Background: Since 2011, there has been ongoing conflict in Syria, resulting in the displacement of over 11 million people. Over 40,000 Syrian refugees resettled to Canada and of that, 52% were under the age of 19, falling into the adolescent age group. Adolescence (ages 10-19) is a critical stage for physical, psychosocial and cognitive development. As a result, mental health challenges often first emerge during adolescence. Refugee adolescents are a particularly vulnerable group, as normal adolescent stress is compounded with resettlement stress. Further research is needed to understand how Syrian refugee adolescents conceptualize mental health so that their needs can be better addressed. Methods: Data was collected using semi-structured interviews with older Syrian refugee adolescents (n=7) and service providers (n=8) in the Greater Toronto Area. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis was guided by grounded theory. Results: The findings indicate that conceptualizations of mental health are highly dependent on how the concept is framed. The term mental health was poorly understood amongst Syrian adolescents. However, when different terms were used to describe mental health, including stress, pressure and comfort, it was clear that adolescents had a much deeper understanding of the concept. Once appropriate mental health framing was employed, adolescents were able to identify factors that they believed influence mental health status. Factors identified by adolescents and service providers included individual, social and system-level factors. Conclusions: Syrian adolescent perspectives are crucial in fully understanding their conceptualizations of mental health. The comparison of adolescent and service provider perspectives allowed for a comprehensive understanding of adolescent mental health, while identifying differences in perspectives between the two groups. This study recommends future strategies for policy makers, service providers and researchers to effectively address Syrian adolescents’ mental health. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Thesis advisor: Natana DeLong-Bas / The Syrian Civil War and its displacement of individuals has led to a dramatic increase in intimate partner violence (IPV) among refugee women. Statistics display that 99% of IPV survivors undergo financial control and exploitation, making it difficult to leave these toxic relationships. In 2016, UN Women created a cash-for-work initiative in the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan intended to provide Jordanian and Syrian refugee women with protection through financial empowerment. The initiative was quickly successful, showing a 20% decrease in intimate partner violence. My research over the past year builds on this logic to explore digital social entrepreneurship as a manner of addressing IPV within the Syrian refugee population in Jordan. I argue that digital social entrepreneurship, ICT startups with a greater social mission, is key to addressing many of the MENA region’s most pressing issues post Arab Spring, as well as beneficial to empowering women. My analysis culminated in a policy recommendation for a cross sectional program to give refugee women in Jordan the resources they need to establish their own digital, socially conscious firms and establish a place for themselves and their families in both the Jordanian and Syrian post civil war economy. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Departmental Honors. / Discipline: Islamic Civilization and Societies.

No description available.

At the end of 2016, approximately 65.6 million individuals were displaced forcibly around the world because of generalized violence, persecution, violation of human rights, or conflict such as civil war (UNHCR, 2016). The purpose of this study is to: (a) explore Syrian refugees after displacement in the US, (b) give voice to refugee fathers, and (c) advance knowledge for marriage and family therapists, who are working with refugee families. Eight Syrian refugee fathers who were displaced in the last two years and living in Indiana, US shared their experiences through in-depth interviews. After transcribing and translating the interviews, thematic analysis, a flexible research tool that provides a reach and complex account of data, was used to analyze the data. Four main themes emerged from fathers: displacement stress, loss of extended family connections, experiences of isolation, and identity changes with provider role. A thematic map also is created illustrating how the stress of displacement and being far away from extended families profoundly influence provider identities and family interactions. In addition, the contextual model of family stress is used to customize fathers� experience of displacement. The inferences from this study provide guidance for marriage and family therapists, mental health practitioners, and organizations working with refugee families. / PHD / Just imagine you have to flee your home country, leaving all your physical and non-physical possessions and belongings or even members of your extended family behind, witnessing the death or missing of a significant or loved one, resettling in a new country and struggling to obtain a new social status, coping skills and suffering a stigma against your nationality. These are just a portion of the adversities that refugee fathers have endured (other family members suffer in different ways) in host countries such as the US. Syrian refugee fathers in this study were forced to live in a new country wherein they cannot speak the language and have to rely on their children to communicate with others. As the only providers of their families in Syria, they struggle with financial strains. Consequently, their wives (almost in half of the cases) have to work outside the home in order to cover the household expenses ideally; they could rely on their extended family’s help and support if they were in their own country. Such experiences are stressful for Syrian refugee fathers with damaging effects for their identity as fathers and their family dynamics. Family therapists, mental health practitioners, and organizations working with refugee families can benefit from findings of this study to provide better services for their targeted populations.

