Migrant Girls Research Articles

Migrant Adolescent Girls in Urban Slums India: Aspirations, Opportunities and Challenges

Migrant adolescent girls in India’s fast-growing urban-slum population face multiple intersecting vulnerabilities, including gender, poverty and migrant-status. The study aims to understand the opportunities and challenges for migrant adolescent girls in low-income urban slum settings. Qualitative data were collected through interviews with girls aged 12-19 who migrated during the past two years and non-migrant adolescent girls for comparison to explore their experiences in fast-growing Indore. A group-interview with slum women’s group members discussed ways to address challenges. Push/pull factors linked with different employment/educational opportunities between rural and urban areas motivated families of unmarried girls to migrate. Recently married girls joined city-based families or accompanied husbands who were labor migrants. Neither married nor unmarried girls played decision-making roles in migration. Married migrant adolescent girls faced challenges in accessing education, employment, social opportunities and services owing to restrictions on freedom of movement, weak social networks, and little awareness of opportunities and services. Childbearing migrant girls faced particular risks. Contact with their natal families being limited, the quality of relationship with husbands and marital families was crucial for married girls’ well-being. Unmarried girls attending schools were positive about the migration experience, perceiving the city to offer greater educational opportunities. Through school, they accessed opportunities for new relationships and social activities. Not all unmarried adolescent-girls were able to access opportunities owing to family restrictions and economic circumstances. These girls’ worlds remained small despite moving to a large city. Where girls’ economic and/or family and social circumstances allowed, migration entailed a positive change that enhanced their opportunities. Specific challenges of this population segment need focus in policies and programs, prioritizing three particularly vulnerable groups: girls who are neither in education nor employment, pregnant girls or new mothers, and those with difficult relationships in marital homes. Proactive outreach to raise awareness about opportunities and services and fostering social networks through frontline workers and slum-women’s groups are recommended.

Migrant Girls in Shenzhen: Gender, Education and the Urbanization of Aspiration

AbstractThis paper examines the impact of rural–urban migration on primary school-age migrant girls in China, providing important data on this unexplored group as well as drawing several larger conclusions about the evolving relationship between migration and women's autonomy. Much recent literature has focused on Chinese young unmarried women migrants. However, there has been no attempt to distinguish the effect of migration on children by gender, and little research on the “new generation” of married women migrants. This paper focuses on two aspects of migrant girls' well-being, education and migration satisfaction, and compares girls' assessments with those of their parents, particularly their mothers. It analyses differences between the views of both girls and parents, arguing that specific parental concerns about daughters shape girls' futures in ways that do not apply to migrant boys. A further, broader, implication of this analysis is that certain benefits of migration, previously thought to apply exclusively to single women, extend also to married women, influencing mothers when forming goals for their daughters' futures.

When the Girls Still Wore Headscarves: Integration and Belonging in an After-School Center in Berlin

This study is centered on a youth center in Berlin, Germany, that serves migrant females. It draws on the anthropology of performance and the concept of “friction” to argue for an understanding of performances of belonging, where migrant girls stage acts of inclusion through creative encounters with the forces of integration to negotiate social effects. The study itself seeks to intervene in integration discourses in Germany primarily through nuance and complication of how belonging (and by implication integration) is performed by young migrant women, rather than evaluation of the degree of integration. This study gives insight to the practical effects of integration policy on the ground as it is enacted, challenged, and shaped by those it is intended for. It adds to the scholarship on belonging, with consideration for educational intervention, with special attention to the role of creative performativity and agency.

The problem of providing gynecological care for girls from dare migrants

Among girls who were on an outpatient appointment with a pediatric gynecologist, special attention, both from an organisational and a purely medical point of view, attract daughters of migrants aged under 17 years (218 people). Medical problems of this group of children lie in the prevalence of transient dysfunctional States such as pubertal uterine bleeding, follicular ovarian cysts, disorders of sexual development. These types of disorders are regarded as consequences of chronic stress. In addition, there were poor premorbid background. Indicators of reproductive potential migrant girls are at a lower level than girls, indigenous. Baby gynecologists have to overcome, in addition to purely medical, organizational and legal problems that often occur in children from families of migrants and internally displaced persons.

