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. 2022 Apr 16:5:100103.
doi: 10.1016/j.jmh.2022.100103. eCollection 2022.

Household composition after resettlement and emotional health in adolescent migrants

Manuela Orjuela-Grimm  1   2 , Maria Marti-Castaner  3 , Silvia Bhatt-Carreño  1 , Maria A Castro  1 , Alexandra Restrepo Henao  1   4 , Hector Pinilla  1 , Daniela Rodriguez  1 , Ambar Ruiz  1 , Michelle Valentin  1 , Arielle Richey Levine  1 , Rossmary Gonzalez  1 , Marisa Zuleta  1 , Marisa Pharel  1 , Paola Medina  1 , Roberto Lewis-Fernandez  5
Affiliations

Household composition after resettlement and emotional health in adolescent migrants

Manuela Orjuela-Grimm et al. J Migr Health. .

Abstract

Background: Migration during adolescence constitutes an important stressor that particularly impacts unaccompanied minors (UAM). Adolescent UAM in the United States (U.S.) are relatively understudied, especially regarding their resilience and emotional well-being after resettlement. Small school-based studies have documented the mental health status of UAM who resettled reuniting with their parents. However, many do not resettle with parents and less is known about the degree to which post-resettlement household composition impacts resilience and emotional well-being.

Methods: Our goal was to examine how migration characteristics, supports, resilience, and emotional well-being vary by UAM resettlement household composition (reunification with parents, reunification with a non-parental family member, or living in a household not containing any family members). Using a mixed-methods (quantitative-qualitative) cross-sectional approach, we assessed 46 Latin American adolescent UAM to the U.S. who resettled into these three household types.

Results: Youth experienced support differently by household type, influencing their strategies for adapting and coping post-resettlement, impacting their resilience (Kruskal Wallis-H 4.8; p<0.09) and emotional well-being (Kruskal Wallis 5.3; p<0.07). Youth living in households without relatives (n = 9) had lower resilience (Fisher's exact test p<0.002) and positive affect (Fisher's exact test p<0.003) and needed to expend greater efforts to mobilize social supports than youth living with parents (n = 22) or with non-parental family members (n = 15).

Conclusion: The needs and coping abilities of UAM migrants vary with the composition of their immediate receiving environment, their post-resettlement household. Understanding differences associated with these household characteristics can guide interventions to maximize emotional health and resilience.

Keywords: Adolescent migrants; CBO, Community Based Organizations; CYRM28, Children Youth Resilience Measure-28; Emotional health; FY, Federal Year; GLS, General Life Satisfaction; Latino youth; NIHTB-EB, NIH toolbox emotional battery; NYC, New York City; ORR, Office of Refugee Resettlement; PTSD, posttraumatic stress disorders; RA, research assistant; Resettlement household composition; Resilience; UAM, unaccompanied minors; Unaccompanied youth.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

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