Perceived discrimination among Syrian refugees in Germany and its associations with mental health

ABSTRACT

Discrimination is a crucial post migratory stressor but there is little research on perceived discrimination by Syrian refugees. This study aims to assess self-reported discrimination by Syrian refugees with a residence permit in Germany, determine its forms, places, and predictors, and explore its possible relation with mental health. Sociodemographics, migration-specific characteristics, traumatic life events, quality of life, perceived discrimination, depression, generalised anxiety disorder, post-traumatic symptoms, and somatic distress were assessed among 116 participants. More than one-third of the participants perceived discrimination in low frequency, and in general, perceived discrimination was confined to treatment with less courtesy or respect. Unfair treatment was perceived mostly while searching for accommodation and in the neighbourhood. Refugees attributed their experiences to their lack of language skills prior to national, religious, and racial causes. Lower age, higher number of completed years of education, and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder were significantly and substantially associated with perceived discrimination. Anxiety symptoms, number of traumatic experiences and gender may also be regarded as relevant predictors of perceived discrimination. Health care professionals must be aware of the links between discrimination and symptoms of mental disorders. Policymakers should address discrimination as a key refugee issue and risk to mental health.

KEYWORDS:

• Perceived discrimination
• Syrian refugees
• Germany
• Everyday Discrimination Scale
• Mental health

Acknowledgment

Andre Viazminsky performed the present work in fulfilment of the requirements for obtaining the degree ‘Dr. med.’.

Data availability statement

The dataset analyzed during the current study is available from the corresponding author upon request.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

The presented study was supported by the Emerging Fields Initiative (EFI) fund of the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) and the STAEDTLER Foundation. The funders did not have any further role in the design of the study and collection, analysis, interpretation of data, or writing the manuscript.