

Journal of Social and Political
Sciences
ISSN 2615-3718 (Online)
ISSN 2621-5675 (Print)







Published: 04 March 2024
Addressing the Impact of Immigration Policy on Children’s Well-Being after Forced Migration
Agung Sulistyo Purnomo, Sri Kuncoro Bawono, M Ryanindityo, Anindito Rizky Wiraputra, M Alvi Syahrin, Budi Mulyawan, Dimas Pramudito
Immigration Polytechnic (Indonesia), Immigration Detention Center, Jakarta (Indonesia)

Download Full-Text Pdf

10.31014/aior.1991.07.01.477
Pages: 193-202
Keywords: Immigration Policy, Forced Migration, Children's Well-Being, Mental Health, Immigrant Resilience
Abstract
Migration stands as an urgent and current global phenomenon, given the escalating challenges of climate change and political instability. As these issues persist, more populations will be compelled to relocate. It is crucial to establish effective strategies that can facilitate the smooth transition of vulnerable groups, particularly children. Strategic interventions should be developed with a profound understanding of their distinct needs and vulnerabilities. The objective of this research is to address the mental well-being of immigrant children. It sought to identify common patterns in their emotional and behavioral responses after migration while compiling an extensive inventory of factors that can either protect or jeopardize their mental health. To get the big picture, this research uses Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory as the tool of analysis. The findings underscored that several migration-related factors significantly influenced the mental health of the children. Immigration policymakers should prioritize inclusivity and equity to ensure that all children have access to the support and resources they need to thrive. This includes implementing policies that address systemic barriers and promote a supportive and nurturing learning environment for all immigrant children. By incorporating these implications into social practices and policies, the government can create environments that foster resilience in children and support their overall well-being and development.
References
Ali, M., Briskman, L. R., & Fiske, L. I. (2016). Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Indonesia: Problems and Potentials. Cosmopolitan Civil Societies: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 8(2), 22–42. https://doi.org/10.5130/ccs.v8i2.4883
Boese, M. (2023). Migrant and Refugee Retention in Regional Australia at the Intersection of Structure and Agency. Journal of International Migration and Integration, 24(6), 1145–1166. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12134-023-01022-y
Brabandt, H., & Mau, S. (2013). Regulating Territorial Access in a Globalized World. Visa-Waiver Policies in the USA and Austria. Journal of Borderlands Studies, 28(3), 321–336. https://doi.org/10.1080/08865655.2013.862757
Canning, V. (2020). Corrosive Control: State-Corporate and Gendered Harm in Bordered Britain. Critical Criminology, 28(2), 259–275. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10612-020-09509-1
Capoani, Chabert, & Izzo. (2024). Understanding the Relationship Between Immigration and Innovation: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Economics, Race, and Policy. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41996-023-00135-x
Celik, R., Altay, N., Yurttutan, S., & Toruner, E. K. (2019). Emotional indicators and anxiety levels of immigrant children who have been exposed to warfare. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing, 32(2), 51–60. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcap.12233
Cleary, S. D., Snead, R., Dietz-Chavez, D., Rivera, I., & Edberg, M. C. (2018). Immigrant Trauma and Mental Health Outcomes Among Latino Youth. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 20(5), 1053–1059. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-017-0673-6
Darling, N. (2007). Ecological Systems Theory: The Person in the Center of the Circles. Research in Human Development, 4(3–4), 203–217. https://doi.org/10.1080/15427600701663023
Denhardt, J. V., & Denhardt, R. B. (2015). The New Public Service Revisited. Public Administration Review, 75(5), 664–672. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.12347
Dewansyah, B., & Handayani, I. (2018). Reconciling Refugee Protection and Sovereignty in ASEAN Member States. Central European Journal of International and Security Studies , 12(4), 473.
