Cultural Affirmation through Meaning Reconstruction of Rituals and Practices within the Caribbean

Schools and Suicide – The Importance of the Attachment Bond

“…Fowler, Allen, Oldham, and Frueh (2013) define attachment as a close emotional bond that takes place in the context of caregiving and which provides the foundation for social learning, as adolescents learn about their mental states by the responses of other persons to them. The relationship is usually reciprocal in nature and serves as a protective factor for the adolescent, as it provides feelings of security and safety in times of threat and emotional distress (Nakhid-Chatoor, 2017). Ozbay, Fitterling, Charney, and Southwick (2008) agree with these views and state that when an individual has a greater level of bonding to these supportive factors, "when he is strongly attached to parents, friends and teachers and committed to the conventional goals of society (education)" (p. 3), he will not engage in reactive behaviors and aggressive acts.…”

“…and teachers) will determine the extent to which they are able to give meaning to their re/constructions of a crisis that may occur owing to adverse childhood experiences, and the directions that they will choose to take based on the interventions or lack thereof that are made. There is caution against the application of these theories, however, outside of the cultures in which they were developed, as attachment styles and bonds may differ based on the patterns of relatedness in the respective countries where the studies were done (Nakhid-Chatoor, 2017).…”

“…British education was seen as a lever to economic well-being and was much sought after by the masses of liberated peoples where the legacies of the plantation continued to shape practices of schooling. Within the schools, educators continued patriarchal traditions of schooling that, while increasing academic qualifications, were "counterproductive to the socio-emotional well-being of students" (Nakhid-Chatoor, 2017, p. 124). Drummed into the heads of children was the maxim, "Children should be seen and not heard," essentially erasing their voice and establishing innate systems of obedience and conformity to adult authoritarian figures.…”

“…In my research with children and adolescents in Caribbean schools who were affected by grief and loss of a parent or a significant attachment figure in their lives, the methods used by educators to deal with emotional disturbances, reactive behaviors, and outbursts tended to increase symptoms of anxiety and anger. Some examples of these counterproductive methods were punishment, invalidation of the loss, devaluing of the child or adolescent, and verbal chastisements that indirectly led to overt acts of aggression and violence especially among males, and to psychological illnesses such as depression and suicidal ideation in students (Nakhid-Chatoor, 2017). I likened the similarities of punitive discipline in the schools to the rigid and inflexible patriarchy of colonialist rule, and I noted the lingering effects of domination and authoritarian rule that continued in the homes and schools of the teenagers, as was narrated in their conversations with me.…”

“…The culture of the patriarchal society with its emphasis on conformity and obedience has also influenced gender roles and adolescent responses to adverse situations to a large extent. Boys are socialized not to display emotions or talk about their feelings, but to "put on a façade … a bravado … and to not articulate their trauma" (Nakhid-Chatoor, 2017, p. 125).…”