The purpose of this research paper is to examine how Syrian refugees are visually represented in two of the largest newspapers in Sweden: Dagens Nyheter (Today’s news) and Svenska Dagbladet (The Swedish daily paper). Their choice of images on the Syrian refugee crisis will be analysed, to see what sort of message they send by using those specific images. The reason for this study is because previous studies have implied that the media has an important role in crafting national perceptions of refugees. Therefore, it is intriguing to analyse the images the newspapers published during the fall of 2015 to see how Syrian refugees were represented during that most active and chaotic period in Sweden and if the visual representation of Syrian refugees can influence cultures of hostility in Sweden. The study has been linked with previous studies research of visual representations of refugees (us and them, identifiable victim effect) and the severe consequences it can lead to (dehumanization, moral panic) if used improperly, and three main theories that will be the foundation to custom and analyse the images (agenda setting, framing and representation theory). These were all applied and used when operating the method (quantitative content analysis) to collect information and data and also later when analysing and discussing the results. The result of the study showed that the newspapers images did not only focus on negative aspects of events and stories surrounding Syrian refugees. Dagens Nyheter and Svenska Dagbladet did not publish many negative images, but after the results, it is discovered that they are following that specific path on some aspects and that can be the start of a pattern that will be used more often in the future. While it is established that hostile and unwelcoming attitudes in the West have risen, the question remains how far its been developed in Sweden and how long it will be until the Swedish media promotes it as well. Key words: Syrian Refugee Crisis, Visual representation, Framing, Agenda setting and Stereotypes

Currently, over 65 million people around the world have been forced from their homes; among them are nearly 21 million refugees. Thus, the discussion of refugees and refugee camps on a global scale is ever more salient given the recent heightened attention to the global crises. This thesis uses an interdisciplinary Science, Technology, and Society (STS) approach to analyze the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) policies, refugee camps, and their implication in the greater society.

This study seeks to achieve a deeper understanding of the phenomenon of child marriage among Syrian refugees, identify the causes and the consequences of this phenomenon, and explore the relationship between the armed conflict in Syria and the prevalence of child marriage practices among Syrian refugees living in refugee camps in Lebanon. To achieve the objectives of the study, the researcher used the case study approach and mixed-methods methodology in data collection and analysis. Quantitative data were collected by questionnaire from twenty participants, all women who married before the age of eighteen. Qualitative data were collected through interviews with ten of the participants, all of whom married before the age of eighteen. The findings indicate the contributing role played by the Syrian armed conflict in the prevalence of child marriage practices among Syrian refugees and that Syrian refugees used child marriage as a survival strategy. The results also reveal that there are two types of child marriages: forced and consensual. The study demonstrates that child marriage is a serious violation of children's rights. Recommendations for governments, NGOs, and further research are included. / Denna studie söker uppnå en djupare förståelse för företeelsen barnäktenskap så som den yttrar sig bland syriska flyktingar, att identifiera orsakerna och konsekvenserna av detta fenomen och att titta närmare på relationen mellan den beväpnade konflikten i Syrien och förekomsten av barnäktenskap bland syriska flyktingar som bor i flyktingläger i Libanon. För att nå undersökningens mål använde forskaren ”case study”-formen och mixed-methods-metoden för datainsamling och analys. Kvantitativa data samlades via frågeformulär från tjugo deltagare, samtliga kvinnor, som gifte sig före arton års ålder. Kvalitativa data samlades genom intervjuer med tio av deltagarna, som samtliga gifte sig före arton års ålder. Resultatet pekar på den påverkan som den syriska beväpnade konflikten spelat i förekomsten av barnäktenskap som brukas bland syriska flyktingar och att syriska flyktingar använde barnäktenskap som en överlevnadsstrategi. Resultaten visar också att det finns två typer av barnäktenskap: tvångsäktenskap och samförståndsäktenskap. Studien visar att barnäktenskap är en allvarlig kränkning av barns rättigheter. Rekommendationer för regeringar, icke-statliga organisationer och för vidare forskning är inkluderade.

