Department of Psychology, Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, United States.
Department of Psychology, University of Houston, Houston, TX, United States.
Psychiatry Res. 2022 Aug;314:114652. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2022.114652. Epub 2022 May 22.
In recent years, the number of children and families migrating from Central America to the United States (U.S.) has increased exponentially (Rosenblum, 2015). Likely due to this influx, research on Latinx immigrants has also increased. However, no standard assessment of youth migration experiences currently exists. The present study introduces a new measure and pilot data on the migration experiences of youth from Central America. The Migration Experiences Interview (MEI) is a 25-question semi-structured interview that encompasses youths' experiences before, during, and after migration to the U.S, covering topics such as their control over the decision to migrate, whether they witnessed frightening situations along their journey, and their experiences living in the U.S. thus far. The present study provides pilot data on a sample of 64 recently migrated Central American youths aged 15 to 25 (39.1% female). The MEI provides in-depth characterizations and narrative examples of migration experiences that add important information on a largely understudied population to the literature. The MEI's standard, publicly available format has utility for increased consistency in future research and implications for clinical practice and immigration policy.
近年来，从中美洲移民到美国（U.S.）的儿童和家庭数量呈指数级增长（Rosenblum，2015）。可能由于这种涌入，对拉丁裔移民的研究也有所增加。然而，目前还没有针对青年移民经历的标准评估。本研究介绍了一种新的衡量标准和针对中美洲青年移民经历的试点数据。移民经历访谈（MEI）是一个 25 个问题的半结构化访谈，涵盖了年轻人在移民到美国之前、期间和之后的经历，包括他们对移民决定的控制程度、他们是否在旅途中目睹过可怕的情况，以及他们迄今为止在美国的生活经历。本研究提供了对 64 名最近从中美洲移民的 15 至 25 岁青年（39.1%女性）的样本的试点数据。MEI 提供了对移民经历的深入描述和叙述示例，为文献中对这一研究不足的人群提供了重要信息。MEI 的标准、公开可用的格式对于未来研究的一致性以及对临床实践和移民政策的影响具有实用性。
