Levekår, emosjonelle plager, resiliens og foreldrestress - En kartlegging av flyktningfamilier fra Ukraina

Abstract

Norway’s integration programme for newly arrived refugees is mandatory, and is offered by all municipalities. The programme offers courses in social studies, Norwegian language and parental guidance. In 2023, it was decided to allow municipalities to adapt and shorten the latter course for families from Ukraine due to capacity constraints. To make informed adaptations, the municipalities need more information about the needs of parents from Ukraine. This article aims to provide knowledge that can help decision-makers plan and implement further adaptations to social and health services by examining living conditions, emotional problems, parental stress and resilience. The participants were Ukrainian refugees with children aged 6–12 from seven municipalities who completed an electronic questionnaire that included questions on the Hopkins Symptom Checklist (short version), the Resilience Scale for Adolescents, and the Parenting Stress Index (short version). We found that economic living conditions among Ukrainian refugees were poor, and that 26 per cent of the sample reported symptoms of anxiety and depression. Despite this, parents demonstrated resilience through their social resources, family cohesion, and low levels of parental stress. However, it is important to note that mental health issues and increased parental stress can emerge sometime after flight and settlement in Norway, and that poor economic conditions can exacerbate these concerns.