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The data presented here were collected as part of an Australian Research Council funded study investigating educational outcomes and pathways through school and on to further education, training or employment for young South Australians, aged 15-24, from refugee backgrounds. Researchers from the University of South Australia and the University of Adelaide conducted the research in collaboration with Industry Partner Multicultural Youth South Australia (MYSA) and Research Partner Australian Migrant Resource Centre (AMRC). The research began in 2015 and is due for completion in 2019. This project aimed to find out about the ways in which young people successfully engaged in education and what helped them to access pathways to further education, training or employment. As part of this investigation, Australian Census data from 2006, 2011 and 2016 were collected and are presented in this report. In addition, this report includes some of the sociodemographic data collected during the survey phase of this project.

Background Young people with refugee experiences are widely acknowledged as encountering multiple disadvantages that affect their school completion and retention, university entry, and subsequent employment. This paper discusses the rationale for and protocol of a mixed methods investigation focusing on improving education and employment outcomes among refugee background youth aged 15 to 24 years from three focus regions: the Middle East (Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Syria), South Asia (Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar/Burma, Pakistan) and Africa (Sudan, South Sudan, Liberia, Ethiopia, Somalia, DR Congo). Objective The rationale of the project is to identify the facilitators and barriers to successful transition from school to further education and employment; investigate participant awareness of support systems available when faced with education and employment difficulties; redress the disadvantages encountered by refugee background youth; and bridge the gap between research, policy, and practice in relation to social inclusion and participation. Methods The study involves collecting survey data from 600 youth followed by individual interviews with a subset of 60 youth, their parents/primary caregivers, and their teachers. A cross-sectional survey will assess facilitators and barriers to successful transition from school to further education and employment. Individual interviews will provide context-rich data on key issues relevant to education and employment outcomes. Results The study began in 2016 and is due for completion by the end of 2019. The quantitative survey has been conducted with 635 participants and was closed in March 2019. The qualitative interview stage is ongoing, and the current total in April 2019 is 93 participants including educators, youth, and family members of the youth. Analysis and presentation of results will be available in 2020. Some preliminary findings will be available during the late half of 2019. Conclusions This project will contribute new and unique insights to knowledge in relation to key factors influencing education and employment outcomes among refugee youth. This research will enable effective planning for the needs of some of Australia’s most disadvantaged and marginalized young people, leading to a sustainable improvement in the education and employability of young refugees. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/12632

Aim: This study explored the views of an international sample of registered nurses and midwives working in health and social care concerning socially assistive robots (SARs), and the relationship between dimensions of culture and rejection of the idea that SARs had benefits in these settings. Methods: An online survey was used to obtain rankings of (among other topics) the extent to which SARs have benefits for health and social care. It also asked for free text responses regarding any concerns about SARs. Results: Most respondents were overwhelmingly positive about SARs' benefits. A small minority strongly rejected this idea, and qualitative analysis of the objections raised by them revealed three major themes: things might go wrong, depersonalization, and patient-related concerns. However, many participants who were highly accepting of the benefits of SARs expressed similar objections. Cultural dimensions of long-term orientation and uncertainty avoidance feature prominently in technology acceptance research. Therefore, the relationship between the proportion of respondents from each country who felt that SARs had no benefits and each country's ratings on long-term orientation and uncertainty avoidance were also examined. A significant positive correlation was found for long-term orientation, but not for uncertainty avoidance. Conclusion: Most respondents were positive about the benefits of SARs, and similar concerns about their use were expressed both by those who strongly accepted the idea that they had benefits and those who did not. Some evidence was found to suggest that cultural factors were related to rejecting the idea that SARs had benefits. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Refereed/Peer-reviewed Internationally, there is an urgent need to understand factors promoting successful settlement and integration of people with forced or voluntary migration experiences (i.e., refugee and non-refugee migrants). This paper provides a protocol of a mixed-methods investigation of contextual factors of successful settlement and service utilization of youth and their families, as young people could be at higher risk due to stressors associated with pre-migration trauma, post-migration settlement stressors, and adolescent development. This large-scale mixed-methods study will be conducted across three countries. A questionnaire survey will seek responses from 1200 youth aged 15–24 years residing in South Australia, Ontario, Canada, and California, United States of America. The qualitative component of the study will comprise 54 focus groups (324 participants) with youth and their parents/caregivers. The study design allows a range of important phenomena (e.g., different migration pathways and settlement countries) and key questions (e.g., regarding the intersection of migration, settlement, and wellbeing) to be addressed. It also allows for generalizability of findings to be tested across different communities and countries. Findings will support recommendations for policy and practice and may be generalized to advance research with youth and their families. This study is one of the largest, most comprehensive studies of youth settlement.

