African Immigrant and Refugee Families’ Perceptions on Informational Support and Health Status: A Comparison of African Immigrants Living in South Africa and the United States

  • Wilson Majee University of Missouri
  • Mulugeta Dinbabo University of the Western Cape
  • Isioma Ile University of the Western Cape
  • Michael Belebema University of the Western Cape
DOI: https://doi.org/10.14426/ahmr.v5i3.888
Keywords: Migration, Health, Refugee, Immigrant, Social services, South Africa

Abstract

The relationship between migration and health is complex, and its impact varies
considerably among individuals, across migrant groups, and from country to
country. Although African immigration to the United States (U.S.) and South
Africa has increased rapidly over the past two decades, little is known about the
health experiences of this growing population even though conditions
surrounding the migration process have been found to increase vulnerability to
ill health. The aim of this study is to examine and compare the perceptions of
African refugees and immigrants to South Africa and the U.S. on informational
support and its impact on health status. Data was collected from purposively
selected 62 African immigrants to the United States and 66 African immigrants
to South Africa using the PROMIS Global Health v1.2 and the PROMIS Item Bank
v2.0 (informational support) instruments which assess an individual’s general
physical, mental and social health.

Author Biographies

Wilson Majee, University of Missouri

Department of Health Sciences and Public Health, University of Missouri, USA (Corresponding
author, Dr Wilson Majee, 536 Clark Hall, University of Missouri, Columbia 65211

Mulugeta Dinbabo, University of the Western Cape

Institute for Social Development, Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, University
of the Western Cape, South Africa

Isioma Ile, University of the Western Cape

School of Government, Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, University of the
Western Cape, South Africa

Michael Belebema, University of the Western Cape

Institute for Social Development, Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, University
of the Western Cape, South Africa

Issue
Vol 5 No 3 (2019): AFRICAN HUMAN MOBILITY REVIEW
Section
Articles

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