Displacement and Emotional Well-Being among Married and Unmarried Syrian Adolescent Girls in Lebanon: An Analysis of Narratives

Sophie Roupetz, Susan A. Bartels, Saja Michael, Negin Najjarnejad, Kimberley Anderson and Colleen Davison
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Sophie Roupetz: Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
Susan A. Bartels: Department of Emergency Medicine, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON K7L 4V7, Canada
Saja Michael: ABAAD Resource Center for Gender Equality, Beirut, Lebanon
Negin Najjarnejad: ABAAD Resource Center for Gender Equality, Beirut, Lebanon
Kimberley Anderson: Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
Colleen Davison: Department of Public Health Sciences, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON K7L 3N6, Canada

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 12, 1-22

Abstract: Lebanon hosts over one million refugees displaced from Syria as a result of the armed conflict—of whom, approximately 15% are adolescents aged between 12 and 17 years of age. Many female adolescent migrants report a decrease in quality of life and an increase in family tensions. This study sought to investigate the emotional well-being of adolescent Syrian girls in Lebanon. We hypothesized that married girls may experience additional hardships and thus greater feelings of dissatisfaction in daily life, given their young marriage and responsibilities at home. This study was part of a large mixed-methods study on the experiences of Syrian refugee girls in Lebanon ( n = 1422). Using line-by-line coding and thematic analysis, 188 first-person narratives from Syrian girls were analysed. Our results highlight poor emotional well-being among married and unmarried girls, with sadness, fear and anger commonly mentioned. Some participants expressed feelings of hope, happiness, gratefulness and empowerment. Unmarried girls ( n = 111) were more likely to associate their shared stories with negative feelings such as sadness (47% vs. 22%), disappointment (30% vs. 19%), and frustration (32% vs. 22%) than were married girls ( n = 77). Four themes emerged as important determinants: access to education, perceived safety, peer support, and longing for life back in Syria. Continued efforts to improve emotional well-being for married and unmarried refugee girls are needed in Lebanon, in particular those that address the nuances for these groups.

Keywords: displacement; adolescent; emotional well-being; Syria; Lebanon; refugee; girls; emergency settings; migrant; health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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