Childhood environment influences adrenarcheal timing among first-generation Bangladeshi migrant girls to the UK.

BackgroundAdrenarche is a key early life event that marks middle childhood at approximately 7 years of age. Earlier work with British-Bangladeshi migrant women suggested that environmental conditions experienced before adrenarche influence adult reproductive function. We therefore investigated whether Bangladeshi children who migrate to the United Kingdom (UK) reach adrenarche earlier than non-migrants in Bangladesh or the United Kingdom.Methods and FindingsHealthy girls, aged 5–16 years, were recruited from schools in Sylhet, Bangladesh and London, England comprising four groups: Sylhetis (n = 165), first-generation migrants to the United Kingdom (n = 42), second-generation girls (n = 162), and British girls of European origin (n = 50). Anthropometric measurements were collected together with questionnaire data for migration and socioeconomic characteristics. Saliva samples were assayed for dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEAS) using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Multiple linear regressions tested for group differences in anthropometric and socioeconomic variables and DHEAS levels. Median ages at adrenarche (DHEAS>400 pg/ml) were estimated using Weibull regression models for parametric survival analysis. Hazard ratios for reaching adrenarche earlier and 95% confidence intervals (CI), both unadjusted and adjusted for anthropometric variables, were estimated from the survival analyses. First-generation migrants had a median age at adrenarche (5.3 years) that was significantly earlier than Sylheti (7.2), second-generation (7.4), and European (7.1) girls. In univariate analyses, first-generation girls reached adrenarche significantly earlier than Sylhetis [HR (CI): 2.8 (1.4–5.5]. In multivariate models, first generation girls still reached adrenarche earlier than Sylhetis after adjusting for height [HR(CI): 1.9 (0.9–4.1)] and weight [HR(CI):1.7 (0.8–3.8)], but these results were attenuated.ConclusionsWe suggest that rapid catch-up growth experienced by first generation girls during early childhood may explain their advanced adrenarche. The environmental conditions leading to an earlier adrenarche, as well as the health implications of this early transition, merit further exploration.

Do migrant girls perform better than migrant boys? Deviant gender differences between the reading scores of 15-year-old children of migrants compared to native pupils

In this paper, we analyse the gender differences between the educational performance of 15-year-old children of migrants from specific regions of origin countries living in different destination countries with the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2009 wave. We study whether this gender difference of migrant pupils deviates from the gender difference between the native pupils in their destination country. We analyse the educational performance of 16,612 daughters and 16,804 sons of migrants in destination countries across Asia, Europe, Latin America, and Oceania. We distinguish 62 origin countries and 12 origin areas in 30 destination countries. Female migrant pupils have both higher reading and math scores than comparable male migrant pupils, and these gender differences among migrant pupils are larger than among comparable native pupils. Parental socioeconomic background has an equal effect on the educational performance of daughters of migrants and on that of sons of migrants. The variation in educational performance by region of origin is, however, not clearly related to the poverty or traditionalism of regions.

Life as a Chord: Heterogeneous Resources in the Social Identification of One Migrant Girl

The social and natural worlds provide heterogeneous resources that contribute both to instances of social identification and to life trajectories. One might claim or be assigned membership in various groups, which emerge at different spatial and temporal scales, and resources for social identification are often combined in novel ways to yield unexpected identities. To account for the trajectories of identification that any individual travels, analysts must determine which configurations of resources become relevant in a given case. Of the many resources that might be relevant to identifying an individual, event, or setting, a few generally become salient—somewhat like several musical notes coming together to constitute a chord. We illustrate this contingent process by describing one young Mexican migrant in the USA, sketching relevant aspects of family interactions, educational practices, local community characteristics, and national discourses. This girl, her family, and other actors combine heterogeneous resources in contingent ways as they navigate and establish an emerging trajectory of identification through which she becomes a ‘good reader’.

