A Swedish study of 50 newly resettled refugee children from Chile describes the children's experiences of persecution in their home country and coping patterns in the receiving country. Thirty-six children had experiences directly related to persecution, and seven of these had been victims of physical assault for political reasons. Sleep disturbances and dependency were behaviors significantly associated with experiences of persecution. Resettled refugee families need to be approached by concerned professionals as symptoms of trauma in refugee children are often recognized only in the family sphere. © 1991.

Mental health PTSD Stress Refugee children

refugee Child Reactive Disorders human Refugees violence Sweden Adolescent male Personality Development Acculturation female case report Child, Preschool Article Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Child Abuse Social Environment posttraumatic stress disorder Chile Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic politics Social Adjustment Child