Migrant Parents of Adolescents With School Refusal: A Qualitative Study of Parental Distress and Cultural Barriers in Access to Care

Abstract

Introduction: School refusal is an important problem in adolescent psychiatry. However, little is known about the experience of school refusal among minority youth (migrants and minority ethnic groups). This study assesses how parents of various cultural backgrounds experience their adolescents' school refusal. Method: This qualitative study is based on interviews of 11 parents of teenagers diagnosed with school refusal at three adolescent outpatient mental health units in Paris and its suburbs. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used for the thematic investigation. Results: The analysis found four themes: (i) confronting school and school refusal distresses parental representations; (ii) school refusal as a failure of the family's obligation to succeed after migration; (iii) representations of school that fluctuate with time since arrival: idealization, followed by mistrust and disappointment in the inequalities, even the racism; (iv) solutions envisioned for school refusal, confronting the healthcare system, stigma, and, again, inequality. Conclusion: All parents question their parenting choices when their children become school refusers. However, when families belong to minority groups, school refusal calls into question parents' relations with the French school system and their immigration choices. At the same time, the construction of a multicultural identity for children and adolescents in transcultural situations requires them to strike a balance between two worlds, and school refusal endangers this delicate negotiation.

School Refusal in Immigrants and Ethnic Minority Groups: A Qualitative Study of Adolescents' and Young Adults' Experiences

“…In one 2015 case study, Benoit et al ( 16 ) described an adolescent immigrant for whom school refusal represented an expression of larger struggles with identity. Since then, Rosenthal et al ( 17 ) showed in a qualitative study with 11 immigrant parents of adolescents that these parents feel overwhelmed by school refusal and that they understand it as a failure to fulfill the immigrant narrative's mandate of success. While immigrant parents initially idealized the school system of their new home country, their experiences of rejection and racism led to disappointment and mistrust.…”

Multifamily Therapy for Adolescents With School Refusal: Perspectives of the Adolescents and Their Parents

“…Working with families appears to be a crucial element in child and adolescent psychiatry ( 19 ). School refusal has a major impact on families, and may stretch the parents' vulnerability ( 20 , 21 ). Moreover, the degree of commitment of school personnel toward children with school refusal largely depends on their parents' attitudes ( 22 ).…”

What Contributes to the Development and Maintenance of School Refusal in Chinese Adolescents: A Qualitative Study

“…Adolescence is a sensitive period during which the risks of serious consequences of school refusal are highest ( 5 ). For youth, school plays an important role in their acquisition of knowledge and development of socialization skills.…”