised care. Yet, these concerns often lack cultural specificity and understanding of complex lived experiences from the Global South, instead reinforcing a simplistic image of young people in care as passive or damaged victims. This article examines the narratives of young people who grew up in an orphanage in Thailand. Now in their early 20s, nine young Thais participated in interviews and a focus group which they saw as self-advocacy regarding their experiences of care as the orphanage shifted from a small residential house of 40 children to a larger institution with 100 children. Participants reported a loss of intimate care as the orphanage grew, damaging their sense of self and precipitating their using strategies to obtain desired forms of care, with implications for their adult relationships. Such insights are important for informing alternative care policies that nurture the sort of care that matters to those with lived experience.

摘要

孤儿院的年轻人面临着与地方、国家和全球进程相关的复杂结构性不平等。对孤儿院的普遍批评强调了制度化生活的潜在危害，包括与全球志愿旅游兴起相关的虐待和剥削，以及年轻人在摆脱制度化照料时面临的不利处境加剧。然而，这些担忧往往缺乏文化特异性和对来自全球南方的复杂生活经历的理解，反而强化了被照顾的年轻人作为被动或受损受害者的简单形象。本文考察了在泰国孤儿院长大的年轻人的故事。现在20出头，九名泰国年轻人参加了采访和焦点小组，他们认为这是对孤儿院从一个只有 40 名儿童的小型住宅转变为拥有 100 名儿童的大型机构时他们的照顾经历的自我宣传。参与者报告说，随着孤儿院的成长，他们失去了亲密的照顾，损害了他们的自我意识，并促使他们使用策略来获得所需的照顾形式，这对他们的成人关系产生了影响。这些见解对于告知替代护理政策非常重要，这些政策可以培养对那些有生活经验的人来说很重要的护理。损害他们的自我意识并促使他们使用策略来获得所需的护理形式，这对他们的成人关系有影响。这些见解对于告知替代护理政策非常重要，这些政策可以培养对那些有生活经验的人来说很重要的护理。损害他们的自我意识并促使他们使用策略来获得所需的护理形式，这对他们的成人关系有影响。这些见解对于告知替代护理政策非常重要，这些政策可以培养对那些有生活经验的人来说很重要的护理。