Mary Bunn
Biographic Data
| ID | 3947206 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Mary Bunn |
| GIVEN NAMES | Mary |
| FAMILY NAME | Bunn |
| SIGNATURE | BUNN M |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Illinois Chicago |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-8464-7888 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 12 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 1 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 12 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2018 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Assessing the Needs of Newcomer Afghan Children and Adolescents: A Qualitative Investigation of Culturally Relevant Mental Health and Emotional Distress Problems
While numerous studies have found that children affected by war and forced displacement are at increased risk for common mental health problems, research also indicates that experiences of emotional distress and the way it is expressed and understood vary by cultural group and context. In this study, we used previously developed rapid qualitative assessment methods to examine local perceptions of mental health and emotional distress among recentl…
Mothering at All Costs: A Process Model of Parenting Challenges and Adaptations Among Syrian and Iraqi Refugee Women
The resettlement period is fraught with financial, cultural, emotional, and psychosocial difficulties for refugee families. Women, as mothers, often play a significant role in buffering adversity and sustaining the family system during this tumultuous time. Yet, there is limited research focused on understanding their lived experiences of parenting. In the current study, an interpretive analytical process drawing from grounded theory methods was …
Developing and Piloting a Low-Intensity Family Support Intervention for Syrian Refugees
Background.This study developed and pilot tested a transdiagnostic family intervention for urban refugee families in LMICs with limited to no access to evidence-based mental health services using a task-sharing approach.Methods.A Family Support Design Team designed the Low Intensity Family Support (LIFS) model, trained the facilitators, and oversaw the implementation.The model was piloted with 70 Syrian refugee families (n=111 adolescents and n=1…
Conceptualizing mental health service delivery for refugee and forcibly displaced communities: A scoping review of service models and frameworks for populations impacted by trauma or displacement
Overall, these findings and gaps can inform the development of a model to guide integrated delivery of mental health services for refugee and other forcibly displaced populations in the United States. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)
Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Women and Children Returning from Violent Extremist Contexts: A Rapid Review to Inform Program and Policy Development
This rapid review used a systematic approach to examine the available literature on rehabilitation and reintegration (R&R) programs for women and children returning from contexts of violent extremism, examining common assumptions, inputs, activities and outcomes across diverse settings. Fifty-one documents including peer reviewed articles and grey literature were included in the analysis. The most common program activities identified included men…
Supporting Women and Children Returning from Violent Extremist Contexts: Proposing a 5R Framework to Inform Program and Policy Development
Women and children returning from areas formerly controlled by the Islamic State typically have experienced high levels of trauma and indoctrination, further complicating politically fraught efforts at reintegration and resettlement. Consequently, countries around the world are grappling with how best to manage the return of these women and children. To help better understand which types of programming can contribute to the successful, non-violen…
Rethinking mental healthcare for refugees
After several years of downturn in new resettlement, the United States is projected to admit 125,000 refugees in the current fiscal year. Refugee communities have known risks of developing mental health problems due to high rates of exposure to war and conflict-related trauma and chronic stressors associated with displacement and resettlement. In this commentary, we examine limitations in the current system of mental health care available to newl…
Peer models for families involved in the child welfare system: A systematic review
Ambiguous loss of home: Syrian refugees and the process of losing and remaking home
This constructivist-interpretive study examines social-relational dimensions of change and loss following experiences of political terror, war and forced migration from the perspective of Syrian refugee men and women who were presently living in Jordan (n=31). A process model derived from the analysis theorizes four dimensions of ambiguous loss (safety and security, social connections and identities, connection to place, and dreams and imagined f…
Investigating Outcomes of a Family Strengthening Intervention for Resettled Somali Bantu and Bhutanese Refugees: An Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods Study
Pre- and post-migration stressors can put resettled refugee children at risk of poor mental health outcomes. The Family Strengthening Intervention for Refugees (FSI-R) is a peer-delivered preventative home visiting program for resettled refugees that aims to draw upon families' strengths to foster improved family communication, positive parenting, and caregiver-child relationships, with the ultimate goal of reducing children's risk of mental heal…
A Scoping Review of Social Support Research among Refugees in Resettlement: Implications for Conceptual and Empirical Research
This study reviewed social support research with refugees in resettlement by assessing the scope of scholarship and examining methodological approaches, definitions, theoretical frameworks, domains, and sources of support. The scoping review followed a systematic approach that retained 41 articles for analysis. The findings indicate that refugee resettlement studies seldom conceptualizes social support as a central focus, defines the concept, dra…
Social Work’s Contribution to Direct Practice with Individuals, Families, and Groups: An Institutionalist Perspective
Social work’s contribution to direct practice has evolved over time as a function of political, economic, and social change in the United States. From an institutionalist perspective, social work is defined by the tasks it seeks to accomplish, the knowledge base supporting those tasks, and the vertical and horizontal architecture of its roles and activities. This article defines direct practice social work as interpersonal work with individuals, …
Social Work’s Contribution to Direct Practice with Individuals, Families, and Groups: An Institutionalist Perspective
