Peer-reviewed article

Syria: refugee parents’ experiences and need for parenting support in camps and humanitarian settings

Aala El‐Khani, Fiona Ulph, Sarah Peters, Rachel M. Calam · 2 Jan 2018

Abstract

Refugee children’s mental health through war, conflict and flight is strongly influenced by family environment and quality of relationships with parents and primary caregivers. Parental support and supervision of the child by the parent is a fundamental protective moderator for child outcomes. Knowledge of parents’ support needs through displacement into pre-resettlement contexts is vital in designing interventions to improve outcomes for refugee children and families. This qualitative study aimed to explore the parenting support needs of Syrian parents who had recently fled conflict and were residing in refugee camps and shelters in Syria and in Turkey, to understand the perceived feasibility and value of intervention at this stage. A total of 29 mothers and professional support workers in refugee camps and humanitarian contexts in Turkey and Syria participated in interviews or focus groups. Data were analysed using thematic analysis and structured into three themes: parents’ desire for parenting advice and actively seeking support; the value of discussing parenting issues, and perceived barriers to accessing support. Parents were very interested in receiving parenting support and were motivated to understand how best to parent in this context. They had made active attempts to acquire information, despite the highly challenging circumstances they had experienced, and were still living through. They had clear views on what they wanted support with and how best to receive it, though they were left frustrated at the very limited available resources. Result indicated that providing tailored support for families at this stage of their refugee journey could have significant benefits for the well-being of both refugee children and their parents. Recognition of the crucial role of parents in policy and practice can help protect the mental health of children and families in their refugee journey. This information should inform policies for refugee families in pre-resettlement contexts.