With the global increase in the number of refugees and asylum seekers, mental health professionals have become more aware of the need to understand and respond to the mental health needs of forced migrants. This critical review summarizes the findings of recent systematic reviews and primary research on the impact of post-migration conditions on mental disorders and PTSD among refugees and asylum seekers. Historically, the focus of mental health research and interventions with these populations has been on the impact of pre-migration trauma. Pre-migration trauma does predict mental disorders and PTSD, but the post-migration context can be an equally powerful determinant of mental health. Moreover, post-migration factors may moderate the ability of refugees to recover from pre-migration trauma. The importance of post-migration stressors to refugee mental health suggests the need for therapeutic interventions with psychosocial elements that address the broader conditions of refugee and asylum seekers’ lives. However, there are few studies of multimodal interventions with refugees, and even fewer with control conditions that allow for conclusions about their effectiveness. These findings are interpreted using a social determinants of health framework that connects the risk and protective factors in the material and social conditions of refugees’ post-migration lives to broader social, economic and political factors.

Three studies were conducted to explore the impact of scripted sociosexual norms on women's contraceptive behavior. In Study 1, scripts of an initial sexual encounter written by 36 female and 30 male undergraduates were analyzed for relational orientation. Women portrayed the female character as more relational than the male character. Scripts including condom use were less relational than those without condom use. In Study 2, a Relational Ideal factor from an Ideal Sexual Self Scale was obtained from the responses of 272 female participants. The Relational Ideal was used in Study 3 to predict contraceptive attitudes and behavior in 62 undergraduate women. Endorsement of the Relational Ideal, controlling for sexual attitudes, was associated with less positive attitudes towards condoms, lesser likelihood of condom use during last intercourse, and greater latency to obtaining contraceptives in relationships. These results are discussed with respect to the incorporation of condoms into relational scripts, and the impact of these scripts on women's contraceptive behavior.

There is little longitudinal research that directly compares the effectiveness of Canada’s Government-Assisted Refugee (GAR) and Privately Sponsored Refugee (PSR) Programs that takes into account possible socio-demographic differences between them. This article reports findings from 1,921 newly arrived adult Syrian refugees in British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec. GARs and PSRs differed widely on several demographic characteristics, including length of time displaced. Furthermore, PSRs sponsored by Groups of 5 resembled GARs more than other PSR sponsorship types on many of these characteristics. PSRs also had broader social networks than GARs. Sociodemographic differences and city of residence influenced integration outcomes, emphasizing the importance of considering differences between refugee groups when comparing the impact of these programs.

Background: Perinatal depression and anxiety are increasingly recognized as important public health issues in low and middle-income countries such as Rwanda and may have negative consequences for both mothers and their infants. Maternal mental health may be particularly challenged in Rwanda because of the prevalence of risk factors such as poverty, low education levels, negative life events and marital problems. However, there are limited data about perinatal depression and anxiety symptoms in Rwanda. This study thus aimed to explore the prevalence of symptoms of perinatal depression and anxiety in Rwanda, and factors associated with them. Methods: A sample of 165 women in the perinatal period (second and third trimester of pregnancy, up to 1 year postnatal) were interviewed individually over 1 month in October 2013. Women were interviewed at 5 of 14 health centres in the Eastern Province or the affiliated district hospital. Participants answered socio-demographic questions and scales measuring symptoms of perinatal depression (EPDS: Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale) and anxiety (SAS: Zung Self-rating Anxiety Scale). Results: Among women in the antenatal period (N = 85), 37.6% had symptoms indicating possible depression (EPDS ≥10) and 28.2% had symptoms associated with clinical levels of anxiety (SAS > 45). Among women within the postnatal period (N = 77), 63.6% had symptoms of possible depression, whereas 48,1% had symptoms of probable anxiety. Logistic regression showed that symptoms of postnatal depression were higher for respondents who had four or more living children relative to those having their first child (Odds Ratio: 0.07, C.I. = 0.01–0.42), and for those with a poor relationship with their partner (Odds Ratio: .09, C.I. =0.03–0.25). Any lifetime exposure to stressful events was the only predictor of symptoms of postnatal anxiety (Odds Ratio = 0.20, C.I. = 0.09–0.44). Conclusions: Symptoms of postnatal depression and anxiety were prevalent in this Rwandan sample and most strongly predicted by interpersonal and social factors, suggesting that social interventions may be a successful strategy to protect against maternal mental health problems in the Rwandan context.