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Background <p>Refugee and displaced adolescents in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) experienced significant and multifaceted stressors during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, research on their coping mechanisms, shaped by specific socio-cultural contexts, remains scarce. This study aimed to assess the stress coping strategies enacted by urban refugee youth in Kampala, Uganda, during COVID-19.</p> Methods <p>This qualitative analysis included both textual and graphical data from an interactive mobile health intervention (Kukaa Salama – Staying Safe) conducted during COVID-19 with refugee youth aged 16–24 in Kampala, Uganda. Participants were asked to share coping mechanisms they employed in the face of stressors by responding to weekly check-in messages and WhatsApp group chats. Data analysis was implemented using an inductive reflexive thematic analysis approach. Findings were organized deductively within Endler and Parker’s multidimensional coping framework.</p> Results <p>Data from 346 participants (174 cisgender women, 166 cisgender men, 6 transgender individuals; mean age: 21.2, SD: 2.6) revealed stress coping strategies spanning three dimensions. First, <i>task-oriented strategies</i> included: physical/outdoor activities, creative approaches (e.g., music), food consumption, reading, self-learning, self-reflection, and formulating business aspirations. Second, <i>emotion-oriented strategies</i> included: accepting reality and recognizing shared experiences; positive reappraisal; resilience, and commitment to religion. Third, <i>avoidance-oriented strategies</i> included substance use and cognitive disengagement.</p> Conclusions <p>Refugee youth in Kampala employed multidimensional stress coping patterns that can inform policy and practice to advance mental health and support services for urban displaced youth in Uganda. Gender-tailored interventions leveraging contextually appropriate stress management strategies hold the potential to advance mental well-being among urban refugee youth in LMICs.</p>

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Stress Coping Strategies During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among Urban Refugee Youth in Kampala, Uganda: A Textual-Visual Qualitative Analysis

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年8月29日

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  • Sikky Shiqi Chen,
  • Carmen H. Logie,
  • Frannie MacKenzie,
  • Moses Okumu,
  • Robert Hakiza,
  • Brenda Katisi,
  • Daniel Kibuuka Musoke,
  • Aidah Nakitende,
  • Bay Bahri,
  • Peter Kyambadde

摘要

Background

Refugee and displaced adolescents in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) experienced significant and multifaceted stressors during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, research on their coping mechanisms, shaped by specific socio-cultural contexts, remains scarce. This study aimed to assess the stress coping strategies enacted by urban refugee youth in Kampala, Uganda, during COVID-19.

Methods

This qualitative analysis included both textual and graphical data from an interactive mobile health intervention (Kukaa Salama – Staying Safe) conducted during COVID-19 with refugee youth aged 16–24 in Kampala, Uganda. Participants were asked to share coping mechanisms they employed in the face of stressors by responding to weekly check-in messages and WhatsApp group chats. Data analysis was implemented using an inductive reflexive thematic analysis approach. Findings were organized deductively within Endler and Parker’s multidimensional coping framework.

Results

Data from 346 participants (174 cisgender women, 166 cisgender men, 6 transgender individuals; mean age: 21.2, SD: 2.6) revealed stress coping strategies spanning three dimensions. First, task-oriented strategies included: physical/outdoor activities, creative approaches (e.g., music), food consumption, reading, self-learning, self-reflection, and formulating business aspirations. Second, emotion-oriented strategies included: accepting reality and recognizing shared experiences; positive reappraisal; resilience, and commitment to religion. Third, avoidance-oriented strategies included substance use and cognitive disengagement.

Conclusions

Refugee youth in Kampala employed multidimensional stress coping patterns that can inform policy and practice to advance mental health and support services for urban displaced youth in Uganda. Gender-tailored interventions leveraging contextually appropriate stress management strategies hold the potential to advance mental well-being among urban refugee youth in LMICs.