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    This article has been cited by the following publications. This list is generated based on data provided by CrossRef.
    den Otter, Joost Jan Wenzel, Thomas McGrath, Bernadette Osorio, Andres Leal and Drožđek, Boris 2019. An Uncertain Safety. p. 283.
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    O’Reilly, Zoë 2018. ‘Living Liminality’: everyday experiences of asylum seekers in the ‘Direct Provision’ system in Ireland. Gender, Place & Culture, Vol. 25, Issue. 6, p. 821.
    Schininá, Guglielmo and Zanghellini, Thomas Eliyahu 2018. Mental Health and Illness in Migration. p. 1.
    Filges, Trine Montgomery, Edith and Kastrup, Marianne 2018. The Impact of Detention on the Health of Asylum Seekers. Research on Social Work Practice, Vol. 28, Issue. 4, p. 399.
    Zwi, Karen Mares, Sarah Nathanson, Dania Tay, Alvin Kuowei and Silove, Derrick 2018. The impact of detention on the social–emotional wellbeing of children seeking asylum: a comparison with community-based children. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Vol. 27, Issue. 4, p. 411.
    Bjertrup, Pia Juul Bouhenia, Malika Mayaud, Philippe Perrin, Clément Ben Farhat, Jihane and Blanchet, Karl 2018. A life in waiting: Refugees' mental health and narratives of social suffering after European Union border closures in March 2016. Social Science & Medicine, Vol. 215, Issue. , p. 53.
    Kellezi, Blerina Bowe, Mhairi Wakefield, Juliet R.H. McNamara, Niamh and Bosworth, Mary 2018. Understanding and coping with immigration detention: Social identity as cure and curse. European Journal of Social Psychology,
    Negron, Andreia 2018. Supporting asylum seekers and refugees who suffer chronic pain: an experience. International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, Vol. 14, Issue. 1, p. 55.
    Hvidtfeldt, Camilla Schultz-Nielsen, Marie Louise Tekin, Erdal Fosgerau, Mogens and Lanza Queiroz, Bernardo 2018. An estimate of the effect of waiting time in the Danish asylum system on post-resettlement employment among refugees: Separating the pure delay effect from the effects of the conditions under which refugees are waiting. PLOS ONE, Vol. 13, Issue. 11, p. e0206737.
    Burnett, Angela 2018. Primary Care Mental Health. p. 311.
    Spadea, Teresa Rusciani, Raffaella Mondo, Luisa and Costa, Giuseppe 2018. Access to Primary Care and Preventative Health Services of Migrants. p. 57.
    Peterie, Michelle 2018. Technologies of control: Asylum seeker and volunteer experiences in Australian immigration detention facilities. Journal of Sociology, p. 144078331879630.
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Mental health implications of detaining asylum seekers: systematic review

  • Katy Robjant (a1), Rita Hassan (a2) and Cornelius Katona (a3)
Abstract
Background

The number of asylum seekers, refugees and internally displaced people worldwide is rising. Western countries are using increasingly restrictive policies, including the detention of asylum seekers, and there is concern that this is harmful.

Aims

To investigate mental health outcomes among adult, child and adolescent immigration detainees.

Method

A systematic review was conducted of studies investigating the impact of immigration detention on the mental health of children, adolescents and adults, identified by a systematic search of databases and a supplementary manual search of references.

Results

Ten studies were identified. All reported high levels of mental health problems in detainees. Anxiety, depression and posttraumatic stress disorder were commonly reported, as were self-harm and suicidal ideation. Time in detention was positively associated with severity of distress. There is evidence for an initial improvement in mental health occurring subsequent to release, although longitudinal results have shown that the negative impact of detention persists.

Conclusions

This area of research is in its infancy and studies are limited by methodological constraints. Findings consistently report high levels of mental health problems among detainees. There is some evidence to suggest an independent adverse effect of detention on mental health.

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Copyright
COPYRIGHT: © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2009 
Corresponding author
Correspondence: Katy Robjant, Traumatic Stress Service, Clinical Treatment Centre, Maudsley Hospital, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AZ, UK. Email: katy.robjant@thh.nhs.uk
Footnotes
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Declaration of interest

None.

