Uniquely American: The Undue Stress of Immigration

Immigrant — it’s more likely than not that you descend from or are yourself one. The United States is recognized as a nation of immigrants but has historically encouraged incoming citizens to assimilate. While immigration can be exciting, it is also time-consuming, complicated, and stressful. This strain is nearly ubiquitous for all immigrants, but not all circumstances are the same; research has shown that American immigrants experience structural factors that may exacerbate their stress, achieving lower education statuses and incomes compared to immigrants in similar countries. Because the strain of immigration is well-documented, the United States should respond in protection of its citizens by implementing social programs that institutionally aid the adjustment of incoming citizens.

The concept of immigrating is understandably stress-inducing. Immigration requires a complete shift in culture and community; it means tossing familiarity to the wind. Stressors related to immigration stem from language barriers, unemployment, discrimination, and lack of social support1,2. Immigration proves stressful even when immigrants possess close cultural proximity to the receiving nation. A study sought to understand differences in stress by observing seven populations (Russians, Ingrian/Finnish returnees, Estonians, Somalis, Arabs, Vietnamese and Turks) immigrating to Finland3. The researchers hypothesized that race would correlate with self-reported stress levels in different populations, in that Finish returnees would experience comparably lower levels of stress. The racial identity of the immigrants did correlate with their stress levels but unexpectedly: Finnish returnees reported significantly greater levels of stress. Exploring this phenomenon, the researchers found that all cohorts experienced stress, but Finnish returnees ascribed negative circumstances to internal factors and reported higher stress3. The six other immigrant populations, though, attributed most negative situations to racial prejudice and other external factors3. This surprising finding shows that all immigrants, even those that share the culture or race of their new country’s majority, experience significant stressors.

If immigration causes strain for all immigrant populations, it is important to understand this process’ consequences for health. In studies linking perceived stress and cardiovascular health, researchers found that stressed individuals were two times more likely to develop diabetes and become overweight4. Additionally, individuals that were moderately to highly stressed experienced a two year decrease in lifespan due to an increased risk for cardiac diseases5. Immigrants are bound to experience greater levels of stress, and thus will disproportionately experience worse health outcomes and shorter life spans. Nations do recognize the strain immigration induces, but more can and should be done.

Some may argue that the American government already provides enough support to immigrants and that regardless of how much aid a nation offers, the process is inevitably stressful. The US immigration policy prioritizes family reunification, economically valuable professionals, and humanitarian cases6. Sponsoring family members are responsible for their incoming relatives and employment-based immigrants already possess the skills to comfortably navigate the country. Refugee immigrants, however, are particularly vulnerable to a difficult adjustment. They are paired with social workers who help them find employment or permanent residence and connect them to social services. Beyond this, refugee immigrants are on their own. While there are glaring omissions to this aid, namely information on navigating our complex health insurance system and accessing their rights to vote, American resources are standard for first-world countries.

In contrasting the achievements of American immigrants with those in similar countries that provide comparable immigration resources, there is evidence that immigrants in the land of opportunity fall short. Compared to those that immigrate to Canada, American immigrants attain lower education statuses and have lower incomes4. Given that immigrant-related stress stems from financial and employment insecurity, those that migrate to our country can expect to experience more stress and worse health outcomes, paying for it with precious years of their lives. And the next generation must suffer a similar fate; the children of American immigrants also experience lower educational attainment and incomes compared to the children of Canadian immigrants7. This is not an isolated finding. Studies conducted on Australian, Canadian, and American immigrant outcomes yield similar results, where American immigrants achieve the lowest economic and educational achievements of the three8. If immigration to the US is more stressful when compared to other countries, we should take action and bridge these educational and financial disparities that place undue pressures on American immigrants.

There has been trailblazing and promising work that can serve as a guide for action against this injustice. In North Carolina, community leaders in Latina communities called promotoras, rallied together to pilot a program that reached out to local immigrant women9. In these newly formed social relationships, promotoras provided counseling and resources for stress9. They also introduced women to each other to facilitate the creation of social networks9. Comparing pre- and post-test results, the program significantly reduced depressive symptoms in the participants by 50% and perceived stress by 15%9. The women also demonstrated positive coping skills and a significant increase in their perceived social support9. This intervention is both cost-effective and empowering for immigrant communities. Social support has consistently been identified as a pivotal protective factor for immigrating adults and their children10,11,12. Beyond the traditional resources for immigrants, fostering community may be the answer to reducing immigrant stress and its associated negative effects.

