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Trauma and resilient functioning among Syrian refugee children

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 October 2018

Fatima Tuba Yaylaci
Fatima Tuba Yaylaci*
Affiliation:
Istanbul Sehir University
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Fatima Tuba Yaylaci, Department of Psychology, Istanbul Sehir University, Orhantepe Mahallesi, Turgut Ozal Bulvari, No: 21, 34865 Dragos, Kartal/Istanbul, Turkey; E-mail: fatimatubayaylaci@sehir.edu.tr.
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Abstract

Following the civil war in Syria, there has been a growing interest in the impact of war, violent conflict, and refuge on the development and mental health of refugee children in general and Syrian refugee children in particular. The objective of this paper is threefold: (a) to critically review the existing literature on the psychological functioning of Syrian refugee children, with a particular focus on those residing in the urban areas or camps in Turkey; (b) to identify the main theoretical and methodological problems of this emerging literature; and (c) to suggest guidelines for how to improve research and practice in this field. The reviewed literature predominantly focuses on psychological trauma, trauma-related symptomatology or other maladaptive functioning in children, and psychosocial interventions conducted toward alleviating these issues. This paper will summarize the research findings in the above-mentioned topics to discern what can be known from the existing literature on Syrian refugee children.

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Type
Special Issue Articles
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 30 , Special Issue 5: Cultural Development and Psychopathology , December 2018 , pp. 1923 - 1936
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018 

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Footnotes

I would like to acknowledge my students at the Development and Psychopathology Lab for their valuable contribution with reviewing the literature, and providing ideas for this manuscript.

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