Posttraumatic Growth and Immigration: Theory, Research, and Practice Implications

The emotional, cultural, and relational impact of growing up as parachute/satellite kids in Asian American transnational families.

“…Leaving one's country involves multiple losses of physical and cultural familiarities, economic security, social status, language, identity (Weiss & Berger, 2008), and oftentimes one's social support and community. Even when immigration results in improved quality of life (e.g., education, employment, medical safety, etc.…”

“…These findings supported the application of the posttraumatic growth model to enhance our understanding of the psychological processes of children growing up in transnational families, the longterm impact of the family separation, and the potential to heal from the associated immigration and migration trauma. The posttraumatic growth model postulates personal growth as an outcome of cognitiveemotional processing of challenges triggered by stressors or traumatic experiences (Weiss & Berger, 2008). As an intervention, it may also promote healing beyond merely surviving and coping.…”

Resonance as Transformative Learning Moment

“…Africa postwar experiences have been essentialized with little regard paid to African worldviews and human development perspectives (Nsamenang, 2003, 2005, 2007; Ntesane, 2012). This is in spite of the fact that African sociogenic, community-based, and holistic ways of knowing and being do support transformation possibilities, especially posttrauma (Arenliu & Landsman, 2010; Shakespeare-Finch & Enders, 2008; Shakespeare-Finch & Wickham, 2009; Simich, Maiter, & Ochocka, 2009; Weiss & Berger, 2008). This study presents a fuller picture of the African war narrative—that of people who not only have defied the trauma narrative but have thrived and are living out positive lives despite the harm they have suffered.…”

“…At the individual level, newcomers are faced with cognitive, physical/biological, social, psychological, spiritual, and cultural challenges as a result of migration (Este, 1999; Fong, 2004). In addition, for refugees, war and violence exposes these individuals to multilayered and often prolonged periods of emotional distress and trauma specifically because migration is involuntary (Aldous, 1999; Weiss & Berger, 2008). Research shows that the migration process exposes immigrants to significant stress due to the challenges they experience in transit and in adapting to their country of settlement (Berry, 1997; Reitmanova & Gustafson, 2009; Shakespeare-Finch & Wickham, 2009).…”