Social work’s contribution to direct practice has evolved over time as a function of political, economic, and social change in the United States. From an institutionalist perspective, social work is defined by the tasks it seeks to accomplish, the knowledge base supporting those tasks, and the vertical and horizontal architecture of its roles and activities. This article defines direct practice social work as interpersonal work with individuals, …
Social Work’s Contribution to Direct Practice with Individuals, Families, and Groups: An Institutionalist Perspective
Social work’s contribution to direct practice has evolved over time as a function of political, economic, and social change in the United States. From an institutionalist perspective, social work is defined by the tasks it seeks to accomplish, the knowledge base supporting those tasks, and the vertical and horizontal architecture of its roles and activities. This article defines direct practice social work as interpersonal work with individuals, …
Investigating Outcomes of a Family Strengthening Intervention for Resettled Somali Bantu and Bhutanese Refugees: An Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods Study
Pre- and post-migration stressors can put resettled refugee children at risk of poor mental health outcomes. The Family Strengthening Intervention for Refugees (FSI-R) is a peer-delivered preventative home visiting program for resettled refugees that aims to draw upon families' strengths to foster improved family communication, positive parenting, and caregiver-child relationships, with the ultimate goal of reducing children's risk of mental heal…
A Scoping Review of Social Support Research among Refugees in Resettlement: Implications for Conceptual and Empirical Research
This study reviewed social support research with refugees in resettlement by assessing the scope of scholarship and examining methodological approaches, definitions, theoretical frameworks, domains, and sources of support. The scoping review followed a systematic approach that retained 41 articles for analysis. The findings indicate that refugee resettlement studies seldom conceptualizes social support as a central focus, defines the concept, dra…
Rethinking mental healthcare for refugees
After several years of downturn in new resettlement, the United States is projected to admit 125,000 refugees in the current fiscal year. Refugee communities have known risks of developing mental health problems due to high rates of exposure to war and conflict-related trauma and chronic stressors associated with displacement and resettlement. In this commentary, we examine limitations in the current system of mental health care available to newl…
Peer models for families involved in the child welfare system: A systematic review
Ambiguous loss of home: Syrian refugees and the process of losing and remaking home
This constructivist-interpretive study examines social-relational dimensions of change and loss following experiences of political terror, war and forced migration from the perspective of Syrian refugee men and women who were presently living in Jordan (n=31). A process model derived from the analysis theorizes four dimensions of ambiguous loss (safety and security, social connections and identities, connection to place, and dreams and imagined f…
Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Women and Children Returning from Violent Extremist Contexts: A Rapid Review to Inform Program and Policy Development
This rapid review used a systematic approach to examine the available literature on rehabilitation and reintegration (R&R) programs for women and children returning from contexts of violent extremism, examining common assumptions, inputs, activities and outcomes across diverse settings. Fifty-one documents including peer reviewed articles and grey literature were included in the analysis. The most common program activities identified included men…
Supporting Women and Children Returning from Violent Extremist Contexts: Proposing a 5R Framework to Inform Program and Policy Development
Women and children returning from areas formerly controlled by the Islamic State typically have experienced high levels of trauma and indoctrination, further complicating politically fraught efforts at reintegration and resettlement. Consequently, countries around the world are grappling with how best to manage the return of these women and children. To help better understand which types of programming can contribute to the successful, non-violen…
Assessing the Needs of Newcomer Afghan Children and Adolescents: A Qualitative Investigation of Culturally Relevant Mental Health and Emotional Distress Problems
While numerous studies have found that children affected by war and forced displacement are at increased risk for common mental health problems, research also indicates that experiences of emotional distress and the way it is expressed and understood vary by cultural group and context. In this study, we used previously developed rapid qualitative assessment methods to examine local perceptions of mental health and emotional distress among recentl…
Mothering at All Costs: A Process Model of Parenting Challenges and Adaptations Among Syrian and Iraqi Refugee Women
The resettlement period is fraught with financial, cultural, emotional, and psychosocial difficulties for refugee families. Women, as mothers, often play a significant role in buffering adversity and sustaining the family system during this tumultuous time. Yet, there is limited research focused on understanding their lived experiences of parenting. In the current study, an interpretive analytical process drawing from grounded theory methods was …
Developing and Piloting a Low-Intensity Family Support Intervention for Syrian Refugees
Background.This study developed and pilot tested a transdiagnostic family intervention for urban refugee families in LMICs with limited to no access to evidence-based mental health services using a task-sharing approach.Methods.A Family Support Design Team designed the Low Intensity Family Support (LIFS) model, trained the facilitators, and oversaw the implementation.The model was piloted with 70 Syrian refugee families (n=111 adolescents and n=1…
Conceptualizing mental health service delivery for refugee and forcibly displaced communities: A scoping review of service models and frameworks for populations impacted by trauma or displacement
Overall, these findings and gaps can inform the development of a model to guide integrated delivery of mental health services for refugee and other forcibly displaced populations in the United States. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)
Migration, Health and Trauma (9 works) · Refugee (7 works) · Political science (6 works) · Mental health (5 works) · Psychology (5 works) · Homelessness and Social Issues (4 works) · Public relations (4 works) · Sociology (4 works) · Law (3 works) · Medicine (3 works)