The effect of cognitive-behavioral stress management on symptoms of grief and post traumatic stress disorder among Afghani migrant bereaved adolescent girls

Background: The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioural stress management method on grief and PTSD symptoms among bereaved Afghani adolescent migrant girls living in Qom province. Methods: the research design was a semi-experimental one with pretest-posttest control group format. The sample included all 12-18 year-old female bereaved Afghani adolescent under the supervision of Imam Mohammad-e-Bagher Charity Institute in Qom city in 2011-12 who were assessed via the scale of the children’s accident effect (GRIES-8) and the children’s grief questionnaire and their scores on the questionnaires were considered as the baseline. Those who got highest scores were selected as the study subjects and they were randomly divided into two experimental and control groups (n1= n2 =8). The experimental group received 10 sessions of therapeutic interventions. The received information from the groups was analyzed through SPSS-16 software. Results: The results showed a significant difference between experimental and control groups regarding the scores of grief and total scores of PTSD as well as avoidance factors (P<0.05). The degree of therapeutic interventions on avoidance and the total score variables were %65, %77 respectively and the statistical power were %54 and %78 respectively. Regarding the grief variable the degree of therapeutic interventions was %66 and the statistical power was %56. Conclusion: Cognitive-Behavioural Stress Management Therapy is effective and it can be applied in therapy centres in order to decrease the grief symptoms and stress disorder after the accident.

Meeting needs of Muslim girls in school sport: Case studies exploring cultural and religious diversity

This paper contains a sociocultural analysis of school sport experiences of Muslim girls in two countries with different gender policies in physical education (PE) classes: England and Denmark. In Denmark, PE lessons take place in co-educative classes, in England schools are more diverse, with predominantly co-educational but also single-sex and faith schools offering different learning contexts. Two case studies from Denmark and England are used to explore the experiences of migrant Muslim girls in these different settings. A social constructionist approach to gender underpins the interpretation of stakeholders' voices on the inclusion of Muslim girls and the analysis of PE discourses in these countries. Findings illustrate similarities and differences at the interface of cultural diversity, political rhetoric of inclusion and realities of sport experiences for Muslim girls in both countries. Complex influences on PE experiences include gender stereotypes, cultural and religious orientations and practices, as well as actions and expectations of parents, communities and coaches/teachers. The studies provide insights into the ways participants managed their identities as Muslim girls in different sport environments to enable participation and retention of their cultural identities. Highlighted throughout the paper are the ways in which school sport policy and practice, providers and gatekeepers, can include or exclude groups, in this case Muslim girls. Too often coaches and teachers are unaware of crucial facts about their learners, not only in terms of their physical development and capabilities but also in terms of their cultural needs. Mistakes in creating conducive learning environments leave young people to negotiate a way to participate or refrain from participation.

Seizure and embolic stroke secondary to patent foramen ovale in a migrant girl

Episodes of loss-of-consciousness in school-aged children are not uncommon and include metabolic, cardiovascular, neurological, and psychiatric/psychosocial causes. This case describes a first episode of seizure in an 11-year-old migrant girl. History and language issues contributed to the diagnostic dilemma. Ongoing neurological symptoms prompted transfer to a tertiary care facility where investigation revealed patent foramen ovale (PFO) with likely paradoxical embolus. Prevalence and management of this condition is briefly reviewed in the context of the current presentation.

