Mental Health and Related Factors among Migrants from Myanmar in Thailand
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Purpose: To determine the prevalence of mental health problems in migrant workers from Myanmar in Thailand and to examine the relationship among factors that influence such problems. Lazarus’s transactional model of stress and coping was used to frame the study.
Design: A cross-sectional design, involving interviews with 445 migrant workers from Myanmar, was used to collect data. Data collection tools included a sociodemographic form, the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List (ISEL-12), the Acculturative Stress Scale (ASS), the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and the Hopkins Symptom Check List (HSCL-25).
Findings: 11.9% of the participants reported symptoms of depression and/or anxiety. Gender, self-rated physical health, and perceived general stress explained 49.0% of the probable presence of mental health problems and correctly classified 91.9% of cases. The low prevalence of these problems compared to other studies may be related to increased workplace and community stability.
Conclusion: The findings may help health care professionals to understand how overall good health and community and workplace environments can support mental health and wellbeing for migrant workers. Health promotion strategies have the potential to be an important future focus for health care professionals who provide services to this population.
Article Details
References
• Adhikary, P., Sheppard, Z.A., Keen, S., Teijlingen, E.V. (2018). Health and well-being of Nepalese migrant workers abroad. International Journal of Migration, Health & Social Care.
• Arcury, T.A., Estrada, J.M., Quandt, S.A. (2010). Overcoming language and literacy barriers in safety and training of agricultural workers. Journal of Agromedicine, 15, 236-248.
• Al-Maskari, F., Shah, S.M., Al-Sharhan, R., Al-Haj, E., Al-Kaabi, K., Khonji, D., … Bernsen, R.M. (2011). Prevalence of depression and suicidal behaviors among male migrant workers in United Arab Emirates. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 13(6), 1027-1032.
• Ayers, J.W., Hofstetter, C.R., Usita, P., Irvin, V.L., Kang, S., & Hovell, M.F. (2009). Sorting out the competing effects of acculturation, immigrant stress, and social support on depression: A report on Korean women in California. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 197(10), 742-747.
• Bennett, S., Woods, T., Liyanage, W.M., & Smith, D.L. (1991). A simplified general method for cluster-sample surveys of health in developing countries. World Health Statistics Quarterly, 44(3), 98-106.
• Berry, J.W. (1997). Immigration, acculturation, and adaptation. Applied Psychology, 46(1), 5-34.
• Bhugra, D., Gupta, S., Schouler-Ocak, M., Graeff-Calliess, I., Deakin, N.A., Qureshi, A., … Carta, M. (2014). EPA guidance mental health care of migrants. European Psychiatry, 29(2), 107-115.
• Campbell, S. (2012). Cross-ethnic labour solidarities among Myanmar workers in Thailand. Sojourn: Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia, 27(2), 260-274.
• Chae, S.M., Park, J.W., & Kang, H.S. (2014). Relationships of acculturative stress, depression, and social support to health-related quality of life in Vietnamese immigrant women in South Korea. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 25(2), 137-144.
• Chou, K.L. (2009). Pre-migration planning and depression among new migrants to Hong Kong: The moderating role of social support. Journal of Affective Disorders, 114(1–3), 85-93.
• Cohen, S., & Hoberman, H.M. (1983). Positive events and social supports as buffers of life change stress. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 13(2), 99-125.
• Cohen, S., Kamarck, T., & Mermelstein, R. (1983). A global measure of perceived stress. Journal of Health Social Behavior, 24(4), 385-396.
• Cohen, S., Mermelstein, R., Kamarck, T., Hoberman, H.M. (1985). Measuring the functional components of social support. In I. Sarason & B. Sarason (Eds), Social Support: Theory, Research and Applications (Vol. 24, pp. 73-94): Springer Netherlands.
• Familiar, I., Borges, G., Orozco, R., & Medina-Mora, M.E. (2011). Mexican migration experiences to the US and risk for anxiety and depressive symptoms. Journal of Affective Disorders, 130(1-2), 83-91.
