Community Stakeholder Perspectives Around the Strengths and Needs of Unaccompanied Immigrant Minors

Unaccompanied immigrant minors (UIM) are youth who lack lawful immigration status and who are without a parent or guardian in the U.S. who can provide custody and care. By all accounts, UIM experience stressful and traumatic circumstances before, during and postmigration. Most UIM left their home countries due to economic stagnation, poverty, crime and gang-related violence (Kandel et al., 2014); almost half described fleeing societal violence and one in five described experiencing domestic abuse (UNHCR, 2014). During migration, UIM are vulnerable to human trafficking, kidnapping, and other abuses (Kandel et al., 2014). Upon resettlement, UIM sometimes experience extended stays in detention centers, community violence exposure in resettlement areas, and an uncertain future in the U.S., all without family support to buffer these stressors (Alvarez & Alegria, 2016). Not surprisingly, UIM are at increased risk for mental health problems compared to accompanied immigrant youth (Derluyn & Broekaert, 2008; Huemer et al., 2009). Research on protective factors is emerging, but scarce.This presentation describes community stakeholder perspectives around the strengths and needs of UIM. Stakeholders include academic researchers with experience working with UIM; key decision makers in agencies serving UIM; professionals with insider knowledge (e.g., immigration attorneys, psychologists with expertise in asylum evaluations); and community members participating in immigrant-focused coalitions. Stakeholder interviews identified significant need for support for UIM. They noted that UIM need emotional support before, during and after legal interviews when youth must recount traumatic events. Families need support during periods of separations and reunions, which can lead to uncertainty and unanticipated conflict, and foster families sponsoring UIM need parenting support for raising children facing difficult circumstances. Stakeholders also noted role conflicts that arise when simultaneously addressing the legal and mental health needs of UIM and the emotional toll that this work takes on professionals serving UIM

Stories of Strength through Adversity: Spirituality, Hope and a Sense of Meaning as Protective Factors for Unaccompanied Immigrant Minors

Presented under the symposium title Protective Factors and the Well-Being of Undocumented Latinx Immigrants in the United States chaired by J.M. Gonzalez Vera

Risk and Protective Factors of Unaccompanied Immigrant Minors

Past literature reviews have documented the traumatic circumstances that lead unaccompanied minors to flee their home countries including dangerous and abusive situations. Along their journey, unaccompanied children experience numerous stressors that increase their risk of mental health problems. The current literature review is being conducted to assess these risk and protective factors for unaccompanied immigrant youth and to discuss what this means for clinicians working with this population. A search was conducted to explore the risk and protective factors linked to mental health for refugee populations, including unaccompanied immigrant minors (UIM) coming to the United States from Central America. Databases, such as PsychINFO and PsycARTICLES, were used to search the literature using the following terms: “unaccompanied immigrant minor”, “unaccompanied refugee minor”, “risk factor”, “protective factor”, among others. The search yielded about 13 studies that included two policy reports, four literature reviews, and seven qualitative studies. Beyond traumatic experiences, the mental health of unaccompanied immigrant minors is influenced by unique encounters that can best be understood in the context of Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory (Bronfenbrenner, 1977). Within the microsystem, family separation, housing placement, and school disruption warrant attention when working with UIMs. According to Rusch and Reyes (2012), 70% of the participants in this study experienced parental separation for an average of 3.27 years during the familial serial migration process, and separation was significantly related to acculturation stress, depression, and poor family functioning. Placement within a foster home, as opposed to large-scale housing, can help UIMs build a social support network that provides a sense of safety and helps them to become competent in a new culture (Oppedial and Idsoe, 2015). Social support is essential for UIMs to learn a new language and integrate into a new life, including integration into the school system and extracurricular activities, connecting to religious institutions and seeking out any medical or mental health care needed. Macrosystems include shifting laws and policies and cultural climate, which can contribute to unpredictability in the United States. Relatedly, institutional discrimination can influence how UIMs adjust to their new life in the U.S. Indeed, immigration policy, housing policy and the cultural context in which immigrants are received are related to the safety and well-being of UIMs, including mental and physical health. Professionals working with UIMs should be educated about UIM’s strengths and needs and how these can be influenced by macrosystemic issues. To support this, Vera Institute of Justice found that many professionals react with suspicion and confusion when working with UIMs, which can lead professionals to incorrectly handle their needs by repeatedly transferring cases that they might otherwise feel competent in handling. This literature review attempts to clarify some of the issues facing UIMs in the hopes of informing culturally competent services for them