Citation

Stige SH, Sveaass N. Torture 2010; 20(2): 76-91.

Affiliation

Norwegian Center on Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Norway. signestige@hotmail.com.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

20952824

Abstract

As the number of migrants,- forced or voluntary,- increases, there is a growing need to understand how negative events in the country of origin influence those residing abroad. This issue has been actualized by the recent earthquakes in Haiti and Chile. Persons in exile have frequently been exposed to severe human rights violations and other stressors prior to emigration. The present study explored possible associations between ongoing and former stressors and mental health problems among persons living in exile as the Tsunami disaster of 2004 struck their country of origin. The contribution of former exposure and exilerelated difficulties in explaining current mental health problems was explored together with Tsunamirelated bereavement and social support. Following the Tsunami disaster of 2004 a questionnaire was administered to individuals of Tamil and Acehnese origin residing in Norway. The results suggest an independent contribution of exilerelated difficulties, former exposure and social support in explaining current mental health problems in this group. The study also disclosed methodological challenges involved both in relation to recruiting participants and in isolating the contribution of a particular stressor in populations with high levels of former exposure as well as ongoing stress.

Language: en