Date of Award

Spring 3-20-2025

Document Type

Campus Access Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Counseling

First Advisor

Lisa Cosgrove

Second Advisor

Boaz Levy

Third Advisor

Alisa Miller

Abstract

In light of the United States of America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan in August of 2021, the most recent wave of Afghans arriving across the U.S. has led to a call for increased attention towards access to mental health treatment following the displaced devastation. However, there has been a paucity of research on Afghan immigrants in the field of psychology since the arrival of the first large wave of Afghan refugees in the 1970’s and 80s, as well as a lack of Afghan voices in psychological research, training, and practice.

This qualitative study investigated the migratory experiences and mental health perspectives of first-generation Afghans who immigrated to the U.S. after the September 11 attacks and the invasion of Afghanistan, and prior to the U.S. evacuation of Afghanistan in August 2021, through a human rights-based lens rooted in psychologies of liberation and diaspora studies. The study employed semi-structured individual interviews with 15 Afghans living across the U.S.

The findings demonstrated that 4 main themes and 2 subthemes of “I felt I am inside a coffin:” Escaping and entering precarity, “American culture affected our Afghan culture:” Assimilation and the promise of neoliberal capitalism, “It makes you feel alive again:” Healing through community and the limits of psychotherapy, “Show them how to get on the bus:” The need for structural responsivity and epistemic curiosity, “They just give you pills…and it’s causing you to get worse:” How medicalization misses the mark, and “It doesn't matter what language you speak, where are you from…we have to have one goal:” Community conflict and the importance of unity.

This study expands the literature on Afghan immigrants living in the U.S., providing the field of psychology with knowledge to better support this community through interventions that address systemic challenges that hinder the possibilities for well-being.

Comments

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