Promote Democratic Citizenship among Rural Women: A Chinese NGO’s Two Models

A Beijing-based non-governmental organization (NGO) strives to empower rural Chinese women and migrant girls by increasing their awareness of constitutional rights and promoting their capacities to exercise their civil and political rights. This article reports the NGO leaders’ perceptions of the goals, strategies, and challenges in their citizenship endeavor, and analyzes their educational activities in theoretical and cultural contexts. By reporting a tension between the two founding leaders and unpacking the different approaches they take to engaging rural women, we demonstrate how the conceptualization of human rights education in the rural Chinese context is influenced by three approaches to human rights—the Confucian emphasis of rites, the Western tradition of emphasizing law, and the “human functional capacities” approach—and how the implementation process is constrained by China’s political framework, the social conditions of rural women, and the NGO leaders’ vantage points.

Communicative Spaces of Their Own: Migrant Girls Performing Selves Using Instant Messaging Software

In this article, we argue how instant messaging (IM) is actively made into a communicative space of their own among migrant girls. Triangulating data gathered through large-scale surveys, interviews and textual analysis of IM transcripts, we focus on Moroccan-Dutch girls who use instant messaging as a space where they can negotiate several issues at the crossroads of national, ethnic, racial, age and linguistic specificities. We take an intersectional perspective to disentangle how they perform differential selves using IM both as an ‘onstage’ activity through which they express their communal, public and global youth cultural belongings and as a ‘backstage’ activity through which they articulate their individual, private and intimate identity expression. Instant messaging appears to be a space where they can strategically (re-)position themselves. The relationship between the online world of IM and the off-line world is shown to be intricate and complex; at certain points, both worlds overlap and at others they diverge. Despite all existing constraints that are both related to gender restrictions, often disenfranchised family backgrounds, religious dictums, and surveillance by parents, siblings and peers, which affect Moroccan-Dutch girls in specific ways, IM is also understood as a unique space for exerting their agency in autonomous, playful and intimate ways.

‘Girls just like to be friends with people’: gendered experiences of migration among children and youth in returning Irish migrant families

The gendered nature of children and young people's experiences of migration are explored in this paper, drawing on research with children in Irish return migrant families. The paper focuses on the ways in which gender dynamics both reinforce and complicate the children's complex social positionings in Irish society. It explores the gendered nature of the children's and young people's everyday lives, relationships with peers and negotiations of identity, through a specific focus on the role of sport, friendship and local gender norms in their lives. I suggest that gender articulates with other axes of sameness/difference in complex ways, shaping the opportunities for social participation and cultural belonging in different ways for migrant boys and girls.

Swiss and migrant adolescents – similarities and differences

A total of 1352 adolescents were interviewed by computer-assisted self-administered interview to examine differences and similarities between Swiss and non-Swiss migrant boys and girls, concerning well-being (depression, anxiety), self-esteem and self-efficacy, relationship with parents, delinquency and health-related behaviour such as substance use, physical complaints and medical and psychosocial assistance. We distinguish two different migrant groups (migrants born in Switzerland, second generation; migrants not born in Switzerland, first generation) and two age groups (11–15, 16–20). Using multi-variable analysis of covariance, no differences of practical importance concerning depression and anxiety could be seen but there are significant differences concerning suicidal tendencies, for which Swiss adolescents score higher. The most important finding is that socio-demographic background plays an important role at least for the older boys. Independent of their residence status (Swiss nationals or migrants), youths with a lower socio-demographic background score higher in suicidal tendencies. Their relationship with parents is also worse. Moreover, on delinquency and substance use they also score higher. Therefore, we conclude that it is not nationality that makes the difference but the differences in socio-demographic background.

Coping strategies among internal migrant students in Turkey

This article is based on a qualitative study that explored educational challenges and coping mechanisms of internal migrant girls whose families moved from the rural areas in the east to the western parts of Turkey. The study revealed that internal migrant girls have encountered a number of challenges that influence their educational achievement at primary schools. From the perspective of migrant girls, the emerging themes included adaptation, language, low socio-economic background, peer relations, discrimination, bullying and self-esteem. The study also confirmed that migrant girls showed resilience in the face of substantial difficulties and developed a variety of coping mechanisms in an effort to overcome their hardships. Five mechanisms were identified by the study: resort to significant others, academic orientation, forming solidarity groups, cloning identities and withdrawal. The article underlines that analysing education-related concerns and coping strategies of migrant girls is required in order to develop effective and relevant intervention programmes on behalf of students.

