Beyond Trauma: Post-resettlement Factors and Mental Health Outcomes Among Latino and Asian Refugees in the United States

Abstract

War-related traumas impact refugees' mental health. Recent literature suggests that structural and sociocultural factors related to the resettlement also become critical in shaping refugees' mental health. So far, there is limited empirical evidence to support this claim among resettled refugees. Resettlement contextual factors that influence mental health outcomes were examined using Latino and Asian refugees (n = 656) from a nationally representative survey. Linear and logistic regressions predicted factors associated with the study's outcomes (self-reported mental health, mood disorders, and anxiety disorders). Post-resettlement traumas were significantly associated with mental health outcomes, but pre-resettlement traumas were not. Unemployment, everyday discrimination, and limited English were significantly associated with mental health outcomes among both Latino and Asian refugees. The outcomes indicate that resettlement contextual factors have a significant association with refugees' mental health. Therefore, future studies with refugees must pay closer attention to structural and sociocultural factors after resettlement.

Impacts of social integration and loneliness on mental health of humanitarian migrants in Australia: evidence from a longitudinal study

“…The findings were consistent with previous research showing a significant relationship between health indicators and post‐migration stressors such as discrimination, economic stressors and worry about overseas friends 17 . However, we did not find any significant links between resettlement services use and mental health; only the relationship between job training or further study and general health was significant.…”

The Global Refugee Crisis: Empirical Evidence and Policy Implications for Improving Public Attitudes and Facilitating Refugee Resettlement

“…Extant evidence suggests that postdisplacement economic opportunities (e.g., access to employment and income) predict better mental health outcomes for refugees (Bogic et al., ; Kim, ; Porter & Haslam, ). In their analysis of South–East Asian refugees in Canada, Wickrama et al.…”

The impact of post‐migration stressors on refugees’ emotional distress and health: A longitudinal analysis

“…Empirical evidence has started to document the impact of economic and social stressors in the resettlement environment on refugees’ mental health outcomes (for a review, see Li et al., ). For example, psychopathology among refugees has been linked to their experience of post‐migration unemployment and underemployment (Kim, ), housing (in)security (Bogic et al., ), lack of safety (Ager & Strang, ), and perceived discrimination (Alemi et al., ). However, relatively little is known about how or why post‐migration stressors affect longer‐term health outcomes among refugees.…”