Trauma-Related Psychopathology in Iraqi Refugee Youth Resettled in the United States, and Comparison With an Ethnically Similar Refugee Sample: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

The present observational study indicated that Iraqi refugee youth experience a range of anxiety and posttraumatic stress symptoms following warzone exposure and forced migration; posttraumatic stress symptoms were less severe in Iraqi versus Syrian youth. Comparing refugee youth of different nationalities is of particular importance, as our results demonstrate that findings from one refugee population cannot easily be generalized to another. Clinical and research efforts should prioritize interventions to address separation anxiety in refugee youth, which was of concern in both samples.