The way parents care for their children during displacement plays a key role in children's emotional and behavioural outcomes. Yet, sparse literature exists regarding the parenting challenges faced by families fleeing conflict in transitional, pre-resettlement stages. This study, therefore, aimed to identify the parenting experiences of Syrian families living in refugee camps, focusing on understanding how their parenting had changed and the impact displacement had had on their parenting. Methods used included: interviews and focus groups discussions with 27 mothers living in refugee contexts, two interviews with professional aid workers, with the data analysed using thematic analysis. Data were structured in three themes; 1) environmental challenges; 2) child specific challenges; and 3) parent specific challenges. Results clearly showed that parents struggled physically and emotionally to support their children. Such challenges could be addressed by parenting interventions to reduce the trauma impact experienced by children.

In this personal reflection, the author is a Syrian refugee who describes his experiences as a psychosocial worker in Syria and with refugees in Turkey and Greece. He highlights how women and children lack safety in the camps. The second section discusses how he became a refugee himself. Due to his experiences in Syria, he now finds himself in a difficult situation in the Netherlands, the county where he applied for asylum and has received a permit, but his ‘cry for help’ remains unheard and unrecognised by the (health) workers in the asylum centre.

Acts of violence are often studied as facts, not as cultural and symbolic expressions. Within this article, the author will shed light on another dimension; explaining how a personal experience of unprovoked assault changed the author’s scholarly vision of the intrusive nature of violence, as well as how violence influences the subjective perception of victims. He will show that during that moment of violence, all cultural meaning unravels and the social imagery of the perpetrator is internalised by those that are victimised. The aim of this article is twofold: a) that the specificity of violence needs very specific attention in terms of intervention and rehabilitation, and b) that objectification, especially during genocide, but also other war crimes, provides a key role as to how violence is experienced. Further, the author shows that violence is an intrusive act, where the will of the perpetrator is forced to become the will of the victim.

The aim of this paper is to examine the psychosocial needs and stressors among refugees of conflicts within developing countries, and their group based, social support mechanisms. Systematic literature searches of peer reviewed journal articles (n = 60 articles) were carried out using the following factors: type (refugee); cause (conflicts); location (developing countries). As refugees move towards a prolonged urban displacement phase, needs and stressors became different than those of the acute phase. While daily stressors affect far more people than posttraumatic stress disorder, many psychosocial support interventions focus only on the latter. Positive effects of social support on the mental health of displaced people have been established, while the process is not yet clear, group processes and identities appear to be important. The authors suggest, therefore, that a social identity approach can be applied to understand the emergence of a common refugee identity, and its role in empowerment through activating social support networks.

Youths exposed to armed conflict have a higher prevalence of mental health and psychosocial difficulties. Diverse interventions exist that aim to ameliorate the effect of armed conflict on the psychological and psychosocial wellbeing of conflict affected youths. However, the evidence base for the effectiveness of these interventions is limited. Using standard review methodology, this review aims to address the effectiveness of psychological interventions employed among this population. The search was performed across four databases and grey literature. Article quality was assessed using the Downs and Black Quality Checklist (1998). Where possible, studies were subjected to meta-analyses. The remaining studies were included in a narrative synthesis. Eight studies concerned non clinical populations, while nine concerned clinical populations. Review findings conclude that Group Trauma Focused–Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is effective for reducing symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression and improving prosocial behaviour among clinical cohorts. The evidence does not suggest that interventions aimed at non clinical groups within this population are effective. Despite high quality studies, further robust trials are required to strengthen the evidence base, as a lack of replication has resulted in a limited evidence base to inform practice.

This personal reflection addresses the author’s experience while working in the most northern and poorest province of Mozambique. It draws on an ethnographic assessment, conducted over three months in the area. Mothers were interviewed on how they raise their children and what are their main concerns. The stories illustrate the enormous difficulties they face in both meeting their basic needs and the hardships of life as a woman in this area. The reflection also explores the questions raised by a common model of practice in both humanitarian and development settings inwhich paid professional aid workers depend upon the use of poorly paid local staff and large numbers of unpaid local volunteers to carry out their interventions. The practical and ethical consequences of this model of intervention are discussed.