Duinhof, E. L., Smid, S. C., Vollebergh, W. A. M., & Stevens, G. W. J. M. (2020). Immigration background and adolescent mental health problems: the role of family affluence, adolescent educational level and gender. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 55(4), 435–445. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-019-01821-8
Elsayed, D., Song, J.-H., Myatt, E., Colasante, T., & Malti, T. (2019). Anger and Sadness Regulation in Refugee Children: The Roles of Pre- and Post-migratory Factors. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 50(5), 846–855. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-019-00887-4
Feeney, M. K., Jung, H., Johnson, T. P., & Welch, E. W. (2023). U.S. Visa and Immigration Policy Challenges: Explanations for Faculty Perceptions and Intent to Leave. Research in Higher Education, 64(7), 1031–1057. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-023-09731-0
Finotelli, C., & Sciortino, G. (2013). Through the Gates of the Fortress: European Visa Policies and the Limits of Immigration Control. Perspectives on European Politics and Society, 14(1), 80–101. https://doi.org/10.1080/15705854.2012.732390
Guiraudon, V. (2003). The constitution of a European immigration policy domain: a political sociology approach. Journal of European Public Policy, 10(2), 263–282. https://doi.org/10.1080/1350176032000059035
Higgins, C., Baker, S., Cousins, S., Wang, B. Z., Cheng, Z., Tani, M., & Jack, V. (2023). Refugees as Skilled Migrants: Insights from Australia’s 2018 Employer-Sponsored Refugee Migration Pilot. Social Indicators Research, 170(1), 323–338. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-023-03130-9
Innes, J. E., & Booher, D. E. (2004). Reframing public participation: strategies for the 21st century. Planning Theory & Practice, 5(4), 419–436. https://doi.org/10.1080/1464935042000293170
Juang, L. P., Simpson, J. A., Lee, R. M., Rothman, A. J., Titzmann, P. F., Schachner, M. K., Korn, L., Heinemeier, D., & Betsch, C. (2018). Using attachment and relational perspectives to understand adaptation and resilience among immigrant and refugee youth. American Psychologist, 73(6), 797–811. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000286
Keles, S., Friborg, O., Idsøe, T., Sirin, S., & Oppedal, B. (2018). Resilience and acculturation among unaccompanied refugee minors. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 42(1), 52–63. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025416658136
Khamis, V. (2019). Posttraumatic stress disorder and emotion dysregulation among Syrian refugee children and adolescents resettled in Lebanon and Jordan. Child Abuse & Neglect, 89, 29–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2018.12.013
Longobardi, C., Veronesi, T. G., & Prino, L. E. (2017). Abuses, resilience, behavioural problems and post-traumatic stress symptoms among unaccompanied migrant minors: an Italian cross-sectional exploratory study. Psychiatria i Psychologia Kliniczna, 17(2), 87–92. https://doi.org/10.15557/PiPK.2017.0009
Martínez García, J. M., & Martín López, M. J. (2015). Group Violence and Migration Experience among Latin American Youths in Justice Enforcement Centers (Madrid, Spain). The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 18, E85. https://doi.org/10.1017/sjp.2015.87
Mary, E., & Antony, A. (2022). Cambridge Educational Research e-Journal Framing Childhood Resilience Through Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory: A Discussion Paper Framing Childhood Resilience Through Bronfenbrenner’s Eco-logical Systems Theory: A Discussion Paper. Cambridge Educational Research E-Journal |, 9(November), 2022.