• Fitzgerald, S., Chen, X., Qu, H., & Sheff M.G. (2013). Occupational injury among migrant workers in China: A systematic review. Injury Prevention, 19, 348-354. doi: org/10.1136/injuryprev-2012-040578.
• Fox, J.A., & Kim-Godwin, Y. (2011). Stress and depression among Latina women in rural southeastern North Carolina. Journal of Community Health Nursing, 28(4), 223-232.
• Fröjdh, K., Håkansson, A., & Karlsson, I. (2004) The Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 is a sensitive case-finder of clinically important depressive states in elderly people in primary care. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 19(4), 386-90.
• Grant, J.S., & Davis, L.L. (1997). Selection and use of content experts for instrument development. Research in Nursing and Health, 20(3), 269-274.
• Harrigan, N.M., Chiu, Y.K., & Amirrudin, A. (2017). Threat of deportation as proximal social determinant of mental health among migrant workers. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 19, 511-522.
• Held, M.L. (2018). Correlates of social support among Latino immigrants. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, 5(2), 422-429.
• Hovey, J.D., & Magana, C. (2000). Acculturative stress, anxiety, and depression among Mexican immigrant farmworkers in the midwest United States. Journal of Immigrant Health, 2(3), 119-131.
• Hsieh, N. (2015). Economic security, social cohesion and depression disparities in post-transition societies: A comparison of older adults in China and Russia. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 56(4), 534-551.
• Hwang, W.C., & Ting, J.Y. (2008). Disaggregating the effects of acculturation and acculturative stress on the mental health of Asian Americans. Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology, 14(2), 147-154.
• Ismayilova, L., Lee, H.N., Shaw, S., El-Bassel, N., Gilbert, L., Terlikbayeva, A., & Rozental, Y. (2014). Mental health and migration: Depression, alcohol abuse and access to health care among migrants in central Asia. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 16, 1138–1148.
• Jibeen, T. (2011). Moderators of acculturative stress in Pakistani immigrants: The role of personal and social resources. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 35(5), 523-533.
• Khongthanachayopit, S., & Laohasiriwong, W. (2017). Accessibility to health services among migrant workers in the Northeast of Thailand. F1000 Research, 6, 972.
• Kim, S., & Rew, L. (1994). Ethnic identity, role integration, quality of life, and depression in Korean-American women. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 8(6), 348-356.
• Kumparatana, P., Cournos, F., Terlikbayeva, A., Rozental, Y., & Gilbert, L. (2017). Factors associated with self-rated health among migrant workers: Results from a population-based cross-sectional study in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Indian Journal of Public Health, 62, 541-550.
• Kuo, B.C.H. (2011). Culture’s consequences on coping: Theories, evidences, and dimensionalities. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 42(6), 1084-1100.
• Laurenti, P., & Bruno, S. (2012). Migrant health: A value for public health. Italian Journal of Public Health, 9(3), e7497-1-2.
• Lazarus, R.S., & Folkman, S. (1987). Transactional theory and research on emotions and coping. European Journal of Personality, 1(3), 141-169.
• Lin, L.H., & Hung, C.H. (2007). Vietnamese women immigrants’ life adaptation, social support, and depression. Journal of Nursing Research, 15(4), 243-254.
• Lopes C.B., Talley, L., Burton, A., & Crawford, C. (2004). Karenni refugees living in Thai–Burmese border camps: Traumatic experiences, mental health outcomes, and social functioning. Social Science & Medicine, 58(12), 2637.
• McCoy, H.V., Shehadeh, N., & Rubens, M. (2016). alcohol use and sexual risk behaviors in a migrant worker community. Journal of Immigration and Minority Health, 18(3), 561-567.
