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Cited by 106Migration, Health and TraumaMaternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and PostpartumPosttraumatic Stress Disorder Research

Effects of maternal traumatic distress on family functioning and child mental health: An examination of Southeast Asian refugee families in the U.S.

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Sangalang, Cindy C., Jager, Justin, Harachi, Tracy W.·2017·Social Science & Medicine
DOI 10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.04.032
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Abstract

Background The psychological effects of trauma are well-documented among refugee adults and children alone, yet less research has attended to the intergenerational transmission of trauma within refugee families. Additionally, there is considerable diversity between refugee populations as well as within-group variation in the experiences and effects of refugee trauma. Objective The current study examines the longitudinal effects of maternal traumatic distress on family functioning and child mental health outcomes among Southeast Asian refugee women and their adolescent children. Given the potential for variation in these effects, we also explore group differences in these relationships by ethnicity and child nativity. Methods Longitudinal data were collected from a random sample of 327 Southeast Asian refugee mothers and their children in the United States. We employed structural equation modeling to examine associations between latent variables representing maternal traumatic distress, family functioning, and child mental health outcomes (i.e., depressive symptoms, antisocial and delinquent behavior, and school problems). We then tested for group differences in these associations by ethnicity (Cambodian and Vietnamese subgroups) and child nativity (U.S.-born and foreign-born children). Results We found maternal traumatic distress was indirectly linked to child mental health outcomes, and that child nativity was associated with these paths while ethnicity was not. For foreign-born children, maternal traumatic distress was associated with diminished family functioning a year later, which was associated with increased school problems at the two-year mark. Maternal traumatic distress was indirectly associated with depressive symptoms and antisocial and delinquent behavior, respectively, after accounting for family functioning. For all children, weaker family functioning was significantly associated with poorer mental health. Conclusions Findings suggest that refugee parents' trauma can adversely affect family relationships and the mental health of children. Interventions that address parental trauma and support intergenerational relationships may enhance mental health within refugee communities for future generations.

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  • Experiences of forced displacement negatively impact aspects of healthy family functioning including communication and family cohesion among Southeast Asian American mothers with school-age children.

    “Experiences of forced displacement have been found to negatively impact aspects of healthy family functioning including communication and family cohesion among another immigrant population, Southeast Asian American mothers with school-age children (Sangalang et al., 2017).”

    From The protective effects of social support and family functioning on parenting stress among Hispanic/Latino/a American immigrant parents with traumatic life experiences: A mediation analysis (2023) · cites this paper as Sangalang et al., 2017

    The Methods section defines family functioning to include parent-child communication and family cohesion, and the Results (section 3.2.2; page unavailable) find that maternal traumatic distress predicted poorer overall family functioning in Southeast Asian refugee families—but only when the children were foreign-born. The claim broadens this finding to forced displacement itself and to mothers with school-age children generally; the paper does not report separate effects on communication and cohesion. (LLM, conf=0.89)

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1 of the 62 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Danieli, Y. (Ed.), 1998. International Handbook of Multigenerational Legacies of Trauma. Plenum Press, New York, NY.
  2. Walters, K.L., Mohammed, S.A., Evans-Campbell, T., Beltr an, R.E., Chae, D.H., Duran, B., 2001. Bodies don't just tell stories, they tell histories. Du. Bois Rev. 8 (1), 179e189.

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Authors
Sangalang, C. C., Jager, J., & Harachi, T. W.
Affiliations
  • California State University Los Angeles (US)
  • Arizona State University (US)
  • University of Washington (US)
Corresponding author
Sangalang, Cindy C.
ORCID
Venue
Social Science & Medicine
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2017-07
Volume
184
Pages
178-186
ISSN
0277-9536 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.04.032
OpenAlex
W2613662922
Cited by
106
References
62
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 41 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 3
FWCI
18.32
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Social Science & Medicine (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD/NIH) (1P20MD009566-01, P20MD002316-10)
  • NICHD (5R01MH059777-05)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Migration, Health and Trauma
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
Keywords
intergenerational trauma, refugee families, Southeast Asian refugees, family functioning, child mental health, depressive symptoms, antisocial behavior, delinquency, school problems, ethnicity, Cambodian refugees, Vietnamese refugees, adolescents
MeSH terms
Child Health, Family Relations, Female, Humans, Mothers, Psychometrics, Surveys and Questionnaires, Refugees, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, United States, Asian People

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