Immigration: Stress, Adjustment and the Support of Immigrant Children to New Zealand

IMMIGRATION: STRESS, ADJUSTMENT AND THE SUPPORT OF IMMIGRANT CHILDREN TO NEW ZEALAND

AUTHOR: CAROL BRITS

DATE: 2010/05/08

INTRODUCTION

Children are more than likely to be the silent partners in the immigration process. This was definitely the case during my immigration experience. The emotional, psychological and physical impact of the immigration on their development was definitely not part of my consideration. My only thought – I want a better life for them. One free of crime and with greater opportunities to become responsible well adjusted adults in society. This is also true for many immigrant families I have come into contact since immigrating to New Zealand.

Immigration is stressful and is not undertaken without careful consideration and planning, especially by the adults. Immigrant children however, are not usually a part of the decision making process to emigrate their home country. On arrival in the host country most immigrant settlement programs and services target adults. Parents of immigrant children need to step in and assist their children settle successfully, with little or no information available to them. Depending on where the child is enrolled, the schools may provide assistance with integration.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Immigrants are those people who have made a relatively free choice to relocate from one country, region or area to another.(Nelson & Prilleltensky, 2005) As such immigrants then come from a foreign country with different cultural, socio-historical, and demographic backgrounds and enter into and adapt to a new host culture. The global economies and advances in technology provide individuals the hope of better opportunities and conditions, contributing towards immigration becoming one of the key factors that has shaped recent history.

As the influx of migrants to countries around the world continues and predicted to increase, these significant demographic changes need to be considered as they have important...