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Background Recent Iraqi and Syrian immigrant families are exposed to stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms due to civil war. Recruitment challenges specific to conducting research within this population include the lack of knowledge about research, stigma of mental illness, and mistrust. Purposes Among immigrant Iraqi and Syrian families: (1) evaluate the approach to recruitment and retention; and (2) evaluate the acceptability of the study procedures. Methods This feasibility study was conducted based on the work of Orsmond and Cohn. It is focused on the evaluation of recruitment capability and resulting sample characteristics and evaluation of acceptability and suitability of the study procedures. Mother–father–infant triads were recruited from a community center. Parents completed questionnaires about stress and depressive symptoms. Buccal swab samples were obtained from the triads to measure telomere length, and infant hair samples were obtained to measure cortisol level. Telomere length and hair cortisol were utilized as measures of chronic stress. Results Ten mother–father–infant triads were enrolled out of 11 approached. Challenges faced this study included inability to reach families by telephone and the effect of cultural norms where the husband’s permission was needed before proceeding, resulting in a slow pace of recruitment. The study strategy and procedures appeared to be feasible as all of the families who participated completed all study protocols. Conclusion This study provides feasibility data to inform the launching of a larger study to examine the associations of family stress with infant stress and development. These findings from Iraqi and Syrian families may be generalizable to studies seeking to recruit these and other immigrant and refugee population families.

BackgroundSocial support has been related to postpartum depression (PPD) among immigrant women. The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) has been translated to Arabic (MSPSS-AW) but not validated among postpartum women.PurposeTo further replicate and refine the already existing MSPSS-AW to determine: (a) reliability and construct validity of the MSPSS-AW in immigrant Arab American postpartum women, and (b) relationship of dimensions of social support and PPD.MethodsUsing a cross-sectional design, 115 Arab American immigrant postpartum women completed demographic questionnaire, MSPSS-AW, and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale.ResultsConfirmatory factor analysis replicated three- factor model for social support (Family, Friends, and Husband). Internal consistency reliability coefficients for the three subscales ranged from .65 to .79. The MSPSS-AW subscales were related to PPD symptoms controlling for years of education, anxiety, and depression during pregnancy.ConclusionThe MSPSS-AW is reliable and valid for use with immigrant Arab American postpartum women.

Background: Syrian and Iraqi refugees are a growing segment of the U.S. population, and although exposure to war and violence has been linked to psychological distress in individual refugees, few studies have examined the distress in married couples. Methods: Using a cross-sectional design, a convenience sample of 101 Syrian and Iraqi refugee couples was recruited from a community agency. The purpose of this study was to (1) examine the relationships between perceived adversity and psychological distress (PTSD, anxiety, and depressive symptoms) among individual study participants; and (2) determine whether these relationships were correlated to their spouses’ perceived adversity and psychological distress. Results: The bivariate correlation analysis showed strong positive correlations between PTSD and depression/anxiety for wives ( r = .79; p < .001) and for husbands ( r = .74; p < .001). There were also low- to mid-range positive cross-associations between husbands’ and wives’ PTSD ( r = .34; p = .001) and depression/anxiety ( r = .43; p < .001). Finally, we found a significant positive association between husbands’ and wives’ perception of adversity ( r = .44; p < .001). Interestingly, the husbands’ perception of adversity was positively associated with their PTSD ( r = .30; p = .02) and depression/ anxiety scores ( r = .26; p = .04) as well as with their wives’ depression/ anxiety scores ( r = .23; p = .08). In contrast, the wives’ perception of adversity was not associated with either their own or their spouses’ psychological distress. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that war, trauma, and stress of migration impact the couple as a unit, possibly due to shared experiences, and the impact of one partner’s stress on the other. Addressing these perceptions and personal interpretations of the adverse experiences via cognitive therapy approaches could help reduce not only stress in the individual but also that of their partner.