Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 May 8:14:1083367.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1083367. eCollection 2023.

The influences of faith on illness representations and coping procedures of mental and cognitive health among aging Arab refugees: a qualitative study

Lana Bridi  1 , Dahlia A Kaki  2   3 , Behnan Albahsahli  3 , Dania Abu Baker  3   4 , Xara Khan  3   5 , Raghad Aljenabi  5 , Nissma Bencheikh  1 , Melody K Schiaffino  6   7 , Alison A Moore  1 , Tala Al-Rousan  3
Affiliations

The influences of faith on illness representations and coping procedures of mental and cognitive health among aging Arab refugees: a qualitative study

Lana Bridi et al. Front Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Introduction: Refugees experience higher rates of mental illness such as depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) which are documented risk factors for dementia. Faith and spiritual practices have been shown to play a significant role in patients' understanding and coping with illness, however, this field of study among refugee populations remains lacking. This study aims to address this literature gap by examining the role of faith on mental health and cognitive health among Arab refugees resettled in Arab and Western countries.

Materials and methods: A total of 61 Arab refugees were recruited through ethnic community-based organizations in San Diego, California, United States (N = 29) and Amman, Jordan (N = 32). Participants were interviewed through in-depth, semi-structured interviews or focus groups. Interviews and focus groups were transcribed, translated, and coded using inductive thematic analysis and organized based on Leventhal's Self-Regulation Model.

Results: Faith and spiritual practices significantly impact participants' illness perceptions and coping procedures regardless of resettlement country or gender. Several themes emerged: (1) participants believe in the interdependent relationship between mental and cognitive health. (2) There is a self-awareness of the impact of the refugee experience and trauma on participants' mental health problems, leading to a belief of increased personal risk for developing dementia. (3) Spiritual fatalism (belief that events are predetermined by God, fate, or destiny) greatly informs these perceptions of mental and cognitive health. (4) Participants acknowledge that practicing faith improves their mental and cognitive health, and many read scripture to prevent dementia. (5) Finally, spiritual gratitude and trust are important coping procedures that build resilience among participants.

Conclusions: Faith and spirituality play an important role in shaping Arab refugees' illness representations and coping procedures of mental and cognitive health. Holistic public health and clinical interventions tailored to the spiritual needs of aging refugees and incorporating religion in prevention strategies are increasingly needed to improve the brain health and wellbeing of refugees.

Keywords: Alzheimer's; Christianity; Islam; Self-Regulation Model; dementia; religion; spirituality.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The influences of faith on aging Arab refugees' illness representations and coping procedures for mental and cognitive health.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. UNHCR Global Trends: Global Forced Displacement: United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR). (2021). Available online at: https://www.unhcr.org/en-us/globaltrends.html (accessed October 9, 2022).
    1. CDC Immigrant, Refugee, and Migrant Health: Iraqi Refugees. (2021). Available online at: https://www.cdc.gov/immigrantrefugeehealth/profiles/iraqi/index.html#ref-2 (accessed October 24, 2022).
    1. UNHCR Refugee statistics. (2022). Available online at: https://www.unrefugees.org/refugee-facts/statistics/ (accessed August 16, 2020).
    1. Mangrio E, Forss KS. Refugees' experiences of healthcare in the host country: a scoping review. BMC Health Serv Res. (2017) 17:814. 10.1186/s12913-017-2731-0 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Silove D, Ventevogel P, Rees S. The contemporary refugee crisis: an overview of mental health challenges. World Psychiatry. (2017) 16:2. 10.1002/wps.20438 - DOI - PMC - PubMed