Exploring How Youth With Refugee Backgrounds Navigate Moral Challenges Associated With the Refugee Experience: A Qualitative Study

Youth with refugee backgrounds are often required to navigate moral challenges and dilemmas associated with the refugee experience. However, little research to date has explored the experiences of how youth navigate moral challenges associated with the refugee experience from their perspective. Thus, this study interviewed 10 youth with refugee backgrounds (six female and four male), mean aged 21.20 years (SD = 2.92, range 17-25 years), and explored how morals have a role in the challenges experienced by refugee youth, and the impacts of these challenges. Thematic analysis revealed that youth with refugee backgrounds: (a) perceived morals as still developing, (b) are faced with morally conflicting decisions associated with the refugee experience, and (c) highlighted that the long-lasting impacts of these challenges need to be recognized. Findings support that morals are important to understanding some of the challenging aspects of the refugee journey experienced by youth. Further research in this area is needed to guide future psychosocial interventions and inform policy and practice of community workers, educators, and mental health practitioners.