A systematic review of the factors influencing the risky behaviors of syrian forced migrant children and adolescents in Turkey.

Risky behaviors are defined as emotional and behavioral problems that harm mental and physical health. The present study aimed to systematically review and synthesize research investigating the risky behaviors of Syrian children living in Turkey. The study was conducted through a systematic review of articles published in the Scopus and Web of Science database between 2013 and the present day, and met the STROBE reporting criteria. The inclusion criteria for studies in the systematic review were established, and studies that focused on Syrian-origin forced migrant child-adolescents aged 7-18 years and investigated risky behaviors without a clinical diagnosis and treatment purpose were included. Four studies with a sample of 790 children were examined. According to the findings of this study, there is a measurement issue for risky behaviors. In this study, there are numerous factors influencing risky behaviors, including those related to traumatic life events due to war, psychopathology, acculturation-related factors, and sociodemographic factors. The most significant finding highlighted in the study is the need for methodological improvements and context-specific studies to be repeated in future research, to ensure statistical generalizability and clinical implications in research on this subject.

Studies on the factors influencing risky behaviors in children and adolescent forced migrants have been conducted using diverse research designs, questions, hypotheses, and results. Risky behaviors are defined as emotional and behavioral problems that harm mental and physical health. The present study aimed to systematically review and synthesize research investigating the risky behaviors of Syrian children living in Turkey. According to the findings of this study, there is a measurement issue for risky behaviors. In this study, there are numerous factors influencing risky behaviors, including those related to traumatic life events due to war, psychopathology, acculturation-related factors, and sociodemographic factors.

Effects of a mindfulness-based groupwork program on adolescents in a children's home.

Mindfulness means being in the present, intentionally and without any judgment. Mindfulness helps people cope with challenging experiences such as trauma. Children's Homes in Türkiye are institutions that provide social care to young people with past traumatic experiences. This study aims at evaluating the effects of a mindfulness-based (MB) groupwork program with a group of residents in a Children's Home. An experimental pretest-posttest control group design was used. An eight-session MB training program was implemented with 21 female adolescents. There were 29 female adolescents in the control group. The MB groupwork program significantly increased the mindfulness levels of the group. However, its effect on the other variables could not be determined at a significant level. There were positive correlations between mindfulness, life satisfaction and subjective happiness, and a negative correlation with perceived stress. The results of this study showed that MB interventions increase mindfulness levels of adolescents in a Children's Home setting in Türkiye. Secondly, as mindfulness increased, life satisfaction and subjective happiness also increased while perceived stress decreased. MB interventions are recommended to be used in social work interventions with different groups since it can contribute to subjective well-being.

Evaluation of bio-psycho-social and socio-cultural problems of Syrian elderly living in Turkey.

BACKGROUND: Older persons are among the vulnerable groups most affected by war and migration due to physical weakness, illness, social environment, and cultural adaptation difficulties. AIMS: The aim of this study is to determine the economic, biopsychosocial, and socio-cultural problems of the older Syrians living in Turkey. METHODS: Convergent mixed design was used within the scope of the research. For the qualitative phase of the research, 19 older persons migrants were interviewed. A semi-structured interview form was used to collect data in the interviews. For the quantitative phase of the research, 432 participants were reached. In order to collect data, Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) and Socio-cultural Adaptation Scale (SCAS-R) were used together with the demographic information form. RESULTS: The mean age of the participants was 66.2 ± 7.10 (Min: 60; Max: 91), the majority (87%) between the ages of 60 to 74 and 53.2% were male. The mean SCAS-R score of the older Syrians was 2.48 ± 0.88 (Min: 1; Max: 5) and the mean GDS-15 was 2.63 ± 3.84 (Min: 0; Max: 15). About 22.7% of older Syrian participants had mild or severe depressive symptoms. Experienced traumatic events, changing economic situation, and family relationships affected both physical and mental health of the older persons. The socio-cultural adaptation of the older persons was affected by language, temporary protection, and exposure to exclusion. The Older Syrians, who lacked information on social services, were experiencing problems with nutrition, clothing, bill payment, and rent due to economic problems. However, they mostly did not want to return to Syria because their living order in Syria was deteriorating and they were afraid. CONCLUSION: Syrian elderly immigrants living in Turkey have biopsychosocial, economic, and cultural problems. National and international support programs and policies should be developed for elderly Syrian refugees who are expected to live in Turkey unless a safe living environment is provided.

An Examination of Conditions Exposing Older Adults to Economic Abuse: Logistic Regression Analysis.

The aim of this study was to determine factors affecting the economic abuse status of older adults. The study was conducted with 385 individuals aged 65 years and above, living in the Bahçelievler district of Istanbul. Data were collected using a Sociodemographic Form, and a Determination of Economic Abuse of Older Adults Form. Logistic regression analysis was applied to determine the factors affecting the economic abuse status of the older adults. The study participants comprised 51.4% males and 48.6% females with a mean age of 70.44 ± 6.73 years. It was determined that 9.4% of the older adults were exposed to economic abuse. As a result of the logistic regression analysis, the factors found to affect the situations of exposure to economic abuse of the older adults were age, income status, number of children, exposure to emotional abuse, and exposure to physical abuse.

The relationship between Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak related perceptions and health anxiety.

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between health anxiety and the perceptions and attitudes of the individuals living in Turkey during COVID-19 outbreak. This research was carried out using a volunteer-based internet data collection technique with a sample of 448 people, aged between 15 and 71, who were reached by a simple random sampling method. In the study, the participants were asked to fill out "The Personal Information Form," "the Health Anxiety Scale," and "the Perception and Attitudes towards Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak Questionnaire" to determine their perceptions and attitudes toward coronavirus disease. For the analysis of the data, SPSS 25.0 program was used. In the study, a positive relationship was found between the participants' health anxiety and disease perception, causes perception, and avoidance behavior, and a negative relationship with control perception. It was detected that as the age of the participants increased, their health anxiety levels, and their behavior to avoid coronavirus disease decreased. Also, as the income of the participants increased, their health anxiety levels decreased. Lastly, the level of women's avoidance of personal contact and their health anxiety during the pandemic were significantly higher than men. This study revealed that the health anxiety levels were found to be low for the sample. The levels of avoidance behavior and health anxiety in women were higher than in men. The present study is expected to be beneficial for social workers, mental health professionals, health authorities and doctors while developing public health strategies.