• Meyer, S.R., Decker, M.R., Tol, W.A., Abshir, N., Mar, A.A., Robinson, W.C. (2016) Workplace and security stressors and mental health among migrant workers on the Thailand-Myanmar border. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 51, 713-723.
• Mollica, R.F., Wyshak, G., de Marneffe, D., Khuon, F., & Lavelle, J. (1987). Indochinese versions of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25: A screening instrument for the psychiatric care of refugees. American Journal of Psychiatry, 144(4), 497-500.
• Office of Foreign Workers Administration. (2017). Monthly statistics of migrants in Thailand; Available from Office of Foreign Workers Administration.Retrieved August 28, 2018 from https://www.doe.go.th/prd/assets/upload/files/alien_th/94ec1760f83293298787bf9d0fd3496a.pdf
• Moyce, S.C., & Schenker, M. (2018). Migrant workers and their occupational health and safety. Annual Reviews of Public Health, 39,351-365.
• Mphil, S.M. (2014). Migration and mental health on the Thailand-Burma border: A mixed methods study: A thesis in Doctor of Philosophy (Doctor’s thesis), Johns Hopkins University. United States.
• Nadim, W., Al-Otaibi, A., Al-Mohaimeed, A., Ewid, M., Sarhandi, M., Saquib, J., … Saquib, N. (2016). Depression among migrant workers in Al-Qassim, Saudi Arabia. Journal of Affective Disorders, 206, 103-108.
• Neisler, J., Reitzel, L.R., Garey, L., Kenzdor, D.E., Hébert, E.T., Vijayaraghavan, M., Businelle, M.S. (2018). The moderating effect of perceived social support on the relation between heaviness of smoking and quit attempts among adult homeless smokers. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 190, 128-132.
• Nicolas, G., & Smith, L (2013). Adjusting to life in the United States: Therapy with Haitian immigrant women. Women & Therapy, 36(3-4) 150-162.
• Nilvarangkul, K., Rungreangkulkij, S., & Wongprom, J. (2010). Perception of stress in Laotian migrant workers in Thailand. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 12(5), 678-682.
• Noknoi, C., & Langthaekun, S. (2015) The impact on Thai labor caused by the employment of migrant workers and opinions toward the strategic management of migrant workers in Thailand. Annual International Conference on Business Strategy and Asian Economic Transformation.
• Noom, S.H., & Vergara, M.B. (2011). Acculturative stress, self-esteem, and coping among Burmese female migrant workers. Paper presented at the The 3rd International conference on humanities and social sciences, Faculty of Leberal Arts, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand.
• Park, H.S., & Rubin, A. (2012). The mediating role of acculturative stress in the relationship between acculturation level and depression among Korean immigrants in the U.S. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 36(5), 611-623.
• Parloff, M.B., Kelman, H.C., & Frank, J.D. (1954). Comfort, effectiveness, and self-awareness as criteria of improvement in psychotherapy. American Journal of Psychiatry, 111(5), 343-352.
• Pholphirul, P., & Rukumnuaykit, P. (2010). Economic contribution of migrant workers in Thailand. International Migration, 48(5), 174-202.
• Polit, D.F., & Beck, C.T. (2006). The content validity index: Are you sure you know what's being reported? Critique and recommendations. Research in Nursing and Health, 29(5), 489-497.
• Qiu, P., Caine, E., Yang, Y., Chen, Q., Li, J., & Ma, X. (2011). Depression and associated factors in internal migrant workers in China. Journal of Affective Disorders, 134(1-3), 198-207.
• Reijneveld, S.A., de Boer, J.B., Bean, T., & Korfker, D.G. (2005). Unaccompanied adolescents seeking asylum: poorer mental health under a restrictive reception. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 193(11), 759-761.
• Britto, R., Catherin, N., Matthew, T., Navshin, S., Kurian, H., Sherrin, S., … Shanbhag, D.N. (2016). Alcohol use and mental health among migrant workers. Indian Journal of Public Health Research and Development, 7(4), 169-173.
