Resilience among Kashmiri Migrants: a Study of Stress, Coping and Health

Migrant populations are extremely diverse, and exhibit varied experiences and likely diverse acculturation trajectories as these relate to the process of cultural adaptation. Individuals can vary greatly in the time and preparation devoted to planning their migration, as well as in their intrinsic desire, voluntary or forced, to leave their homeland. Resilience theory provides a useful framework for understanding the experience of forced migration and exposure to terrorism. In the present study resilience, stress, coping and health are studied among a sample of 150 (75 males and 75 females) non-camp Kashmiri Hindu migrants in the age range 30-50 residing in Jammu city. Tools used were Resilience Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, Coping Strategies Inventory and Adult Health Checklist. Resilience was found to be positively correlated to problem solving, social contact and express emotion coping and negatively correlated with problem avoidance and social withdrawal coping, perceived stress and health symptoms. Results also revealed significant gender differences in resilience, perceived stress, problem solving, express emotion, social contact coping, self-criticism, social withdrawal coping strategies and health complaints.