Abstract
This systematic review followed the guidelines of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) statement. The primary aim of this research was to identify risks and protective factors for the mental health of forced migrants. The secondary aim was to suggest an alternative, more comprehensive approach in social work that surpasses usual diagnoses and intrinsically contradicts the medicalization of mental health issues of forced migrants. The search was conducted between January 2015 and January 2021. As a result, 29 studies met inclusion criteria. Medicalizing mental health issues by relying solely on the effectiveness of medicine was a controversial risk factor that negatively affected daily life activities of refugees and reduced their willingness for seeking professional mental health services. Empowering vulnerable minorities by giving them back their power and agency to be able to speak for themselves and raise voices of trauma and recovery was the missing protective factor for a sustainable mental health practice. The benefits of group-based interventions were highlighted in which communities and individuals address mental health issues as well as isolation through building collective identities and support networks. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) can add more strength to any kind of mental health interventions. Finally, the benefits of applying an ecological perspective for the study of the mental health of refugees, and its implications for a sustainable intercultural practice, were discussed. Social workers in this model are the representatives of at-risk groups, and thus require more agency and creativity in reflecting client’s concrete needs.
Highlights
IntroductionHigh Commissioner for Refugees estimates that global forced displacement has surpassed
The evidence presented in this systematic review supports the findings of previous studies that mental health issues of vulnerable populations are multidimensional, and widely measured outcomes of health issues are of great concern
Low socioeconomic and educational levels were strongly associated with mental health outcomes, as poorly educated refugees with lower incomes were at greater risks of developing adverse mental health outcomes (Im et al 2017; Şimşek et al 2018; Dietrich et al 2019)
Summary
High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that global forced displacement has surpassed. 82.4 million at the end of 2020 including 26.4 million refugees, and 4.1 million asylum seekers (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 2021). It defines refugees as people who have been forced to flee their country due to persecution, war or violence, and who have a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinions or membership in a particular social group in the country of their nationality (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees 2019). Asylum-seekers, on the other hand, live in a more precarious situation as they must await formal recognition as ‘refugee’
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