Comparing Trauma Exposure, Mental Health Needs, and Service Utilization Across Clinical Samples of Refugee, Immigrant, and U.S.-Origin Children

TitleComparing Trauma Exposure, Mental Health Needs, and Service Utilization Across Clinical Samples of Refugee, Immigrant, and U.S.-Origin Children
Publication TypeJournal Article
AuthorsBetancourt, T. S., E. A. Newnham, D. Birman, R. Lee, B. H. Ellis, and C. M. Layne
Most mental health services for trauma-exposed children and adolescents were not originally developed for refugees. Information is needed to help clinicians design services to address the consequences of trauma in refugee populations. We compared trauma exposure, psychological distress, and mental health service utilization among children and adolescents of refugee-origin, immigrant-origin, and U.S.-origin referred for assessment and treatment by U.S. providers in the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). We used propensity score matching to compare trauma profiles, mental health needs, and service use across three groups. Our sample comprised refugee-origin youth (n = 60, 48.3% female, mean age = 13.07 years) and propensity-matched samples of immigrant-origin youth (n = 143, 60.8% female, mean age = 13.26 years), and U.S.-origin youth (n = 140, 56.1% female, mean age = 12.11 years). On average, there were significantly more types of trauma exposure among refugee youth than either U.S.-origin youth (p < .001) or immigrant youth (p
Title Comparing Trauma Exposure, Mental Health Needs, and Service Utilization Across Clinical Samples of Refugee, Immigrant, and U.S.-Origin Children
Publication Title J Trauma Stress
Publication Type Journal Article
Published Year 2017
Authors T.S. Betancourt; E.A. Newnham; D. Birman; R. Lee; B.H. Ellis; C.M. Layne
Accession Number 28585740
Number 3
ISBN Number 1573-6598 (Electronic)<br/>0894-9867 (Linking)
Grant List
-

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

For breaking news and to stay connected, follow us on social media. Sign up to get our E-News delivered straight to your inbox.