Migratory and psychosocial predictors of child emotional and physical health among a sample of refugee mothers

Background

Adverse childhood experiences are strongly related to poor health outcomes. Migratory adversities have not been incorporated into the conceptualization of childhood adversities, but are common among displaced populations, and may affect psychological and physical health.

Objective

The objective of this paper was to examine predictors of child emotional and physical health among a sample of refugee and migrant mother with children ages 0–5.

Participants and setting

Participants were a convenience sample of 233 mothers recruited from Clarkton GA, a nationally designated refugee resettlement zone, in which over 30,000 refugees have been resettled. Mothers of young children (0–5) were recruited for participation in a parenting intervention, and baseline data were used for these analyses. Eligible participants were of Afghan, Burmese, or Congolese descent and able to be interviewed in English, Dari, Pashto, Karen, Burmese, or Congolese.

Methods

Mothers completed a baseline interview that included questions on demographics, migratory experiences and stressors, and current psychosocial functioning including mental health, social support, and parenting skill and stress. They also reported on their child's emotional health (attachment and initiative) and physical health. Analyses used demographics, migratory, and psychosocial variables as predictors of child health outcomes.

Results

Regression analyses showed that both migratory and psychosocial variables were predictive of emotional and physical health. Parent current psychosocial variables including parenting skills, stress, and support were the strongest predictors of health outcomes.

Conclusions

Adverse migratory stressors are related to child health outcomes, but current psychosocial variables, including parenting skill, were more robust predictors. Regardless of parental trauma, parenting skills taught via evidence-based parenting programs hold promise to improve child outcomes.