Identity and belonging: refugee youth and their parents’ perception of being Australian

Ziaian, Tahereh; Puvimanasinghe, Teresa; Miller, Emily; Anstiss, Helena de; Esterman, Adrian; Dollard, Maureen F.

doi:10.1080/00050067.2021.1893601

Cited by 9 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…This may be due in part to the gratitude and optimism that working refugees often express after securing stable employment in their country of resettlement [35,75,76]. This positivity and optimism may decrease job stress even though the work environment may be stressful.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Refugees at Work: The Preventative Role of Psychosocial Safety Climate against Workplace Harassment, Discrimination and Psychological Distress

Afsharian

Dollard

Miller

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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It is widely recognised that employment is vital in assisting young refugees’ integration into a new society. Drawing on psychosocial safety climate (PSC) theory, this research investigated the effect of organisational climate on young refugee workers’ mental health (psychological distress) through stressful social relational aspects of work (e.g., harassment, discrimination). Drawing on data from 635 young refugees aged between 15 and 26 in South Australia, 116 refugees with paid work were compared with 519 refugee students without work, and a sample of young workers from Australian Workplace Barometer (AWB) data (n = 290). The results indicated that refugees with paid work had significantly lower psychological distress compared with refugees with no paid work, but more distress than other young Australian workers. With respect to workplace harassment and abuse, young refugee workers reported significantly more harassment due to their ongoing interaction and engagement with mainstream Australian workers compared with unemployed refugees. Harassment played a vital role in affecting psychological health in refugees (particularly) and other young workers. While refugee youth experienced harassment at work, overall, their experiences suggest that their younger age upon arrival enabled them to seek and find positive employment outcomes. Although PSC did not differ significantly between the employed groups, we found that it likely negatively influenced psychological distress through the mediating effects of harassment and abuse. Hence, fostering pathways to successful employment and creating safe work based on high PSC and less harassment are strongly recommended to improve refugees’ mental health and adaptation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Refugees at Work: The Preventative Role of Psychosocial Safety Climate against Workplace Harassment, Discrimination and Psychological Distress

Afsharian

Dollard

Miller

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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“…The experience of post-migration stressors in a resettled refugee population may also exacerbate or precipitate a mental illness. These may include struggling to negotiate changes to one's personal and national identity, prolonged separation from family and friends or the acculturative stress associated with resettling in a foreign country which may present significant changes in culture, language and environment from their country of origin [10,11]. Past research on refugees resettled in highincome Western countries have demonstrated female gender, higher levels of education, greater exposure to traumatic events, less time spent in the host nation and post-migration stressors (e.g., unemployment, poverty and discrimination) have been associated with a greater risk of PTSD and depression [8,10,12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence of common mental disorders in adult Syrian refugees resettled in high income Western countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis

et al. 2022

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Background The immense social upheaval and ongoing humanitarian crisis created by the 2011 war in Syria has forced millions of civilians to flee their homeland, many of whom seek refugee status in Western nations. Whilst it is known that the prevalence of mental illness is higher within refugee populations, this systematic review and meta-analysis aims to pool the prevalence rates of common mental disorders (namely posttraumatic stress disorder, depression and generalized anxiety disorder) in adult Syrian refugees resettled in high income Western countries. Methods Seven electronic databases (Medline, PsychInfo, CINAHL, PTSDpubs, SCOPUS, PubMed and Embase) were searched up to the 31st of December 2020. Using pre-determined inclusion and exclusion criteria, relevant articles were screened by title and abstract, and later by full text. A meta-analysis was used to estimate the prevalence rates for each mental illness. Results Eleven studies met the eligibility criteria for the systematic review. Nine of these studies had a low-moderate risk of bias and were included in the meta-analysis. Of the 4873 refugees included in the meta-analysis, the total pooled prevalence rate of having any of the three mental disorders was 33% (CI 95%, 27-40%), 40% for anxiety (CI 95%, 31-50%), 31% for depression (CI 95%, 20-44%) and 31% for PTSD (CI 95%, 22-41%). A meta-regression revealed that the total pooled prevalence rate for having any of the three mental disorders was not influenced by age, host country, duration in host country, educational or marital status. Conclusions Despite significant study heterogeneity, the prevalence rates of common mental disorders in adult Syrian refugees resettled in high-income Western countries are significantly higher than reported rates in the general population.

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“…Maria’s experience of living with her family of origin was a source of difficulty during adolescence, where her personal values as an Australian of Greek heritage were incongruent with the roles expected of her in traditional Greek culture. Experiences of such culture conflict are common in people with “hyphenated identities” (Edge & Bhugra, 2016 , p. 16), when there are discrepancies between a person’s cultural values and those of their family or larger communities (Bhugra et al, 2010 ; Edge & Bhugra, 2016 ; Ziaian et al, 2021 ). Edge and Bhugra ( 2016 ) stated that widespread adoption of such “ethno-cultural signifiers” (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Greek-Australian) in certain societies including Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, have the potential to impact a person’s mental health due to tensions around belonging and belief. A study by Ziaian et al ( 2021 ) on the experiences of youth from refugee backgrounds and their significant family members, included the voice of a young woman born in Iraq. The participant considered herself “half-half” (p. 133), a shared sentiment among participants who found some resolution in a dual identity.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other research (Piat et al, 2017) suggested both receiving and providing support indicates a broadening of identity dimensions. However, it is pertinent that participants in these studies (Puvimanasinghe et al, 2014;Ziaian et al, 2021) as well as others (Fozdar & Hartley, 2013) such as Kale et al (2018) in the New Zealand context, and including this study, focused largely on the feelings of gratitude for civic provisions, such as services and healthcare, rather than feelings of welcome from the wider Australian community.…”

Section: Identity and Gratitudementioning

confidence: 99%

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Lived Experiences of Mental Health Recovery in Persons of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Backgrounds within the Australian Context

Levy-Fenner

Colucci

McDonough

2022

J. Psychosoc. Rehabil. Ment. Health

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Lived experience research related to mental health recovery is advancing, but there remains a lack of narrative material from the perspectives of people from under-represented, non-dominant cultural backgrounds in this domain. This study aimed to explore the lived experiences of mental health recovery in people of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds in the Australian context. The current study involved a secondary analysis of audio and visual data collected during the digital storytelling project Finding our way in Melbourne, Australia. Thematic analysis was used to understand the lived experience narratives of nine participants in relation to mental health recovery. Five themes were identified through an iterative process of analysis, including Newfound opportunities and care, Family as key motivators and facilitators, Coping and generativity, Cultivating self-understanding and resilience, and Empowerment through social engagement. First person lived experience narratives offer deep insight into understanding the ways in which individuals of marginalised communities conceptualise and embody recovery. These findings further the literature and understanding on how to better serve the needs of people with mental health challenges from CALD communities through informed knowledge of what may be helpful to, and meaningful in, individuals’ recoveries.

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Identity and belonging: refugee youth and their parents’ perception of being Australian

Cited by 9 publications

References 40 publications

Refugees at Work: The Preventative Role of Psychosocial Safety Climate against Workplace Harassment, Discrimination and Psychological Distress

Refugees at Work: The Preventative Role of Psychosocial Safety Climate against Workplace Harassment, Discrimination and Psychological Distress

Prevalence of common mental disorders in adult Syrian refugees resettled in high income Western countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Lived Experiences of Mental Health Recovery in Persons of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Backgrounds within the Australian Context

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