Emotional Testimonies: An Ethnographic Study of Emotional Suffering Related to Migration from Mexico to Arizona
Author
Crocker, RebeccaAffiliation
School of Anthropology, University of ArizonaIssue Date
2015-07-13Keywords
mental healthemotion
depression and anxiety disorders
stress
Mexican immigrants
structural vulnerabilities
embodiment theory
Metadata
Show full item recordPublisher
FrontiersCitation
Emotional Testimonies: An Ethnographic Study of Emotional Suffering Related to Migration from Mexico to Arizona 2015, 3 Frontiers in Public HealthJournal
Frontiers in Public HealthRights
Copyright © 2015 Crocker. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY).Collection Information
This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at repository@u.library.arizona.edu.Abstract
It is increasingly argued that social and economic inequities poorly affect overall health. One of the means through which these inequities are translated to the body is via negative emotions, which carry known psychological and physiological responses. This paper examines migration-related psychosocial stressors impacting first-generation Mexican immigrants in southern Arizona, and reports on the primary emotional experiences immigrants associate with these stressors. Data were drawn from a qualitative, ethnographic study conducted over the course of 14 months during 2013–2014 with first-generation Mexican immigrants (N = 40) residing in Tucson Arizona and service providers working directly in the immigrant community (N = 32). Results indicate that the primary structural vulnerabilities that cause emotional hardship among immigrants are pre-migration stressors and adversity, dangerous border crossings, detention and deportation, undocumented citizenship status, family separation, and extreme poverty. Many of these factors have intensified over the past decade due to increased border security and state level anti-immigrant legislation in Arizona. Immigrants connected these hardships to the emotions of trauma (50%), fear (65%), depression (75%), loneliness (75%), sadness (80%), and stress (85%), and most respondents reported suffering from three or more of these emotions. Given the heavy emotional toll of migration and the direct impact that regional legislation and border security had on well-being, this paper argues that emotion be considered an important mechanism for health declines in the immigrant community. In order to stem the frequency and intensity of emotional stress in the Mexican immigrant community in Tucson, it is imperative to support organizations and policies that promote community building and support networks and also expand access to and availability of mental health services for immigrants regardless of documentation status.Description
UA Open Access Publishing FundISSN
2296-2565Version
Final published versionae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.3389/fpubh.2015.00177
Scopus Count
Collections
Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as Copyright © 2015 Crocker. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY).