Impact of Postmigration Living Difficulties on the Mental Health of Afghan Migrants Residing in Istanbul

International Journal of Population Research

Susanne Montgomery¹  Qais Alemi²  Kelly Baek²  Lisa Lares²  Patricia Villa²  Carl Stempel³  Didem Danis⁴ 

[1] Department of Social Work & Social Ecology, Behavioral Health Institute, Loma Linda University, Redlands, CA 92373, USA, llu.edu;Department of Social Work and Social Ecology, School of Behavioral Health, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA 92354, USA, llu.edu;Department of Sociology and Social Services, California State University, East Bay, Oakland, CA 94607, USA, calstate.edu;Department of Sociology, Galatasaray University, 34349 Istanbul, Turkey, gsu.edu.tr

DOI  :  10.1155/2016/7690697

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Hindawi Publishing Corporation

【 摘 要 】

Background. The sociopolitical situation in Afghanistan continually pushes Afghans to seek safety and better socioeconomic prospects in neighboring and foreign countries. In this paper we examine the mental health of Afghan migrants residing in Istanbul, Turkey, an understudied population at high risk of psychopathology. Methods. We surveyed 158 Afghan migrants to assess psychological distress using a culturally grounded measure of mental health, the Afghan Symptom Checklist [ASCL], and used hierarchical regression analysis to examine the impact of postmigration living difficulties (PMLDs) on mental health. Results. We found that depressive, somatoform, anxiety-like symptoms occurred often, as did a number of culturally salient idioms of distress. Regression analyses showed that while socioeconomic variables and poor physical health status significantly predicted psychological distress, PMLDs exerted the strongest negative effect. The most pressing PMLDs for Afghans in Turkey are poverty, unemployment, lack of treatment for health problems, fears of being deported and related legal challenges, and family-related stressors. Conclusion. Our results point to the importance of the critical need to create culturally sensitive interventions to remediate high levels of psychological distress by addressing related PMLD stressors in a highly vulnerable Afghan migrant population residing in Turkey.

【 授权许可】

CC BY