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Refugees' Agency: On Resistance, Resilience, and Resources

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  • José Renkens

    (Department of Primary and Community Care, Radboud University Medical Centre, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands
    Gender & Diversity Studies, Radboud University, 6525 GD Nijmegen, The Netherlands
    School of Oganisation and Development, HAN University of Applied Sciences, 6525 EM Nijmegen, The Netherlands)

  • Els Rommes

    (Gender & Diversity Studies, Radboud University, 6525 GD Nijmegen, The Netherlands)

  • Maria van den Muijsenbergh

    (Department of Primary and Community Care, Radboud University Medical Centre, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands
    Pharos, Dutch Centre of Expertise on Health Disparities Utrecht, 3507 LH Utrecht, The Netherlands)

Abstract

This study set out to answer the question ‘Which kinds of agency do refugees perform when dealing with mental health problems of themselves and their children?’. Aiming to gain more insight in why it seems harder for refugee parents and minors than for the native population to talk to health professionals about their mental health and wellbeing, we combined two theoretical notions of agency to investigate a broad spectrum of informants’ behaviour. We conducted 25 interviews with 30 refugees from 8 countries (Syria, Yemen, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Eritrea, Turkish Kurdistan, Vietnam), whose Dutch residence permit varied from 26 years to less than one year. Data were analysed through open and axial coding, followed by pattern analyses. Although sometimes refugees seek (mental) healthcare, at other times they show agency by doing ‘nothing’ or by deliberately using distracting activities to deal with severe stress. Making use of resources available to them, oftentimes refugees show agency in ways that are less visible to healthcare professionals, by surviving, showing resilience, and suffering. In these cases, we think healthcare for refugees should intervene in a non-medical way, e.g., by supporting them to obtain resources that help refugees to (re)gain agency.

Suggested Citation

  • José Renkens & Els Rommes & Maria van den Muijsenbergh, 2022. "Refugees' Agency: On Resistance, Resilience, and Resources," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(2), pages 1-16, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:2:p:806-:d:722771
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Sarah Gammage & Naila Kabeer & Yana van der Meulen Rodgers, 2016. "Voice and Agency: Where Are We Now?," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(1), pages 1-29, January.
    2. Satinsky, Emily & Fuhr, Daniela C. & Woodward, Aniek & Sondorp, Egbert & Roberts, Bayard, 2019. "Mental health care utilisation and access among refugees and asylum seekers in Europe: A systematic review," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(9), pages 851-863.
    3. Eva Spiritus-Beerden & An Verelst & Ines Devlieger & Nina Langer Primdahl & Fábio Botelho Guedes & Antonio Chiarenza & Stephanie De Maesschalck & Natalie Durbeej & Rocío Garrido & Margarida Gaspar de , 2021. "Mental Health of Refugees and Migrants during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Role of Experienced Discrimination and Daily Stressors," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(12), pages 1-14, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Lluis Oviedo & Berenika Seryczyńska & Josefa Torralba & Piotr Roszak & Javier Del Angel & Olena Vyshynska & Iryna Muzychuk & Slava Churpita, 2022. "Coping and Resilience Strategies among Ukraine War Refugees," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-14, October.
    2. Jakob Versteele & Cécile Rousseau & Marina Danckaerts & Lucia De Haene, 2024. "Developing a Collaborative Approach to Support Access and Acceptability of Mental Health Care for Refugee Youth: An Exploratory Case Study with Young Afghan Refugees," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(3), pages 1-21, March.

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