Educational Challenges of Internal Migrant Girls: A Case Study among Primary School Children in Turkey

This article seeks to investigate education-related challenges encountered by internal migrant girls studying at primary schools in Turkey. From the perspectives of participants, the emerging themes included adaptation, language, low socio-economic status, peer relations, discrimination and bullying. These challenges seem to have direct or indirect influence on academic achievement, school belonging, integration within the new social environment and self-esteem. The findings indicate that internal migrant girls are among the most disadvantaged children, since not only migration experience but also low socio-economic status and gender bias put them at risk of educational underachievement. Their educational challenges need to be acknowledged and taken into consideration by policy makers and educators to make sure that schools are capable of guaranteeing equal educational opportunities for all.

Obesity among female adolescents in Vienna, Austria--the impact of childhood weight status and ethnicity.

The objective of the study was to analyse prevalence of overweight and obesity among migrant girls in Vienna, Austria, starting at the age of 6 years up to the age of 15 years. In a longitudinal study, the prevalence of overweight and obesity among migrant girls from Turkey and former Yugoslavia was documented and compared with that among Austrian girls in Vienna. Medical investigation of medical school authority in Viennese schools. Seven hundred and ninety girls of low socio-economic status were included in the study. Anthropometric data were collected at the age of 6, 10 and 15 years. Body mass was estimated by means of the body mass index (BMI), and percentile curves were used for determining the weight status. Stature, body weight, BMI, weight status. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was significantly higher among migrant girls at all age groups. The highest percentage of overweight was found among 10-year-old girls from Yugoslavia (nearly 35%) and the lowest percentage of overweight was exhibited in 6-year-old Austrian girls (20%). Being overweight or obese at the age of 6 years increased the risk of being overweight at 10 and 15 years significantly (P < 0.001). Among migrants, this risk was significantly higher than among Austrian girls (P < 0.001). Only 64.8% of Austrian girls, who were overweight/obese at the age of 6 years, were still classified as overweight at the age of 15 years. Among migrant girls, who were overweight at the age of 6 years, 72.0% (Turkish girls) and 78.3% (Yugoslavian girls) remained overweight until the age of 15 years. Especially girls from former Yugoslavia but also Turkish girls exhibited high rates of overweight and obesity. Prevention should start as early as possible since overweight tends to persist from childhood into adolescence.

Current service provision for women in the UK who have undergone FGM

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is increasingly found in the UK among migrant women and girls. This paper reports on a national survey which assessed current service provision for women who have undergone FGM. The authors conclude that, despite acknowledgment of the health consequences of FGM from professionals, disparate services continue, with seemingly little co-ordination at local or national levels.

A successful single case treatment of a 6 year old selective mute

This study concerned a six-year-old migrant girl who had not spoken in school since she enrolled (seven terms), nor prior to that in her pre-school. The treatment consisted of 16 sessions which began with direct immediate rewards alone with the therapist and progressed to indirect rewards and group work in the classroom.

Investigation and Thoughts on Marriage and Fertility Management of "Migrant Girls"

With the deepening development of reform of the economic system in recent years, the number of women of childbearing age who come from other provinces to this city to marry and settle down (hereafter "migrant girls") has become larger and larger, and their marriage and fertility situation has a decisive impact on family planning work. For all levels of government and family planning departments, the question of how to manage the marriage and fertility behavior of the migrant girls has become a very knotty problem that urgently needs to be solved. Therefore, the authors have organized people to investigate and analyze the marriage and fertility situation of 1,596 migrant girls who arrived since 1990, in 246 villages within fifteen townships and towns in the three districts of Xueyao, Shizhuang, and Jiang'an in the west and south. Economic circumstances there are relatively bad and the migrant girls are fairly concentrated.