Lonely, but Not Alone: Qualitative Study among Immigrant and Native-Born Adolescents

From MDPI via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: accepted 2021-10-19, pub-electronic 2021-10-30Publication status: PublishedFunder: Nordea-fonden; Grant(s): 02-2011-0122This paper explores loneliness as it is understood and experienced by adolescents, with a special focus on the importance of their migration status. We recruited students from five schools following a maximum variation sampling scheme, and we conducted 15 semi-structured, individual interviews with eighth-grade adolescents (aged 14–15 years) that were immigrants, descendants, and with a Danish majority background. A thematic analysis was applied with a special focus on differences and similarities in understanding and experiencing loneliness between adolescents with diverse migration status. The results showed more similarities than differences in loneliness. Generally, loneliness was described as an adverse feeling, varying in intensity and duration, and participants referenced distressing emotions. Feeling lonely was distinguished from being alone and characterized as an invisible social stigma. A variety of perceived social deficiencies were emphasized as causing loneliness, emerging in the interrelation between characteristics of the individual and their social context. The results add to the current literature by highlighting that it is not the presence of specific individual characteristics that causes loneliness; instead, loneliness is dependent on the social contexts the individual is embedded in. Differences across migration status were few and related to variations in the adolescents’ individual characteristics. The findings highlight the importance of (1) studying the characteristics of both the individual and the social context in research on the antecedents to adolescents’ loneliness, and (2) applying this perspective in other studies on the importance of migration status

Are changes in physical activity during COVID-19 associated with mental health among Danish university students?

AimsThe benefits associated with being physical active on mental health is well-established, but little is known on how rapid changes in physical activity are associated with mental health. This study investigated the association between changes in physical activity and mental health among Danish university students during the first COVID-19 lockdown.MethodsOnline survey data were collected among 2,280 university students at the University of Southern Denmark and University of Copenhagen in May–June 2020 as part the “COVID-19 International Student Well-being Study.” Multiple linear regressions were used to analyze associations between changes in physical activity and mental health (depression and stress scores) adjusted for potential socio-economic confounders.ResultsDuring the first COVID-19 lockdown, 40% decreased their moderate and 44% their vigorous physical activity, while 16% increased their moderate and 13% their vigorous physical activity. Overall, students with a stable physical activity level had the lowest mean depressive and stress scores. Adjusted analyses showed that a decrease in vigorous and moderate physical activity level was significantly associated with a higher depression score (mean difference (vigorous): 1.36, p < 0.001 and mean difference (moderate): 1.55, p < 0.001). A decrease in vigorous physical activity and an increase in moderate physical activity was associated with a 1-point increase in the PSS-4 stress score (p < 0.001).ConclusionA substantial proportion of students changed their physical activity level during lockdown. Our findings emphasize the importance of staying physically active during COVID-19 lockdown. This knowledge might be important for relevant health authorities to bridle post-pandemic mental health challenges

Unlocking the mechanisms of change in the MAMAACT intervention to reduce ethnic disparity in stillbirth and newborns' health: integration of evaluation findings

Ethnic disparities in stillbirth exist in Europe and suboptimal care due to miscommunication is one contributing cause. The MAMAACT intervention aimed to reduce ethnic disparity in stillbirth and newborns' health through improved management of pregnancy complications. The intervention encompassed training of antenatal care midwives in cultural competencies and intercultural communication combined with health education materials for the expecting parents about symptoms of pregnancy complications. The evaluation consisted of a qualitative in-depth implementation analysis and a process evaluation embedded in a cluster randomized trial including 19 of 20 maternity wards in Denmark. In this article, the findings from the different evaluation perspectives are integrated. The integration follows the principles of realist evaluation by analyzing to what extent the MAMAACT activities were generating mechanisms of change in interaction with the context. The integration analysis shows that the health education materials in the MAMAACT intervention contributed to heightened health literacy concerning pregnancy complications among pregnant women. Additionally, the training of midwives in cultural competency and intercultural communication raised awareness among midwives. Nonetheless, the exclusive emphasis on midwives and the inflexibility in care provision hindered them from changing their communication practices. To enhance the cultural competence in maternity care, it is essential to implement more comprehensive initiatives involving healthcare professionals in maternity care at all levels, from pregraduate to postgraduate. Adequate interpreter services and management support should also be ensured. Currently, the Danish antenatal care system faces challenges including inadequate information transfer between healthcare sectors, insufficient differentiation of care, and inflexibility in midwife scheduling. This results in a lack of responsiveness to the individual needs of women with immigrant backgrounds, potentially reproducing health inequities

Mental Health of Refugee and Non-refugee Migrant Young People in European Secondary Education : The Role of Family Separation, Daily Material Stress and Perceived Discrimination in Resettlement

While scholarly literature indicates that both refugee and non-refugee migrant young people display increased levels of psychosocial vulnerability, studies comparing the mental health of the two groups remain scarce. This study aims to further the existing evidence by examining refugee and non-refugee migrants’ mental health, in relation to their migration history and resettlement conditions. The mental health of 883 refugee and 483 non-refugee migrants (mean age 15.41, range 11-24, 45.9% girls, average length of stay in the host country 3.75 years) in five European countries was studied in their relation to family separation, daily material stress and perceived discrimination in resettlement. All participants reported high levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms. Family separation predicted post-trauma and internalizing behavioral difficulties only in refugees. Daily material stress related to lower levels of overall well-being in all participants, and higher levels of internalizing and externalizing behavioral difficulties in refugees. Perceived discrimination was associated with increased levels of mental health problems for refugees and non-refugee migrants. The relationship between perceived discrimination and post-traumatic stress symptoms in non-refugee migrants, together with the high levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms in this subsample, raises important questions on the nature of trauma exposure in non-refugee migrants, as well as the ways in which experiences of discrimination may interact with other traumatic stressors in predicting mental health.acceptedVersionPeer reviewe

Migrant Students’ Sense of Belonging and the Covid‐19 Pandemic: Implications for Educational Inclusion

This article investigates school belonging among migrant students and how this changed during the Covid‐19 pandemic. Drawing on quantitative data gathered from 751 migrant students in secondary schools in six European countries (Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and the UK), we examined the impact of Covid‐19 school closures, social support, and post‐traumatic stress symptoms on changes in school belonging. Linear regression showed a non‐significant decrease in school belonging, and none of the studied variables had a significant effect on this change in our whole sample. However, sensitivity analysis on a subsample from three countries (Denmark, Finland, and the UK) showed a small but significant negative effect of increasing post‐traumatic stress symptoms on school belonging during Covid‐19 school closures. Given that scholarship on school belonging during Covid‐19 is emergent, this study delineates some key areas for future research on the relationship between wellbeing, school belonging, and inclusion.</p