Refugees and Trauma

Yichen Dong

doi:10.20849/ajsss.v4i4.675

Abstract

Refugees are a group of people who has been leaved their own countries and could not be able to return their own countries safely, which is the result of various reasons, including war, race, religion, nationality, membership of a specific social group as well as political opinion (Dalton-Greyling and Campus, 2008). Due to their miserable and torturous experience, they are viewed as a specific group of people with high incidence of trauma. Therefore, this essay will explain the reasons of examining their experience, find out some factors that contribute to their trauma as well as clarify some issues which should be considered when working with them. Meanwhile, possible intervention approaches and clear reflection will be provided.

Highlights

Refugees are a group of people who has been leaved their own countries and could not be able to return their own countries safely, which is the result of various reasons, including war, race, religion, nationality, membership of a specific social group as well as political opinion (Dalton-Greyling and Campus, 2008)
Many researches could prove that these negative effects could be relieved if they can engage in social activities with people who come from the same cultural backgrounds (Salzman and Halloran, 2004). This is because it is easier for them to talk about their traumatic experience and any mental health issues with people who have same cultural backgrounds compared with professionals
There are three basic and popular intervention approaches which are always used in coping with trauma in refugee population, including cognitive-behaviour therapy, psychoeducation and parenting intervention as well as art therapy