Exploring the Representation of Depressive Symptoms and the Influence of Stigma in Arabic-Speaking Refugee Outpatients

Datos Bibliográficos

ID15519917
AutoresNico Lindheimer (0000-0003-2227-3272, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin), Carine Karnouk (0000-0003-3159-131X, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin), Eric Hahn (0000-0002-3782-1983, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin), Dana Churbaji (0000-0001-9939-3905, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin), Laura Schilz (Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin), Diana Rayes (0000-0002-8946-3866, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin), Malek Bajbouj (0000-0002-0073-3322, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin), Kerem Böge (0000-0001-8263-4936, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, autor de correspondencia)
Año2020
Volumen11
Páginas579057-579057
Fecha de publicación2020-11-12
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaFrontiers in Psychiatry (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1664-0640 • E-ISSN: 1664-0640
EditorialFrontiers Media (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3389/fpsyt.2020.579057
PMID33281643
OpenAlexW3102844471
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas5
Referencias citadas38

The number of distressed refugees from the Arab world is relatively high in Germany and other host countries worldwide. For this specific population, substantial challenges and barriers have already been identified that hamper access to Germany's health care system. This study aims to contribute to this line of research by exploring the representation of depressive symptoms, both somatic and psychological, in order to inform clinicians about the most prevalent symptoms reported by Arabic-speaking refugee outpatients. Furthermore, this paper investigates the longstanding claim that mental health stigma fosters the expression of bodily distress. For these purposes, a total of 100 Arabic-speaking refugee outpatients, mostly Syrians, were recruited in Berlin, Germany. Somatic and psychological symptoms were assessed with the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) 15 and 9, while stigma was assessed with the Brief Version of the Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness Scale (ISMI-10). Study results show that both somatic and psychological symptom severity was moderate while sleeping problems and energy loss were the most reported symptoms across both scales. Stigma was low and showed no association with somatic complaints in a multiple regression analysis, but was associated with more psychological symptoms. A principal factor extraction on the PHQ-15 items revealed five independent, somatic symptom clusters that were interpreted considering the rich poetic resources of the Arabic language. In conclusion, both somatic and psychological symptoms were commonly reported by Arabic-speaking refugees with symptoms of depression. Whereas, stigma does not seem to influence the expression of somatic symptoms, the present results provide first empirical indications for the relationship of symptom expression with the use of explanatory models and conceptualizations of mental illness within the Arabic culture and language. Future research efforts should be dedicated to enhancing our understanding of mental health care needs in this population as well as to exploring other mediators that might help explain the varying degree of somatic symptoms in depression across cultures

Anxiety · Arabic · Depressive symptoms · Family medicine · Linguistics · Political science · Psychiatry · Refugee · Representation (politics · Social stigma · Stigma (botany · Clinical Psychology · Medicine · Mental Health Treatment and Access · Migration, Health and Trauma · Psychology · Racial and Ethnic Identity Research