• Sandhu, D., & Asrabadi, B. (1994). Development of an acculturative stress scale for international students: Preliminary findings. Psychological Reports, 75, 435-448.
• Schweitzer, R.D., Brough, M., Vromans, L., & Asic-Kobe, M. (2011). Mental health of newly arrived Burmese refugees in Australia: Contributions of pre-migration and post-migration experience. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 45(4), 299-307.
• Shittu, R.O., Issa, B.B., Olanrewaju, G.T., Mahmoud, A.O., Odeigah, L.O., Sule, A.O. (2014). Social determinants of depression: Social cohesion, negative life events and depression among people living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, West Africa. International Journal of Maternal Child Health and AIDS, 2(2), 174-181. PMC4948142.
• Stanley, D. (2003). What do we know about social cohesion: The research perspective of the federal government's social cohesion research network. The Canadian Journal of Sociology / Cahiers Canadiens De Sociologie, 28(1), 5-17.
• Sunpuwan, M., & Niyomsilpa, S. (2012). Perception and misperception: The public opinions on refugees and migrant workers from Myanmar. Journal of Population and Social Studies, 21(1), 47-58.
• Syed, H.R., Zachrisson, H.D., Dalgard, O.S., Ingvild, D., & Ahlberg, N. (2008). Concordance between Hopkins Symptom Checklist (HSCL-10) and Pakistan Anxiety and Depression Questionnaire (PADQ), in a rural self-motivated population in Pakistan. BMC Psychiatry, 8, 59.
• Tangcharoensathien, V., Thwinb, A.A., & Patcharanarumol, W. (2017) Implementing health insurance for migrants in Thailand. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 95, 146–151.
• Thetkathuek, A., & Daniell, W. (2016). Migrant workers in agriculture: a view from Thailand. Journal of Agromedicine, 21(1), 106-112.
• United Nations Development Programme. (2015). Human development reports. Retrieved February 16, 2015 from http://hdr.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/MMR
• Vervliet, M., De Mol, J., Broekaert, E., & Derluyn, I. (2014). ‘That I live, that's because of her’: Intersectionality as framework for unaccompanied refugee mothers. The British Journal of Social Work, 44(7), 2023-2041.
• Vervliet, M., Lammertyn, J., Broekaert, E., & Derluyn, I. (2014). Longitudinal follow-up of the mental health of unaccompanied refugee minors. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 23(5), 337-346.
• Weishaar, H.B. (2008). Consequences of international migration: A qualitative study on stress among Polish migrant workers in Scotland. Public Health, 122(11), 1250-1256.
• Wong, D.F., & Leung, G. (2008). The function of social support in the mental health of male and female migrant workers in China. Health and Social Work, 33(4), 275-285.
• Wong, D.F., & Song, H.X. (2010). Mental health of Chinese migrant workers in factories in Shenzhen, China: Effects of migration Stress and social competence. Social Work in Mental Health, 8(4), 305-318.
• Wong, D.F., Song, H.X., Leung, G., & Chang, Y. (2008). Mental health of Chinese migrant workers; prevalence and correlates. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 43, 483-489.
• Wongpakaran, N., & Wongpakaran, T. (2010). The Thai version of the PSS-10: An investigation of its psychometric properties. BioPsychoSocial Medicine, 4(1), 6 (in Thai).
• Yaduma, N., Williams, A., Lockwood, A., & Park, S. (2015). Performance, labour flexibility and migrant workers in hotels: An establishment and departmental level analysis. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 50, 94-104.
• Zhang, W., & Ta, V.M. (2009). Social connections, immigration-related factors, and self-rated physical and mental health among Asian Americans. Social science & medicine, 68(12), 2104-2112.
• Zimmerman, C., Kiss, L., & Hossain, M. (2011). Migration and health: a framework for 21st century policy-making. PLoS Med, 8(5), e1001034.