People from refugee backgrounds can experience identity issues living between two cultures. Identity development for adolescents and youth, is further complicated by simultaneously having to navigate between childhood and adulthood, and expectations of parents, ethnic community, and host society. Objective: This study with refugee-background youth and adults, explored participants’ perceptions of being Australian and their sense of belonging, after migrating to Australia. Method: Study sample included a multiethnic sample of 79 participants: 46 refugee background youth, 15-26 years and 33 parents or significant family members residing in South Australia. Participants had migrated to Australia from the Middle East, South Asia, or Africa, between 1 and 15 years ago. We used a semi-structured interview protocol and data-based thematic analysis to collect and analyse individual interviews. Results: We identified the themes of acceptance, ambivalence, confusion, and rejection of an Australian identity in both youth and parent interviews, although youth interviews were more eloquent and nuanced. While most participants accepted an Australian identity and considered Australia their “home” for reasons of safety, opportunities and support available to them, others opted for a dual identity combining elements from Australia and heritage country. A few participants rejected an Australian identity but still considered Australia “home”. KEY POINTS What is known about this topic: Refugee-background people generally do not settle in the same way as other migrants due to pre-migration trauma and stressors associated with the resettlement process. The sociocultural and psychological challenges of negotiating acculturation are another important factors impacting on settlement outcomes for refugee-background migrants. Acculturation entails a degree of identity uncertainty, conflict and the need for identity reconstruction. What is new about the topic: Identity development and reconstruction presented on a continuum from acceptance of an Australian identity including a dual identity, ambivalence and confusion, to rejection of an Australian identity. The vast majority of refugee-background youth and parents considered themselves “Australian” and that Australia was their “home”. The perceptions of racism and discrimination affected participants’ identity development and reconstruction after resettlement although their resettlement outcomes appear to be minimally impacted. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

During cultural transition, refugee-background youth in Australia must navigate adolescence and the demands of cultural transition and adaptation, including educational and employment decisions. Using a qualitative methodology we report on a study exploring the influence of family – including parents, siblings and extended family members – on youth aspirations and decision-making regarding education and employment pathways. Based on interviews with 79 participants (46 refugee-background youth aged 15–26 years and 33 parents or caregivers) residing in regional and metropolitan South Australia, we find that although there were some tensions between youth and family expectations, motivations, identities, and acculturation in resettlement, there were also mutual support strategies that strengthened family relationships and supported youth aspirations. We note four key themes: ‘motivating and supporting’ or how families supported youth to select their future education and employment pathways; ‘Independence versus influence’ or to what extent families influenced youth decision-making; ‘clash of expectations’ between parents and youth expectations; and ‘family responsibilities’ that interfered with youth aspirations. Implications of study findings for future research, policy, and practice are discussed. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Refereed/Peer-reviewed It is widely recognised that employment is vital in assisting young refugees’ integration into a new society. Drawing on psychosocial safety climate (PSC) theory, this research investigated the effect of organisational climate on young refugee workers’ mental health (psychological distress) through stressful social relational aspects of work (e.g., harassment, discrimination). Drawing on data from 635 young refugees aged between 15 and 26 in South Australia, 116 refugees with paid work were compared with 519 refugee students without work, and a sample of young workers from Australian Workplace Barometer (AWB) data (n = 290). The results indicated that refugees with paid work had significantly lower psychological distress compared with refugees with no paid work, but more distress than other young Australian workers. With respect to workplace harassment and abuse, young refugee workers reported significantly more harassment due to their ongoing interaction and engagement with mainstream Australian workers compared with unemployed refugees. Harassment played a vital role in affecting psychological health in refugees (particularly) and other young workers. While refugee youth experienced harassment at work, overall, their experiences suggest that their younger age upon arrival enabled them to seek and find positive employment outcomes. Although PSC did not differ significantly between the employed groups, we found that it likely negatively influenced psychological distress through the mediating effects of harassment and abuse. Hence, fostering pathways to successful employment and creating safe work based on high PSC and less harassment are strongly recommended to improve refugees’ mental health and adaptation.

