Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Premigration Harm and Depression: Findings from the New Immigrant Survey, 2003

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Studies examining refugees from conflict areas have found that persecution in the place of origin is a risk factor for depression. No studies have looked at this association between mental health and the experience of premigration harm due to race, gender or religion in the general population of United States immigrants. The New Immigrant Survey baseline questionnaire was administered to a random sample of adults receiving legal permanent residency in the U.S. in 2003 (n = 8,573), including refugees, asylees and other immigrants. In multivariate analysis controlling for visa type, premigration harm was a predictor of general depression of borderline statistical significance [odds ratio (OR), 1.33; 95 % CI 0.98–1.80, p = 0.068] and a significant predictor of major depression with dysphoria (OR, 2.24; 95 % CI 1.48–3.38, p = 0.0001). These findings suggest that premigration harm is a risk factor for depression in the general immigrant population and not just among refugees.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Monger R, Yankay J. Department of Homeland Security: Annual Flow Report: U.S. Legal Permanent Residents. Available at: http://www.dhs.gov/files/statistics/publications/gc_1301497627185.shtm. Accessed 6 Apr 2012.

  2. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol: relating to the status of refugees. Available at: http://www.unhcr.org/4ec262df9.html. Accessed 16 Jan 2012.

  3. Hollifield M, Warner TD, Lian N, Krakow B, Jenkins JH, Kesler J, et al. Measuring trauma and health status in refugees: a critical review. JAMA. 2002;288(5):611–21.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Fazel M, Wheeler J, Danesh J. Prevalence of serious mental disorder in 7000 refugees resettled in western countries: a systematic review. Lancet. 2005;365(9467):1309–14.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Porter M, Haslam N. Predisplacement and postdisplacement factors associated with mental health of refugees and internally displaced persons: a meta-analysis. JAMA. 2005;294(5):602–12.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Murray KE, Davidson GR, Schweitzer RD. Review of refugee mental health interventions following resettlement: best practices and recommendations. Am J Orthopsychiatry. 2010;80(4):576–85.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Mollica RF, McInnes K, Poole C, Tor S. Dose-effect relationships of trauma to symptoms of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder among Cambodian survivors of mass violence. Br J Psychiatry. 1998;173:482–8.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Mollica RF, Sarajlic N, Chernoff M, Lavelle J, Vukovic IS, Massagli MP. Longitudinal study of psychiatric symptoms, disability, mortality, and emigration among Bosnian refugees. JAMA. 2001;286(5):546–54.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Steel Z, Chey T, Silove D, Marnane C, Bryant RA, van Ommeren M. Association of torture and other potentially traumatic events with mental health outcomes among populations exposed to mass conflict and displacement: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA. 2009;302(5):537–49.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Chung R, Kagawa-Singer M. Predictors of psychological distress among Southeast Asian refugees. Soc Sci Med. 1993;36(5):631–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Marshall GN, Schell TL, Elliott MN, Berthold SM, Chun CA. Mental health of Cambodian refugees 2 decades after resettlement in the United States. JAMA. 2005;294(5):571–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Steel Z, Silove D, Phan T, Bauman A. Long-term effect of psychological trauma on the mental health of Vietnamese refugees in Australia: a population-based study. Lancet. 2002;360(9339):1056–62.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Refugee Resettlement. Revised medical screening guidelines for newly arrived refugees, 24 July 2012. Available at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/orr/state_letter_12_09_revised_medical_screening_guidelines_for_newly.pdf. Accessed 29 Nov 2012.

  14. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Guidelines for Mental Health Screening during the Domestic Medical Examination for Newly Arrived Refugees. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/immigrantrefugeehealth/guidelines/domestic/mental-health-screening-guidelines.html. Accessed 2 Dec 2012.

  15. Kennedy J, Seymour DJ, Hummel BJ. A comprehensive refugee health screening program. Public Health Rep. 1999;114(5):469–77.

