Loss of Trust: investigating the relationship between traumatic events, trust and social functioning in refugees and asylum seekers using mixed method

"Theoretical background: Our ability to trust others is critical for healthy social interactions, and people who are more trusting of others, are more likely to have greater life satisfaction, better physical health and generally higher well-being (Barefoot et al. 1998).

Trust is built from our prior experiences and the expectations we have about how other people will behave, placing socialisation, socio-cultural context and environmental factors at the centre of theories of trust (Bowlby, 1979).

Traumatic events can severely impact people's lives, and when such experiences are directed against oneself or one's social group, this particularly impacts the processes that underlie interpersonal trust.

In this context, the questions we ask here will investigate the extent to which traumatic events disrupt the cognitive and social processes that underlie our trust in others, and what impact this has on a person's ability for socialisation and their mental health.

Significance of the proposed research: There is a growing refugee crisis in the world, with increasing numbers of refugees and asylum seekers trying to reach Europe.

In many cases they will have experienced multiple traumatic events and suffer from PTSD, which may severely impact on their social behaviours, including their willingness or ability to establish new social relationships, their likelihood to seek help, and their ability to participate in social, educational or other community-based activities.

Given the relationship between social factors (i.e. whether a person is trusting, or perceives their environment as non-threatening) and mental health factors (i.e. anxiety, depression...), it is likely that impairments in one domain can affect the other and may produce maladaptive behaviours (i.e. social exclusion) that will contribute to the maintenance of poor mental health.

In this proposed project, we will work with some of the most vulnerable people in the UK, refugees and asylum seekers in the Kent area who have experienced diverse traumatic events that severely impact their mental health.

The proposed project provides a unique opportunity to bring together experts in psychology, mental health, medical anthropology and social science to partner with the Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust (KMPT), to understand the relationship between trust / distrust, mental health and social function in refugees and asylum seekers suffering from Trauma and PTSD.

We anticipate that the results arising from this project could guide the development of more targeted psychological interventions.

Aims of the PhD: Apply insights from social science (with focus on medical anthropology) psychology and psychiatry to examine the relationship between trauma exposure, PTSD, mental health and social functioning. 1) To identify key factors in social function that are affected by trauma and PTSD, stratified by types of traumatic events experienced 2) To explore notions of trust and threat perception and socialisation in PTSD with refugees and asylum seekers using mixed methods 3) To examine the role of cultural factors in the construction of (dis)trust through use of participatory, visual creative methods (incl. photovoice) Methodology & Timeline: Months 1-6: The student will conduct a systematic review of the literature to examine the role of trust and threat perception and socialisation in trauma and PTSD The student will convene a PPI (Patient and Public Involvement) group with members of the refugee/asylum seeker community in London and Kent to ensure the proposed research is culturally appropriate and context bespoke Based on the findings of the systematic review, the student will use optimise the quantitative tools and qualitative approach (incl. interview topic guides).

The student will prepare the ethics application Months 7-18: Based on the gaps identified in the systematic review, the student will design quantitativ