International Journal for the Advancement of Counselling
2019

Refugees and the System: Social and Cultural Capital during U.S. Resettlement (Article)

Interiano-Shiverdecker C.G.* , Kondili E. , Parikh-Foxx S.
  • a Department of Counseling, University of Texas at San Antonio, 501 W. César E. Chávez Boulevard, San Antonio, TX 78207-4415, United States
  • b Department of Counseling, University of Detroit Mercy, Detroit, MI, United States
  • c Department of Counseling, University of North Carolina-Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, United States

Abstract

Using Pierre Bourdieu’s (1986) theory of social and cultural capital, this phenomenological study explored how access to cultural resources and social networks impacted refugees’ mental health during their U.S. resettlement. Interviews with six refugees and five staff members of local refugee agencies revealed two themes and eight subthemes. The main themes were (i) resources that achieved stability, and (ii) refugees’ acquisition of cultural resources required to thrive as citizens in their host country. Implications for counselors who work with refugees around the world and for future research are discussed. © 2019, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.

Author Keywords

Mental health Refugees Cultural and social capital

Index Keywords

staff phenomenology social network social capital refugee counselor Article interview mental health human human experiment
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85067301250&doi=10.1007%2fs10447-019-09383-9&partnerID=40&md5=317ddd695c4afefd52b4e32abffd21f3
DOI: 10.1007/s10447-019-09383-9
ISSN: 01650653
Original Language: English