The narrative around immigration in America is positively hostile today. It can be hard to distinguish fact from fiction in dialogue about a controversial topic like this. Turning to science and research can be grounding and is all the more important when fear mongering and conspiracies populates common discourse. Immigration is undeniably stressful and those that experience it require support. Research shows that American immigrants need more support than others, which can manifest in a myriad of creative, beautiful ways. Be it through social programs or pecuniary support, it is more important than ever that we appreciate the diversity that is American and choose to understand rather than undermine.

Works Cited

1. Sanchez, M., Diez, S., Fava, N. M., Cyrus, E., Ravelo, G., Rojas, P., Li, T., Cano, M. A., & Rosa, M. D. L. (2019). Immigration Stress among Recent Latino Immigrants: The Protective Role of Social Support and Religious Social Capital. Social Work in Public Health, 34(4), 279–292. https://doi.org/10.1080/19371918.2019.1606749

2. Sternberg, R. M., Nápoles, A. M., Gregorich, S., Paul, S., Lee, K. A., & Stewart, A. L. (2016). Development of the Stress of Immigration Survey (SOIS): A Field Test among Mexican Immigrant Women. Family & Community Health, 39(1), 40–52. https://doi.org/10.1097/FCH.0000000000000088

3. Liebkind, K., & Jasinskaja‐Lahti, I. (2000). The influence of experiences of discrimination on psychological stress: A comparison of seven immigrant groups. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 10(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-1298(200001/02)10:1<1::AID-CASP521>3.0.CO;2-5

4. Rod, N. H., Grønbæk, M., Schnohr, P., Prescott, E., & Kristensen, T. S. (2009). Perceived stress as a risk factor for changes in health behaviour and cardiac risk profile: A longitudinal study. Journal of Internal Medicine, 266(5), 467–475. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2796.2009.02124.x

5. Arnold Suzanne V., Smolderen Kim G., Buchanan Donna M., Li Yan, & Spertus John A. (2012). Perceived Stress in Myocardial Infarction. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 60(18), 1756–1763. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2012.06.044

6. How the United States Immigration System Works. (2014, March 1). American Immigration Council. https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/how-united-states-immigration-system-works

7. Aydemir, A., & Sweetman, A. (2007). First- and Second-Generation Immigrant Educational Attainment and Labor Market Outcomes: A Comparison of the United States and Canada. In B. R. Chiswick (Ed.), Immigration (Vol. 27, pp. 215–270). Emerald Group Publishing Limited. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0147-9121(07)00006-4

8. Antecol, H., Cobb-Clark, D. A., & Trejo, S. J. (2003). Immigration Policy and the Skills of Immigrants to Australia, Canada, and the United States. Journal of Human Resources, XXXVIII(1), 192–218. https://doi.org/10.3368/jhr.XXXVIII.1.192

9. Tran, A. N., Ornelas, I. J., Kim, M., Perez, G., Green, M., Lyn, M. J., & Corbie-Smith, G. (2014). Results From a Pilot Promotora Program to Reduce Depression and Stress Among Immigrant Latinas. Health Promotion Practice, 15(3), 365–372. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524839913511635

10. Diwan, S., Jonnalagadda, S. S., & Balaswamy, S. (2004). Resources Predicting Positive and Negative Affect During the Experience of Stress: A Study of Older Asian Indian Immigrants in the United States. The Gerontologist, 44(5), 605–614. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/44.5.605

11. Sanchez, M., Diez, S., Fava, N. M., Cyrus, E., Ravelo, G., Rojas, P., Li, T., Cano, M. A., & Rosa, M. D. L. (2019). Immigration Stress among Recent Latino Immigrants: The Protective Role of Social Support and Religious Social Capital. Social Work in Public Health, 34(4), 279–292. https://doi.org/10.1080/19371918.2019.1606749

12. Singh, S., McBride, K., & Kak, V. (2015). Role of Social Support in Examining Acculturative Stress and Psychological Distress Among Asian American Immigrants and Three Sub-groups: Results from NLAAS. Journal of immigrant and minority health, 17(6), 1597–1606. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-015-0213-1