Essay Example on Immigration and Its Effects

Migration is defined as the process in which one moves from one country or region to another to settle down. The duration of the settlement may vary, but the focus is on the people who relocate either permanently or semi-permanently to a different region or country. The migration may take place in groups or singly (Jenny 2).The existing hypothesis is that social adjustments and the effect of mental illness on immigrants are hugely influenced by the dissimilarity or similarity between the culture where one is moving to and the culture of origin.

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Cultural identity and cultural diversity are two significant issues that have caused considerable debate in western societies. The situation is aggravated by the political pressures that are connected to the flow of immigrants to those countries more especially the ones who come from Asia and Africa. One of the biggest challenges has been on how to deal with the cultural and ethnic heterogeneity. There is also another debate on the benefits and the costs of cultural diversity. The discussion is rife in the United States, Germany, Britain, Italy, France and other countries in Western Europe (Chiswick & Miller 4).The sociologists have been researching on the patterns of the cultural integration of the immigrants since the beginning of the 19th century in the context of immigration in the United States of America.

The interests of the economists have been the assessment of the economic impacts of the immigrants on the host countries especially on the labor market and the provision of goods. They also assess the question of economic assimilation: the earnings of the immigrants about the natives (Derwing, et al. 2). The economics have however found out that apart from the financial aspects of the markets, incomes, and prices, there are other issues which are related to cultural interactions which are essential in the integration of immigrants on the socio-economic aspects. For instance, certain cultural attitudes can negatively affect the performance of the market or the educational investments as well as human capital (Chiswick & Miller 6).When the minority cultures reject the behavioral norms of the majority culture, it can lead social and economic conflicts besides the effects on the labor market. The social scientists have studied the effects of immigrants on the host country economically and have found out that the integration patterns of the immigrants can affect the policies and design of the political economy of the host country. Additionally, cultural diversity can change social solidarity which is the central pillar of any democratic society( Chiswick & Miller 6).When the social solidarity is affected, social consensus is eroded.

Though they cause some form of instability to the host communities they too experience the agony of leaving their countries and homes. They miss their relatives and the life they were used to. Therefore, the main problem is the mental problems these immigrants encounter because they have been uprooted from their social setting. The essay will assess the mental health impacts of the relocation of the immigrants as well as the problems they cause to the host community. Leaving one's home and going to an area that is entirely new is not easy because it will take time before one adapts to the new changes regarding the culture, culture, taboos, ways of behavior and the social setup. The immigrants, therefore, find themselves in an awkward situation when they relocate to other countries or regions (Chiswick & Miller 7). The problems that they cause to the host communities have been extensively studied, but the effects on the refugees have not been given much attention.

Migration has contributed significantly to the richness in diversity of ethnicities, cultures, and races more especially in the developed countries. The people who migrate undergo several mental experiences that affect their general well-being. The lessons include the loss of religious customs, the cultural norms and the social support systems which existed in their previous cultures. Adjustment to the new culture as well as the modifications in the concept of self and identity are not easy. The cases amongst the immigrants who are suffering from mental problems are on the rise (Jenny 1). The practitioners in the mental health need to be aware of the cultural effects that have for long affected the immigrant communities and come up with solutions that are geared towards addressing the needs of this group which has increasingly become vulnerable. Since the world has become so multicultural, the mental health practitioners have found themselves in a situation where they work with people of diverse cultural backgrounds, religions, and beliefs. Several reasons make people migrate from one nation to another or from one continent to another. However, the migration has exposed themselves to untold problems whose solution is yet to be found (Derwing, et al. 22).The social support systems, language, employment, housing and acceptance by the culture of the majority are some of the issues that affect the immigrant communities.

The individual immigrants feel lonely, rejected, alienated and isolated which leads to poor self-esteem hence affecting the mental health of the affected immigrants. During the migration process, there might be other factors which expose immigrants to mental illnesses. Such factors include forced migration, the structure of one's personality as well as persecution. Some other factors that affect them after the migration include the culture shock, grief, the gap between the expectations they had and what is on the ground as well as the level of acceptance by the host community (Derwing, et al. 4). The factors can be referred to as the vulnerability factors together with the psychological, social and biological factors.

One's loss of culture and social structure can make an individual to have a grief reaction due to the loss of the things that the immigrant was used to in their initial home. When they grief for losing such things is a positive reactive, and it is a natural consequence of most of the immigrants. However, if such reactions cause persistent and severe problems, then they need the attention of a psychiatrist. The cultural bereavement that the immigrants experience is like the experience of a person who has been uprooted from the culture, culture and the social structures that he/ she is used to(Derwing, et al.,9). The person suffers the guilty feelings over the homeland that has been abandoned and experiences mental pain when he/she remembers the memories which have not faded.

The past lives keep on intruding into their lives all the time. The pain makes them be struck with morbid thoughts, anxieties, anger and the inability to continue with their daily lives unaffected. The duration of bereavement differs significantly amongst the different cultural groups (Derwing, et al. 10). It is essential to put this grief in the right cultural context so that it will be easier to differentiate between the normal and the abnormal reactions to one's loss of culture and social structures. Though these challenges have been affecting the immigrants as well as the host communities, the political leaders from the host communities have come together and addressed these problems. They have come up with a strategy in which psychotherapy will be administered to the affected immigrants. Besides, they will be provided with mental health practitioners who will handle their problems. Since the immigrants affect the host countries economically the leaders from the developed world which is the most affected have come together and come up with a strategy of acceptance of diversity and how to integrate new members into the society.

Works Cited

Chiswick, B., and P. W. Miller. