Abstract
This article focuses on the inter-subjective aspects involved in the care of psychosocial crises of adolescents, their representations and developments. A qualitative research was developed from a psycho-sociological perspective by constructing life story narratives of adolescents treated at a Psychosocial Care Center for Children and Adolescents (CAPSi). It was based on the theoretical contributions of René Kaës on group and cultural aspects of the crisis, as well as its relation to adolescence. Life narratives, constructed through in-depth interviews with adolescents, close relatives, and CAPSi caretakers depict crisis as a “surprise”, as violence and estrangement, an episode that must be forgotten, denied, silenced, and medicalized. We concluded that the crisis involves strong mental suffering for adolescents, for the people close to them, and for caretakers, which calls into question the possibilities and limits of care. We, therefore, highlight the importance of protected spaces in both the institution and the health network that would allow the collective construction of new meanings, representations and destinies of crisis, both by users and caretakers.
Key words
Adolescence; Crisis; Psychosocial care; Life narratives; Psychosociology