Emotional Well-being of Young Australians with Refugee Experiences Project:
Project Details
What is the study about?
This new study is the first of its kind in Australia. It will help to give a deeper understanding of the emotional health and wellbeing of young South Australians with a refugee background. The study will also look at whether current services are able to provide the right help and care for young people who have emotional and behavioural problems. The information collected in this study will help to ensure good health and wellbeing for young refugees and their families.
What are the aims of the study?
The primary aim of this study is to understand the prevalence of mental health issues affecting young people with refugee experiences aged between 4 and 17 years in South Australia. Particular attention will be given to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Depressive Disorder as these conditions are known to feature strongly in the lives of refugees.
Secondary aims
The secondary aims of the study are to explore the issues which might either protect and foster emotional resilience, or lead to emotional health issues among young people with refugee backgrounds, and the extent to which these young people are able to access appropriate help and care from professional services.
In meeting these aims, the project will address the following areas:
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Emotional health and wellbeing – the prevalence of mental health problems as well as emotional resilience among young people with refugee backgrounds. PTSD and Depressive disorders according to standard diagnostic criteria will be estimated.
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Exposure to Risk – The association of risk factors such as social factors, physical health, the emotional health of parents and parent-child relationships.
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Academic achievement – The relationship between post-traumatic stress symptoms and depression and the relationship of both with academic achievement. This will provide unique information that may lead to an increased understanding of how to make a sustainable difference in the lives of children at risk.
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Building resilience in transcultural mental health – an intervention program specifically addressing culturally determined protective factors in refugee children and adolescents will be developed and a national model of implementation will be suggested.
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Use of services – The patterns of service use by young people with refugee experiences will be mapped. This will provide unique information for the specific health service providers as well as for the mainstream service providers to improve service responsiveness and provision to refugee communities.
The project is expected to lead to a sustainable improvement in the mental health of refugee children and adolescents by providing key stakeholders, particularly policy makers and health service planners, with much needed information to develop intervention strategies and improve service development and provision to refugee communities. Without this information, it is impossible to effectively plan for the mental health needs of young Australians with refugee experiences.
Who is conducting the study?
A group of researchers from the University of South Australia and the University of Adelaide will be conducting this study in partnership with the Migrant Resource Centre of South Australia. The study is funded by the Australian Research Council.
Who is taking part in the study?
800 children and adolescents of refugee background will be invited to take part in the study. These young people will be living in South Australia and must be aged between 4 and 17 years. As young people with a ‘refugee background’, they will have one or both parents who were born overseas and who arrived in Australia as a refugee within the last ten years. The study will also involve participation from parents and school teachers.
Young people invited to participate in the study will have a background from either Afghanistan, Pakistan, Former Yugoslavia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Ethiopia or Somalia.
How are young people selected?
A combination of strategies in multiple settings such as home, school, and community will be used to reach children and families of refugee background. People expressing interest in taking part in the study will be approached for their consent to participate through a “Call for Volunteers Sheet” which is available in their language. In this sheet the purpose of the study is explained. Bilingual health workers as well as the key people who are working with target communities will distribute the “Call for Volunteers Sheet”. The study will also be promoted through social gatherings and ethnic media (radio and newspapers for the target communities). Families with more than one child will be given the option of having up to 2 eligible children from each household participating in the study.