Impact of refugee trauma on children’s occupational role as school students*

Current literature identifies a lack of knowledge and understanding of the long-term responses to extreme trauma in children, particularly from an occupational therapy perspective. Five school children participated in the present study to explore and describe a child’s occupational performance as a school student following their experience of refugee trauma. The study used semi-structured, indepth interviews with the children, parents and teachers. The interviews were combined with participant observation within various school environments. The results indicate that a child’s student role performance can be affected by the experience of refugee trauma. Effects were manifested in various ways, such as poor academic performance, gross motor problems and difficulty interacting with peers. It is critical that occupational therapists recognize their potential contribution in meeting the needs of children from politically troubled countries who have experienced trauma. Opportunities to work with these children are suggested, as are avenues for further research.