Mental Health of Host and Refugee Youth in the Turkish Education System: The Role of Daily Material Stress, Well-Being, Social Support and Resilience

Abstract

Refugee youth across the world cope with the complexity of fulfilling developmental tasks and cultural adaptation requirements while struggling with different stressors and problems. This situation has been pointed out in scientific studies that refugee youth are vulnerable in terms of mental health. However, refugees may differ in the severity of their mental health problems due to certain personal or interpersonal factors. To examine these factors, we linked mental health to psychological stress in a sample of Turkish and refugee youth. We discussed the potential roles of daily material stress, well-being, perceived social support and resilience among Turkish and refugee youth. 552 Turkish host youth and 500 refugee youth participated in the study. Questionnaires were prepared for Turkish and bilingual refugees, and Turkish youth participated in the study face-to-face. The findings revealed that the perception of well-being may have different meanings for refugees and Turkish youth: while refugees associate well-being with basic needs like nutrition and inclusion in education, Turkish youth often see systemic challenges in education as obstacles to well-being, which increases their stress levels. The study points to factors that need to be considered in explaining and protecting the mental health of refugees and Turkish youth involved in the Turkish education system.