Post-migration journey: Asylum, trauma and resilience, different trajectories - A comparison of the mental health and post-migration living difficulties of documented and undocumented migrants in Belgium.
Herroudi, Laura; Knüppel, Iris; Blavier, Adelaïde
2024 • In International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 70 (1), p. 201 - 208
PTSD resilience; Post-migration living difficulties; mental health; undocumented migrants; Adult; Humans; Mental Health; Belgium/epidemiology; Transients and Migrants; Resilience, Psychological; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/epidemiology; Refugees/psychology; Psychiatry and Mental Health
Abstract :
[en] [en] BACKGROUND: Research on the impact of post-migration experiences on the mental health of migrant populations has shown a predictive link between post-migration living difficulties and psychological distress. While many studies have focussed on refugees and asylum seekers, there is a considerable gap in the literature concerning undocumented migrants.
AIMS: The aim of this study was to assess the differences in mental health between documented and undocumented migrants in Belgium. It identified the post-migration difficulties encountered by these two groups and measured their impact on their levels of trauma, resilience, anxiety, depression and their assumptive world.
METHOD: This study involved 69 participants, aged 18 to 68 years, who were either documented or undocumented resident in Belgium. Our data collection included the Post-Migration Living Difficulties Checklist for the measurement of post-migration difficulties, the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist - DSM-V version for the measurement of trauma, the World Assumptions Questionnaire for the measurement of the assumptive world, the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 for the measurement of depressive and anxiety disorders and the Adult Resilience Measure - Revised for the measurement of resilience.
RESULTS: Our analyses showed that the mental health of undocumented migrants was poorer than that of documented migrants, with higher levels of trauma, anxiety and depression, a more negative assumptive world, a lower sense of control and lower total and personal resilience. Our results also revealed that post-migration living difficulties were more severe and more numerous for undocumented migrants, and that they were associated to different themes in both groups.
CONCLUSIONS: The fact that post-migration experience plays such an important role in the mental health of migrant populations raises significant clinical, political and societal considerations. Furthermore, it would appear that undocumented migrants represent a distinct migratory group with their own specificities in terms of migration journey and mental health.
Research Center/Unit :
ARCH - Adaptation, Résilience et CHangement - ULiège
Disciplines :
Treatment & clinical psychology
Author, co-author :
Herroudi, Laura ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département de Psychologie > Psycho-traumatisme
Knüppel, Iris ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département de Psychologie > Psycho-traumatisme
Blavier, Adelaïde ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département de Psychologie > Psycho-traumatisme
Language :
English
Title :
Post-migration journey: Asylum, trauma and resilience, different trajectories - A comparison of the mental health and post-migration living difficulties of documented and undocumented migrants in Belgium.
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