Methodological and ethical challenges encountered when conducting research with refugee populations can pertain to gaining access to the population concerned, dispelling confusion about the research process, fostering trust among participants and their communities, addressing language and cultural barriers, and managing tensions in academic-industry partnerships. This article describes the challenges, facilitators and enablers we encountered when planning and designing a research project to investigate education and employment outcomes among newly arrived young people from refugee backgrounds. Notwithstanding careful planning, we encountered a number of challenges that could only be effectively managed by developing strong relationships with Industry Partners, Bilingual Youth Workers, and research participants. Our experiences may be useful to cross-cultural and other researchers seeking to undertake cross-cultural research. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Objectives: Refugee children and adolescents are widely acknowledged to experience multiple disadvantages that place them at increased risk of poor education and employment outcomes, which in turn affect their mental health and well-being. The aim of this study is to explore the interconnection between their educational and schooling experiences, and mental health outcomes. Method: We used a mixed methods approach. Participants included a multiethnic sample of 495 South Australian refugee children (4-12 years) and adolescents (13-17 years) from Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and former Yugoslavia. Mental health outcomes were assessed using the Children's Depression Inventory ( CDI ) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire ( SDQ ). Thirteen focus groups with 85 refugee adolescents aged 13-17 years explored their educational experiences and well-being. Results: Quantitative analysis revealed differences between teacher, parent, and adolescent self-ratings, with teachers identifying a higher proportion of refugee students with mental health problems than parents or adolescents. The focus groups identified inadequate educational support, parental pressure to excel, heavy family and household responsibilities, supporting psychologically distressed parents, and school based discrimination and racism as barriers to their educational progress. Qualitative results also afforded plausible explanations for the discrepancy between teacher-ratings with parent- and adolescent self-ratings of the mental health. Conclusion: Analysis of both quantitative and qualitative findings provides insight into the interconnection between educational and schooling experiences of young refugees and their mental health. Avenues for further research include developing and evaluating more holistic models of education to address the interrelated education and mental health needs of refugee youth. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

