Mental health states of the refugee women in the 10-year visiting process: an assessment in context of the sociocultural adaptation

Abstract

Abstract Background In this study, it is aimed to determine the relationship between the sociocultural adaptation levels and the mental states of women who fled their countries due to the war and settled in Turkey. In this context, the study was carried out with descriptive, cross-sectional, and relational design. In the study, 948 refugee women living in Turkey were interviewed. Personal information form, Brief Symptom Inventory, and Sociocultural Adaptation Scale were used in the interviews. In the analysis of the data, SPSS package program was used, and descriptive statistics were made with linear regression. Results As a result of the study, it was determined that 47% of refugee women were illiterate, 70% had poor Turkish speaking level, and 51% could not establish good relations with Turkish people. The mean age of the women was 28.78 ± 7.01, the mean anxiety score was 24.33 ± 7.86, the mean depression score was 23.95 ± 8.1, the mean negative self-concept score was 23.85 ± 8.05, the mean somatization score was 14.99 ± 5.77, the mean hostility score was 13.63 ± 4.29, and the mean sociocultural adaptation score was 53.15 ± 16.94. Conclusion It was determined that the sociocultural adaptation level of refugee women is low. In addition, it has been determined that women experience psychological symptoms such as anxiety, depression, somatization, negative self-perception, and hostility intensely, and these symptoms are more common in refugee women with low sociocultural adaptation level.