Department of Psychology

A Resilience Perspective on Immigrant and Refugee Youth Adaptation: Who does well and why?

Project funded by the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (HFRI-FM17-1188)

Migration is a defining issue of the 21st century. Millions of young people live in countries other than their country of origin. Greece, in particular, in addition to the past influx of economic immigrants, has experienced an exponential increase in the number of refugees from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, African countries and, more recently, Ukraine. The positive integration of immigrants in receiving societies is crucial for both immigrants' and nonimmigrants’ well-being, as well as for the prosperity of society. According to reports from international organizations, the litmus test for how well immigrants are integrated into a receiving society is an assessment of how well their children are doing. Youth’s current positive adaptation is a forerunner of their future adaptation, whereas failure to adapt early in development may have negative, and possibly cascading, future consequences. Thus, promoting immigrant youth’s positive adaptation is paramount for the future success and wellbeing of both immigrants and the receiving society.

Immigrant families and their children often experience social and economic adversities which place at higher risk the adaptation and wellbeing of their children. Immigrants tend to be over-represented in the low socio-economic strata of host societies. In Greece, they experienced worse economic hardship during the economic recession, compared to Greek families. Moreover, often they experience discrimination and prejudice, which have deleterious effects on youth’s integration in the host society. Despite encountering these adversities, substantial heterogeneity in migrant youth adaptation has been observed with some young migrants being resilient and adapting well, whereas others are being less resilient.

The overarching goal of the Migrant Youth Resilience project is to understand what can promote resilience for immigrant and refugee youth in Greece, and thus mitigate the effects of social and economic adversity on their adaptation and development. The main research question of the project is: Who among immigrant and refugee youth adapt well and why? The project adopts a developmental approach through the lens of a resilience framework. It is guided by a strengths-based approach to immigrant youth adaptation, focusing mainly on assets, strengths, protective factors, and positive outcomes, rather than on risks, problems, and vulnerabilities.

The project consists of work packages with an implementation horizon of 48 months (December 2019-December 2023).

• Work Package 1 refers to the operational management of the project.
• In Work Package 2 we will examine potential risk and resilience (promotive and/or protective) factors for the positive adaptation of immigrant youth. In particular, we will implement a longitudinal quantitative study (questionnaires) and a qualitative study (interviews).
• In Work Package 3 we will examine potential risk and resilience (promotive and/or protective) factors for the positive adaptation of refugee youth. To this end, we will conduct a cross-sectional quantitative study (questionnaires) and two qualitative studies (interviews with refugee children and teachers).
• In Work Package 4 we will conduct a randomized control trial to test a universal mental health promotion programme that targets youth’s ethnocultural identity exploration and resolution, as an important asset across ethnic groups The intervention will include adolescents with an immigrant background as well as of Greek origin, since it is expected to produce significant positive outcomes for both groups.
• Work Package 5 will synthesize the conclusions of WP2, WP3 and WP4. Key findings from each WP will be compiled and analyzed focusing on triangulation and complementarity across evidence types (quantitative and qualitative) and migrant groups (immigrants and refugees). In the last year of the project, we will invite policy makers, representatives of NGOs, as well as a group of migrant and refugee adolescents to discuss their suggestions regarding the practical implications and social relevance of the project findings.
• The objective of Work Package 6 is to disseminate the results of the project to scientists, civil society, and relevant stakeholders. We will submit at least three papers for publication in peer-reviewed international scientific journals, we will present at least 10 papers in international and Greek conferences, we will organize a conference in Athens, and we will disseminate the project findings through the media (newspapers, TV, radio, Internet).

The research team consists of researchers, collaborators, and assistants whose expertise and experience complement the multi-layered needs arising from the research objectives, as follows:

• Professor Frosso Motti-Stefanidi is principal investigator.
• Professor Vassilis Pavlopoulos is coordinator of the quantitative studies.
• Professor Philia Issari is coordinator of the qualitative studies.
• Anastasios Ntalachanis, a clinical psychologist and PhD candidate, is in charge of the intervention.
• Maria-Nefeli Dimopoulou (social-cultural psychologist) Angeliki Zacharia (clinical psychologist and PhD candidate) and Christina Tsigkou (clinical psychologist), are scientific collaborators in different work packages.
• The core research team is supported by four postgraduate students, 26 undergraduate students, and seven graduates of the Department of Psychology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.

For the purposes of the project, we are collaborating closely with the following school units:

• 5th High School of Acharnai
• 9th High School of Acharnai
• 11th High School of Acharnai
• 3rd High School of Aigaleo
• 15th High School of Athens
• 20th High School of Athens
• 21st High School of Athens
• 41st High School of Athens
• 42nd High School of Athens
• 46th High School of Athens
• 56th High School of Athens
• 60th High School of Athens
• 2nd High School of Drapetsona
• High School of Drosia
• 5th High School of Glyfada
• 2nd High School of Intercultural Education of Hellinikon
• 3rd High School of New Philadelphia
• 11th High School of Nikaia
• 1st High School of Perama
• 3th High School of Peristeri
• 1st High School of Scala Oropou
• 3rd High School of St. Ioannis Rentis
• 3rd High School of Vyronas

The study of vulnerable populations requires careful planning and ethical considerations, with participant welfare as the primary concern. We have granted ethical approval from the Ethics Committee of the Department of Psychology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, as well as from the Directorate of Primary and Secondary Education of the Region of Attica. Informed consent procedures involve both adolescents and their adult carers. Overall, the research team is committed to complying with EU and national legislations regarding research ethics when working with immigrant and refugee minors.

The project is characterized as high risk, high gain. It is high risk, because it focuses on particularly vulnerable groups of adolescents. In particular, refugee youth live in precarious circumstances, often under conditions of severe poverty. And it is high gain because, through innovative methods, we will generate evidence that can potentially improve the lives of these young people through designing interventions and implementing policies that promote personal development and social inclusion of immigrant and refugee youth.

Contact: frmotti@psych.uoa.gr