Impact des actes terroristes dans le développement du psychotraumatisme chez les enfants et adolescents

Considering the increase in terrorist attacks worldwide in recent years and their particularly devastating nature, research following these events, including the World Trade Center attacks of September 11th, 2001, has intensified with greater attention to the mental health of survivors. To assess the impact of terrorist acts on children and adolescents, this systematic review used PubMed, Scopus, PsychINFO, and ProQuest databases without publication date limitations. Only studies assessing posttraumatic stress symptoms and psychological, social, and developmental consequences in children and adolescents in the months and years following direct or indirect exposure to terrorist acts were included. Data were extracted according to a range of predefined fields, and studies were checked for reliability using a study quality assessment tool. Eighteen articles were included: thirteen quantitative descriptive studies, four qualitative studies, and one that used a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods. The articles highlight the various difficulties faced by children and adolescents who have been exposed to terrorism during their development (such as posttraumatic stress disorder, neurocognitive, sensorimotor, emotional disorders, etc.), sometimes concomitant with the loss of a loved one killed during the event, and the trauma of their parent also having repercussions on them, effects that are even more important the older they are.