Migration and Mental Health in the Aftermath of Disaster

Evidence from Mt. Merapi, Indonesia

Bibliographic Data

ID15501149
AuthorsJonathan A Muir (0000-0002-8039-7145, The Ohio State University, corresponding author), Michael R Cope (0000-0001-7753-2812, Brigham Young University), Leslie Retno Angeningsih, Jorden E Jackson (0000-0002-1785-2862, Brigham Young University), Ralph B Brown (Brigham Young University)
Year2019
Volume16
Issue15
Pages2726-2726
Publication date2019-07-31
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1661-7827 • E-ISSN: 1660-4601
PublisherMultidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3390/ijerph16152726
PMID31370162
OpenAlexW2966025563
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited36

Migration is a standard survival strategy in the context of disasters. While prior studies have examined factors associated with return migration following disasters, an area that remains relatively underexplored is whether moving home to one's original community results in improved health and well-being compared to other options such as deciding to move on. In the present study, our objective is to explore whether return migration, compared to other migration options, results in superior improvements to mental health. We draw upon data from a cross-sectional pilot study conducted 16 months after a series of volcanic eruptions in Merapi, Indonesia. Using ordinal logistic regression, we find that compared to respondents who were still displaced (reference category), respondents who had "moved home" were proportionally more likely to report good mental health (proportional odds ratios (POR) = 2.02 [95% CI = 1.05, 3.91]) compared to average or poor mental health. Likewise, respondents who had "moved on" were proportionally more likely to report good mental health (POR = 2.64 [95% CI = 0.96, 7.77]. The results suggest that while moving home was an improvement from being displaced, it may have been better to move on, as this yielded superior associations with self-reported mental health

Context (archaeology · Environmental health · Geography · Logistic regression · Mental health · Odds · Odds ratio · Ordered logit · Poison control · Psychiatry · Sociology · Suicide prevention · Climate Change, Adaptation, Migration · Demography · Disaster Management and Resilience · Medicine · Migration, Health and Trauma · Psychology

Tools

Open DOISci-HubOpen Access