Footnotes
References
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  • Cited by 116
  • Cited by
    Crossref Citations
    Crossref logo
    This article has been cited by the following publications. This list is generated based on data provided by CrossRef.
    den Otter, Joost Jan Wenzel, Thomas McGrath, Bernadette Osorio, Andres Leal and Drožđek, Boris 2019. An Uncertain Safety. p. 283.
    Soller, Brian Goodkind, Jessica R. Greene, R. Neil Browning, Christopher R. and Shantzek, Cece 2018. Ecological Networks and Community Attachment and Support Among Recently Resettled Refugees. American Journal of Community Psychology, Vol. 61, Issue. 3-4, p. 332.
    Grünbaum, Liselotte 2018. Transmission of complex trauma: family orientated intervention before child psychotherapy. Journal of Child Psychotherapy, p. 1.
    2018. Refugees in Higher Education. p. 119.
    Sykinioti, Sofia 2018. The effectiveness of eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing with refugees experiencing symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder. European Journal of Trauma & Dissociation,
    An, Ji Hyun Lee, Kyoung Eun Lee, Hyo Chul Kim, Hae Soo Jun, Jin Yong Chang, Hye In Kim, Suk Sun Lee-Tauler, Su Yeon and Hong, Jin Pyo 2018. Prevalence and Correlates of Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors among North Korean Defectors. Psychiatry Investigation, Vol. 15, Issue. 5, p. 445.
    Sen, P. Arugnanaseelan, J. Connell, E. Katona, C. Khan, A. A. Moran, P. Robjant, K. Slade, K. Tan, J. Widyaratna, K. Youd, J. and Forrester, A. 2018. Mental health morbidity among people subject to immigration detention in the UK: a feasibility study. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, Vol. 27, Issue. 06, p. 628.
    Kronick, Rachel Rousseau, Cécile and Cleveland, Janet 2018. Refugee children’s sandplay narratives in immigration detention in Canada. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Vol. 27, Issue. 4, p. 423.
    Jansen, Melanie Sue Tin, Alanna and Isaacs, David 2018. Prolonged immigration detention, complicity and boycotts. Journal of Medical Ethics, Vol. 44, Issue. 2, p. 138.
    O’Reilly, Zoë 2018. ‘Living Liminality’: everyday experiences of asylum seekers in the ‘Direct Provision’ system in Ireland. Gender, Place & Culture, Vol. 25, Issue. 6, p. 821.
    Schininá, Guglielmo and Zanghellini, Thomas Eliyahu 2018. Mental Health and Illness in Migration. p. 1.
    Filges, Trine Montgomery, Edith and Kastrup, Marianne 2018. The Impact of Detention on the Health of Asylum Seekers. Research on Social Work Practice, Vol. 28, Issue. 4, p. 399.
    Zwi, Karen Mares, Sarah Nathanson, Dania Tay, Alvin Kuowei and Silove, Derrick 2018. The impact of detention on the social–emotional wellbeing of children seeking asylum: a comparison with community-based children. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Vol. 27, Issue. 4, p. 411.
    Bjertrup, Pia Juul Bouhenia, Malika Mayaud, Philippe Perrin, Clément Ben Farhat, Jihane and Blanchet, Karl 2018. A life in waiting: Refugees' mental health and narratives of social suffering after European Union border closures in March 2016. Social Science & Medicine, Vol. 215, Issue. , p. 53.
    Kellezi, Blerina Bowe, Mhairi Wakefield, Juliet R.H. McNamara, Niamh and Bosworth, Mary 2018. Understanding and coping with immigration detention: Social identity as cure and curse. European Journal of Social Psychology,
    Negron, Andreia 2018. Supporting asylum seekers and refugees who suffer chronic pain: an experience. International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, Vol. 14, Issue. 1, p. 55.
    Hvidtfeldt, Camilla Schultz-Nielsen, Marie Louise Tekin, Erdal Fosgerau, Mogens and Lanza Queiroz, Bernardo 2018. An estimate of the effect of waiting time in the Danish asylum system on post-resettlement employment among refugees: Separating the pure delay effect from the effects of the conditions under which refugees are waiting. PLOS ONE, Vol. 13, Issue. 11, p. e0206737.
    Burnett, Angela 2018. Primary Care Mental Health. p. 311.
    Spadea, Teresa Rusciani, Raffaella Mondo, Luisa and Costa, Giuseppe 2018. Access to Primary Care and Preventative Health Services of Migrants. p. 57.
    Peterie, Michelle 2018. Technologies of control: Asylum seeker and volunteer experiences in Australian immigration detention facilities. Journal of Sociology, p. 144078331879630.
    Download full list
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Mental health implications of detaining asylum seekers: systematic review

  • Katy Robjant (a1), Rita Hassan (a2) and Cornelius Katona (a3)
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