Making the Connection: Stress, Support and Coping in the Immigration Experience

First-generation US immigrants from a variety of ethnic and personal backgrounds were interviewed in order to study connections between stress, coping and learning in the migration experience. By comparing and analyzing the information shared by the participants, it became apparent that stressors and coping approaches can best be analyzed when the migration experience is separated into three phases: PreMigrational, Transitional, and Post-Migrational. While individual experiences vary, it appears that traumatic stressors are concentrated in the pre-migrational phase, migrative stressors in the transitional phase and acculturative stress in the post-migrational phase. Social support and support through formal programs are strong contributing factors to successful integration; however, there are barriers to the use of formal programs, particularly for those who have experienced trauma. Overall, it is important to be sensitive to the individual differences between recent immigrants in order to provide appropriate and effective support, for coping and for language learning.