We aimed to explore how refugee people utilised their coping resources and strategies to find meaning in their past and present experiences. Using an experience-centred narrative approach, we analysed the stories of 24 former refugees from two African countries resettled in South Australia. Data analysis revealed altruism and helping behaviour as a prominent and recurring theme of participants' narrated lives. This meta-theme encompassed four subthemes: (a) surviving war and exile, (b) adapting to Australian society, (c) reaching back home, and (d) meaning making through religious beliefs. Helping, cooperating, and sharing were entwined with participants' coping strategies and meaning making of experience. Participants' socio-historical, cultural, and religious context influenced the interpretations of their experiences. Taken together, our findings identified a counter narrative in refugee mental health research beyond trauma and psychopathology. Specifically, we have shown that when the refugee experience is also accompanied by situational contingencies such as receiving help and being called upon to help, together with evaluations such as empathy, identification with suffering, and gratitude, people can be motivated to help others. Future research is needed to explore how altruism and helping behaviour can promote healing from trauma, alleviate distress of separation, and ameliorate acculturation stress among diverse refugee populations. © 2014 The Australian Psychological Society. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Using narrative methodology this paper analyses the life stories of 25 former refugees from two African countries, resettled in Australia. Study findings demonstrated a salient divergence between the stories of the two communities; within which there were also individual differences in structure and content of participants' narratives. Five narrative types were identified along a continuum from detailed disclosure to near-complete silence about traumatic events and experiences. They were: (1) avoiding narratives; (2) struggling narratives; (3) prompted narratives; (4) narratives exceeding demarcated boundaries of disclosure; and (5) returning narratives. We discuss these differences in narrative structure, narrated experience, identity reconstruction, and meaning-making within the context of the personal, interpersonal, sociocultural and historical influences that have shaped the lives of participants. Findings were supported by interviews with 25 resettlement agency staff. Broader implications of the study's findings for therapists and researchers working with refugees are also discussed. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Sri Lanka has recently emerged from a three decade long civil war between government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Behind the actual arena of conflict, forms of organised violence were often perpetrated on ordinary Sri Lankans who came into contact with law enforcement officials and other state authorities. The effects of these encounters on mental health, well-being, and community participation can be severe and long-lasting. Considering the generally poor availability of mental health services in many low-income countries, brief efficient interventions are required to enhance the lives of individuals and their families affected by torture, trauma, or displacement. In this context, the present study evaluated the effectiveness of testimonial therapy in ameliorating the distress of Sri Lankan survivors of torture and ill-treatment. The results indicated that over a 2- to 3-month period, psychosocial functioning was significantly enhanced in the therapy group compared to the waitlist control group. The general benefits of testimonial therapy, the ease with which it can be incorporated into ongoing human rights activities, and its application by trained nonprofessionals encourage greater use of the approach. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Although refugee adolescents and children are recognised as a health risk population, few studies have explored their Health-related Quality of Life (HRQOL). The present study investigated 1) the sociodemographic predictors of HRQOL such as ethnicity, trauma exposure, and length of residency in Australia in a multiethnic paediatric population with refugee experiences and 2) the relationship between mental healthcare utilisation and HRQOL. Method: Participants were 458 adolescents and children, aged 4 - 17 years, living in South Australia. Parents provided data across the sample and adolescents also completed questionnaires. Overall HRQOL and its composite functional dimensions were assessed using the Paediatric Quality of Life (PedsQL) instrument. Questions from the Child and Adolescent Component of the Australian National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing were used to assess service utilisation. Results: Migration region/ethnicity predicted better HRQOL as well as physical, emotional and psychosocial functioning for both children and adolescents. African youths indicated higher HRQOL than those from the former Yugoslavia and the Middle East/South Asia respectively. Pre-migration trauma exposure was associated with lower HRQOL; and longer stay in Australia was related to lower emotional functioning in children. There was a negative association between healthcare service utilisation and PedsQL scores, with participants accessing services demonstrating lower HRQOL. Conclusion: Using more rigorous methods, future research is needed to investigate additional sociodemographic predictors of HRQOL, and protective/risk factors that impact on HRQOL of young refugees. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

The negative psychological impacts of working with traumatised people are well documented and include vicarious traumatisation (VT): the cumulative effect of identifying with clients' trauma stories that negatively impacts on service providers' memory, emotions, thoughts, and worldviews. More recently, the concept of vicarious resilience (VR) has been also identified: the strength, growth, and empowerment experienced by trauma workers as a consequence of their work. VR includes service providers' awareness and appreciation of their clients' capacity to grow, maintaining hope for change, as well as learning from and reassessing personal problems in the light of clients' stories of perseverance, strength, and growth. This study aimed at exploring the experiences of mental health, physical healthcare, and settlement workers caring for refugees and asylum seekers in South Australia. Using a qualitative method (data-based thematic analysis) to collect and analyse 26 semi-structured face-to-face interviews, we identified four prominent and recurring themes emanating from the data: VT, VR, work satisfaction, and cultural flexibility. These findings—among the first to describe both VT and VR in Australians working with refugee people—have important implications for policy, service quality, service providers' wellbeing, and refugee clients' lives Refereed/Peer-reviewed