Influence of post-migration living difficulties on post-traumatic symptoms in Chinese asylum seekers resettled in Italy

Abstract

Background: Little is known about mental health and resettlement difficulties of Chinese asylum seekers fleeing China due to religious persecutions. Aim: This study explores main post-migration living difficulties (PMLD) in this population, with a focus on their role in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Methods: A total of 67 patients (95.52% women, mean age 34.75 ± 7.63) were included in the study. The Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ) was used to assess PTSD, the List of Migration Experiences (LiMEs) was used for pre-migration and post-migration experiences (potentially traumatic events as well as living difficulties). The t-test was used to examine the differences in pre-migration and post-migration mean scores. Logistic regression was used to test the effect of pre-migration traumatic experiences (PMTE) and most frequent PMLD on having a PTSD. Results: A total of 49 patients scored above the HTQ cut-off score for PTSD. As expected, traumatic experiences were concentrated in the pre-migration phase, while living difficulties were present in both phases but more frequently in the post-migration period. PMTE were significantly related to PTSD (OR 1.29, p = .01). However, three PMLD (‘Feeling that you do not know where you will lend up tomorrow’, ‘Loneliness and boredom’ and ‘Not being able to find work’) showed a significant interaction with PMTE, suggesting that their presence in the post-migration phase has a modulation effect by increasing the likelihood of PTSD. Conclusion: This study extends to Chinese asylum seekers the previous evidence that PMLD have a significant role in the likelihood to have a PTSD after landing in the host country.