Background: The Syrian refugee crisis is one of the most significant humanitarian crises of our time and has resulted in over 6.5 million displaced individuals worldwide. Syrian refugees are a vulnerable population and are at considerably higher risk for mental health disorders including depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder. However, despite the high prevalence, there is insufficient utilization of mental health services among Syrian refugees resettled in high-income countries. To help address this gap this study aims to investigate mental health conceptualization, coping, and help-seeking among Syrian refugee parents resettled in Canada to build a comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing perception and the decisions to seek help, thus adding to the knowledge base for refugee mental health and generating insight to help inform policy and program decisions for Syrian refugees resettled in Canada. Methods: Data was collected using semi-structured interviews with Syrian refugee parents (N=31) who have been permanently resettled in Canada. Interviews were conducted in Arabic and transcribed verbatim and were subsequently translated into English. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. Results Significant interlinkages were observed between the factors that influence mental health conceptualization, coping, and help-seeking. Our findings suggest that many refugees perceive mental health concerns as part of daily life and do not believe it requires professional intervention. This along with personal, cultural, and religious context have strong implications for help-seeking behaviour. Moreover, the availability of culturally sensitive services has the potential to increase service utilization. Knowledge of how individuals conceptualize mental health and cope can be leveraged to design more impactful mental health services for Syrian refugees. Conclusion: The factors influencing mental health conceptualization, coping, and help-seeking are deeply interconnected and must be considered holistically to improve policies and programming to increase the uptake of mental health services. / Thesis / Master of Health Sciences (MSc)

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MASTER OF SCIENCE (2017), McMaster University, Hamilton ON (Department of Global Health) TITLE: A comprehensive approach to health literacy: validating the all aspects of health literacy scale (AAHLS) in a representative sample of Arabic-speaking adult Syrian refugees AUTHOR: Raafia Siddiqui, BSc Hons. (York University, 2014) SUPERVISOR: Dr. K. Bruce Newbold NUMBER OF PAGES: vii, 92 / The purpose of this study is to quantify current health literacy levels amongst a segment of the Syrian refugee population in Canada by translating and validating an existing comprehensive health literacy assessment tool, the All Aspects of Health Literacy Scale (AAHLS) into Arabic. This study (1) determined functional, communicative and critical health literacy levels amongst Syrian refugees. Functional and critical health literacy was comparatively low but respondents seemed able to effectively communicate with their providers and access supports to read and fill in health documents. Significant correlates of low health literacy were presence of long-term health conditions and place of origin (country versus refugee camp). This study also validated the AAHLS in Arabic-speaking Syrian refugees, with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.67 for the overall scale and 0.63 for health literacy items. The overall scale had high content validity. The feasibility of this instrument as a self-administered screening tool in clinical or community settings was demonstrated with a high response rate of 0.86. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc) / Health literacy looks at an individual's ability to read, understand and interpret health information and ultimately use it to exert greater control over their health. The purpose of this study is to understand the factors that influence health literacy levels amongst a segment of the Syrian refugee population in Canada by translating and validating an existing comprehensive health literacy assessment tool, the All Aspects of Health Literacy Scale (AAHLS) into Arabic. This study (1) determined functional (reading and filling in health documents), communicative (speaking to health providers) and critical health (assessing the relevance and appropriateness of health information) literacy levels amongst Syrian refugees. Functional and critical health literacy was comparatively low but respondents seemed able to effectively communicate with their providers and access supports to read and fill in health documents. Low health literacy was associated with having a long-term health conditions and staying in a refugee camp. This study found the translated AAHLS to be reliable, with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.67 for the overall scale and 0.63 for health literacy items. The overall scale had high content validity. The feasibility of this instrument as a self-administered screening tool in clinical or community settings was demonstrated with a high response rate of 0.86.