Unaccompanied refugee minors (URMs) are a population at risk for developing mental problems, post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and/or depression. Therapists working with URMs often have to overcome language and cultural barriers, while taking into account these young people’s specific needs. A growing literature describes a wide range of interventions designed to reduce psychopathologies and improve well-being. This study summarized the different interventions used with URMs to get an overview of techniques used for reducing psychopathologies and difficulties of URMs and to give recommendations to help professionals. Seventeen studies, reported in papers or book chapters, met the criteria for inclusion in our analysis. Only one RCT has been conducted with URMs but because of small sample size we cannot conclude on its efficacy. Other studies are case series or case studies and because of their study design, we cannot conclude whether one intervention is superior to others. Further research, with higher level of evidence, is needed to determine which types of intervention are most effective when working with URMs.
Unaccompanied Refugee Minors: A Systematic Review of Psychological Interventions / Unbegleitete minderjährige Flüchtlinge: Eine systematische Übersicht über psychologische Interventionen. Kindheit und Entwicklung
In 2014, 34,300 applications for asylum were placed by unaccompanied refugee minors in 82 countries. Unaccompanied refugee minors are at a very high risk for psychological disorders, since the absence of a parent is associated with developmental risks that are further increased owing to experiences made while on flight. Given the current refugee situation in…