Journal article

The persistence of predictors of wellbeing among refugee youth eight years after resettlement in Melbourne, Australia

Ignacio Correa-Velez, Sandra M Gifford, Celia McMichael

SOCIAL SCIENCE & MEDICINE | PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD | Published : 2015

Abstract

This short report assesses the predictors of subjective health and happiness among a cohort of refugee youth over their first eight years in Australia. Five waves of data collection were conducted between 2004 (n = 120) and 2012-13 (n = 51) using mixed methods. Previous schooling, self-esteem, moving house in the previous year, a supportive social environment, stronger ethnic identity and perceived discrimination were significant predictors of wellbeing after adjusting for demographic and pre-migration factors. When compared with a previous analysis of this cohort over their first three years of settlement, experiences of social exclusion still have a significant impact on wellbeing eight ye..

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Grants

Awarded by Australian Research Council


Funding Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the young people who participated in this study, the staff from the English Language Schools, and the research team. We also acknowledge the valuable comments provided by the anonymous reviewers. Funding for the different stages of this study was provided by VicHealth, Foundation House (VFST), Sydney Myer Fund, William Buckland Foundation, Mrs and Mr Spitzer, La Trobe University, and the Australian Research Council (DP 120101579).