Pacte dénégatif et dépersonnalisation des soignants dans les phénomènes de maltraitance en gériatrie

From interviews with three nursing auxiliaries in nursing home, integrating institutional and singular dimensions, the exploration of the act of disavowal evidences the existence of an intermediate entity, a kind of disavowal pact. Here the setting is quite specific, its object being abuse and neglect in institutions for the elderly. The disavowal pact consists in concealing abuse to ensure that work goes on. Regarding the methods implemented, three interviews were conducted with each respondent, and several themes for exploration were retained: ethics and professional conduct, context and working conditions, and representations of abuse. Earlier research had already positioned disavowal as a central operator in phenomena of abuse from neglect in geriatric settings, and a question had been raised as to whether or not this operator was singular (individual) in nature, since clinical observation rather suggested an intermediate entity, at the crossroads between institution and individual. The aim was thus to determine its implications, its mechanisms, and the main effects on caregivers confronted with abuse, in particular by clarifying the status and function of the depersonalisation phenomena that arise. The institutional issues are then explored, and in particular the advantages of work proceeding, also evidencing major effects on caregivers, in particular the cleavages that undermine identity, and depersonalisation and derealisation factors.