Matias, D. M. S. (2020). Climate humanitarian visa: international migration opportunities as post-disaster humanitarian intervention. Climatic Change, 160(1), 143–156. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-020-02691-9
Mau, S., Gulzau, F., Laube, L., & Zaun, N. (2015). The Global Mobility Divide: How Visa Policies Have Evolved over Time. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 41(8), 1192–1213. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2015.1005007
McEwen, C., Alisic, E., & Jobson, L. (2022). Moderating role of moral injury in the mental health of adolescent refugees. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 78(7), 1478–1490. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.23306
Miežanskienė, R. (2023). Immigrants in the Legal System of the Welcoming Country: Considering the Role of Intermediaries. Public Policy and Administration, 22(3), 252–267. https://doi.org/10.5755/j01.ppaa.22.3.34890
Müller, L. R. F., Büter, K. P., Rosner, R., & Unterhitzenberger, J. (2019). Mental health and associated stress factors in accompanied and unaccompanied refugee minors resettled in Germany: a cross-sectional study. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 13(1), 8. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-019-0268-1
Neal, J. W., & Neal, Z. P. (2013). Nested or Networked? Future Directions for Ecological Systems Theory. Social Development, 22(4), 722–737. https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12018
Ni, S., Chui, C. H. ‐K., Ji, X., Jordan, L., & Chan, C. L. ‐W. (2016). Subjective well‐being amongst migrant children in China: unravelling the roles of social support and identity integration. Child: Care, Health and Development, 42(5), 750–758. https://doi.org/10.1111/cch.12370
Nickerson, A., Byrow, Y., O’Donnell, M., Bryant, R. A., Mau, V., McMahon, T., Hoffman, J., Mastrogiovanni, N., Specker, P., & Liddell, B. J. (2023). The mental health effects of changing from insecure to secure visas for refugees. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 57(11), 1486–1495. https://doi.org/10.1177/00048674231177950
Nugroho Adhi, P., Agung, I. G. P., & Gitareja, B. (2021). Challenge and Opportunity to Implement the Right to Education for Child Refugees in Indonesia. Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Law and Human Rights 2020 (ICLHR 2020), 549(Iclhr 2020), 54–62. https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.210506.009
Onwuegbuzie, A. J., Collins, K. M. T., & Frels, R. K. (2013). Foreword: Using Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory to frame quantitative, qualitative, and mixed research. International Journal of Multiple Research Approaches, 7(1), 2–8. https://doi.org/10.5172/mra.2013.7.1.2
Paat, Y. F. (2013). Working with Immigrant Children and Their Families: An Application of Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 23(8), 954–966. https://doi.org/10.1080/10911359.2013.800007
Purnomo, A. S. (2018). The Visa Exemption Policy Implementation on Global Mobility: A Strategy to Minimising the Risks and Maximising the Benefits of Visa Policies. Jurnal Ilmiah Kajian Keimigrasian, 1(2), 1–12.
Rumiartha, I. N. P. B., & Jayantiari, I. G. A. M. R. (2023). Fulfilling Right to Education for Rohingya Refugee Children in Indonesia. The Age of Human Rights Journal, 21(21), e7659. https://doi.org/10.17561/tahrj.v21.7659
Saraswati, D. P., Darmastuti, S., & Raharjo, P. (2024). Migrant Workers and Policy Implication within the G20 Framework. Journal of Social and Political Sciences, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.31014/aior.1991.07.01.461
Saunders, N. R., Guan, J., Macpherson, A., Lu, H., & Guttmann, A. (2020). Association of Immigrant and Refugee Status With Risk Factors for Exposure to Violent Assault Among Youths and Young Adults in Canada. JAMA Network Open, 3(3). https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.0375
Shin, G. (2019). The Changing U.S. Immigration Policy on the Nexus of Security and Economy: Extending Visa-Waiver Program and Advocacy-Coalition Framework. International Journal of Public Administration, 42(10), 855–866. https://doi.org/10.1080/01900692.2018.1522333
Tan, N. F. (2016). The Status of Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Indonesia. International Journal of Refugee Law, 28(3), 365–383. https://doi.org/10.1093/ijrl/eew045
Tran, & Warikoo. (2021). Asian American Perspectives on Immigration Policy. RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, 7(2), 154. https://doi.org/10.7758/rsf.2021.7.2.08
Wickramasinghe, A., & Wimalaratana, W. (2016). International Migration and Migration Theories. Social Affairs: A Journal for the Social Sciences, 1(5), 13–32. https://doi.org/10.1142/9789812773890_0026
Wien, S. S., Kumar, G. S., Bilukha, O. O., Slim, W., Burke, H. M., & Jentes, E. S. (2020). Health profile of pediatric special immigrant visa holders arriving from Iraq and Afghanistan to the United States, 2009-2017: A cross-sectional analysis. PLoS Medicine, 17(3), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1371/JOURNAL.PMED.1003069
World Tourism Organization. (2013). Visa Facilitation: Stimulating Economic Growth and Development through Tourism (p. 12). UNWTO.