Abstract
The Syrian conflict has led to a mass migration of Syrians to other countries and exposed them to many possible traumatic events and stressors in their country of origin and in the resettlement process. The possibility of positive psychological effects of adverse life events is less documented among Syrian refugees. Thus, the current study aimed to develop preliminary evidence for the identifying factors: traumatic experiences, post-migration stressors and coping strategies that are associated with post-traumatic growth (PTG) of Syrian refugees residing in Turkey. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used in the current study to assess the associations among these factors. Data were obtained from Syrian refugees residing in the governorates of Hatay and Mardin. A total of 528 Syrians, aged between 18–77 years (M = 35.60, SD = 11.65) participated in this cross-sectional study. Results from the SEM indicated that past traumatic experiences and post-migration stressors were indirectly related to PTG. The results from the current study provide support for that the association between refugees’ traumatic experiences, post-migration stressors and PTG appear to be explained through the presence of coping strategies which could be addressed in the psychotherapies and psychosocial interventions for refugees to promote positive psychological change. Future studies should address the effects of post-migration stressors on PTG in detail.
Highlights
Published: 21 August 2021According to United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNCHR), there were 80 million forcibly displaced people worldwide in mid-2020, including 26.3 million refugees.The majority of refugees under the UNCHR mandatory come from the Syrian Arab Republic
This study investigated how refugees’ past traumatic experiences and current resettlement related stressors are associated with post-traumatic growth (PTG) and identified the mediation of coping strategies in PTG
In Syrian refugees and, thereby, it is essential to develop psychosocial and psychotherapy interventions to enhance coping resources for refugees after conflict-related traumatic events. Those interventions should be aimed to promote problemfocused and emotion-focused coping resources and to diminish the use of maladaptive coping among Syrian refugees
Summary
Published: 21 August 2021According to United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNCHR), there were 80 million forcibly displaced people worldwide in mid-2020, including 26.3 million refugees.The majority of refugees under the UNCHR mandatory come from the Syrian Arab Republic. The Syrian civil war exposed refugees to various possible traumatic events and stressors in their countries of origin, during flight and resettlement. Previous studies showed that most Syrian refugees have experienced several traumatic events such as witnessing the death of family members or friends, torture, and physical or sexual assaults in their country of origin [2,3]. Refugees could have additional overwhelming experiences such as walking on dangerous roads, traveling with unsafe boats, physical and sexual violence, infectious diseases, insufficient medical help, food, and clean water, and/or ending up in refugee camps [4,5,6,7]. The resettlement process has various difficulties which could be examined in three main areas, such as socio-economic, social/cultural, and refugee policies. Many struggles with finding employment, meeting basic needs such as food, shelter, healthcare, and education are often occurring during the resettlement process
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
