Resilience in unaccompanied minors from the north of Somalia.

Using ethnographic data this paper shows how young Somali refugees are relatively protected by the collective meanings attributed to separations within their own nomadic culture and by the establishment of continuity through lineage and age-group structures.

Abstract

Using ethnographic data this paper shows how young Somali refugees are relatively protected by the collective meanings attributed to separations within their own nomadic culture and by the establishment of continuity through lineage and age-group structures. This continuity is based not only on the potential substitution of ascendants by a vast social network but also on a very strong process of identification within the age-group of peers. Traditionally among the refugee children unaccompanied refugee children have been considered the highest mental-health risk group. This assertion is based on the recognition of the extreme nature of the contextual stressors children are often subject to: deprivation of emotional relationships loss of a familiar environment and often considerable traumas related to war or armed conflict in the country of origin. It is noted that the one element most likely to increase the risk to mental health in unaccompanied children is the interplay between traumatic experiences and multiple separations and maintains that the children are particularly vulnerable to the burden inflicted by the juxtaposition of mourning and the integration of the traumatic experience. However the collective meaning attributed to a traumatic situations can enable affected individuals on one hand to resort to real or symbolic support from their network and on the other hand to find culturally appropriate strategies to face the situation.