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Alegria M, Canino G, Shrout PE, Woo M, Duan N, Vila D, et al. Prevalence of mental illness in immigrant and non-immigrant U.S. Latino groups. Am J Psychiatry. 2008;165(3):359–69.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Breslau J, Borges G, Hagar Y, Tancredi D, Gilman S. Immigration to the USA and risk for mood and anxiety disorders: variation by origin and age at immigration. Psychol Med. 2009;39(7):1117–27.

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Miranda J, Siddique J, Belin TR, Kohn-Wood LP. Depression prevalence in disadvantaged young black women. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2005;40(4):253–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Jamil H, Nassar-McMillan SC, Lambert RG. Immigration and attendant psychological sequelae: a comparison of three waves of Iraqi immigrants. Am J Orthopsychiatry. 2007;77(2):199–205.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Fortuna LR, Porche MV, Alegria M. Political violence, psychosocial trauma, and the context of mental health services use among immigrant Latinos in the United States. Ethn Health. 2008;13(5):435–63.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Miranda PY, Schulz AJ, Israel BA, Gonzalez HM. Context of entry and number of depressive symptoms in an older Mexican-Origin immigrant population. J Immigr Minority Health. 2011;13:706–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Rousseau C, Drapeau A. Premigration exposure to political violence among independent immigrants and its association with emotional distress. J Nerv Ment Dis. 2004;192(12):852–6.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Akresh IR, Frank R. Health selection among new immigrants. Am J Public Health. 2008;98(11):2058–64.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Jasso G, Massey DS, Rosenzweig MR, Smith JP. The New Immigrant Survey 2003 Round 1 (NIS-2003-1) public release data. Available at: http://nis.princeton.edu. Accessed 2 Mar 2011.

  25. The New Immigrant Survey Princeton University. Overview. Available at: http://nis.princeton.edu/overview.html. Accessed 15 Mar 2011.

  26. Kessler RC, Andrews G, Mroczek D, Ustun B, Wittchen HU. The World Health Organization Composite International Diagnostic Interview Short Form (CIDI-SF). Int J Methods Psychiatr Res. 1998;7:171–85.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Egede LE, Zheng D. Independent factors associated with major depressive disorder in a national sample of individuals with diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2003;26(1):104–11.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Kagotho N, Tan J. Predictors of prostate cancer screening among older immigrant men. J Natl Med Assoc. 2008;100(10):1168–74.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Vergara AE, Miller JM, Martin DR, Cookson ST. A survey of refugee health assessments in the United States. J Immigr Health. 2003;5(2):67–73.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Fenta H, Hyman I, Noh S. Determinants of depression among Ethiopian immigrants and refugees in Toronto. J Nerv Ment Dis. 2004;192(5):363–72.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Norris AE, Aroian KJ, Nickerson DM. Premigration persecution, postmigration stressors and resources, and postmigration mental health: a study of severely traumatized U.S. Arab immigrant women. J Am Psychiatr Nurses Assoc 2011;17(4):283–293.

    Google Scholar 

  32. Gwynn RC, McQuistion HL, McVeigh KH, Garg RK, Frieden TR, Thorpe LE. Prevalence, diagnosis, and treatment of depression and generalized anxiety disorder in a diverse urban community. Psychiatr Serv. 2008;59(6):641–64.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The NIS was supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH)/National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)/National Institute on Aging (NIA)/Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research (OBSSR) under grant HD33843, the National Science Foundation (NSF) under grants SRS-9907421 and SES-0096867, the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (now the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services). Additional support was provided by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) and the Pew Charitable Trusts. This collaborative research project spans four institutional settings—RAND, Princeton University, New York University, and Yale University.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Epidemiology and Biostatistics, CUNY School of Public Health at Hunter College, 2180 Third Avenue, Room 543, New York, NY, 10035, USA

    Michelle A. Montgomery & Elizabeth A. Kelvin

  2. Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, NY, USA

    Charlotte T. Jackson

Authors
  1. Michelle A. Montgomery
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Charlotte T. Jackson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Elizabeth A. Kelvin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michelle A. Montgomery.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Montgomery, M.A., Jackson, C.T. & Kelvin, E.A. Premigration Harm and Depression: Findings from the New Immigrant Survey, 2003. J Immigrant Minority Health 16, 773–780 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-013-9810-z

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-013-9810-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation