This program of research investigated the mental health of Mandaean refugees living in Sydney, Australia (N=315). Participants evidenced high rates of psychological disorders including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD, 23%), depression (34%), anger attacks (58%), complicated grief (10%) and impaired mental health-related functioning (42%). Participants also reported high levels of exposure to traumatic events, and experiencing multiple resettlement stressors. It was found that intrusive fear regarding traumatic events that may be experienced by family members remaining in Iraq contributed to PTSD, depression and mental health-related disability over and above the effects of past trauma and post-migration living difficulties. In addition, fear for family predicted frequency of anger attacks beyond the contribution of past trauma, living difficulties and PTSD. Fear of cultural extinction emerged as a salient concern for the Mandaean community, with path analyses revealing it was directly predicted by symptoms of PTSD. The effects of change in visa status on the mental health of Mandaean refugees who had also taken part in a previous survey were explored. Participants who had attained permanent residency status after previously holding Temporary Protection Visas (TPVs) evidenced greater reductions in psychological distress than those who had consistently held permanent residency. Results suggested that that temporary protection may have exerted negative effects on mental health by creating high levels of post-migration living difficulties. Analyses modelling pathways from trauma and loss to other mental health outcomes at both the individual and family levels indicated that grief played a key role in the mental health of the Mandaean community, and that the refugee experience has implications for family mental health and functioning. This thesis represents an attempt to extend knowledge regarding factors that influence refugee mental health, and common psychological outcomes, by examining the relationship between circumstances of ongoing threat to the individual and the collective, family-level processes, and psychological difficulties including PTSD, depression, grief, anger and mental health-related disability. These findings have implications for government policies and service providers working with refugee groups.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/258724 |
| Date | January 2009 |
| Creators | Nickerson, Angela Marissa, Psychology, Faculty of Science, UNSW |
| Publisher | Awarded By:University of New South Wales. Psychology |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | http://unsworks.unsw.edu.au/copyright, http://unsworks.unsw.edu.au/copyright |
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