Understanding the experience of belonging of newly arrived Palestinian and Syrian refugee children in a recreational setting

Abstract

Researchers used a qualitative approach to understand belonging for refugee children in a recreational setting. In-depth individual interviews were conducted with 14 children (aged 6–14) before and after attending a summer day camp in Montreal, Canada. Data were also collected through interviews with three staff members and a focus group discussion with five campers’ mothers. Three themes, inclusion, relationships, and environmental mastery, illustrate connections between factors that foster children’s sense of belonging in early resettlement. Clinical implications are presented using an eco-systemic lens, incorporating refugee children and families’ perspectives in the development of community-based interventions, and discussing the importance of families and communities in fostering belonging.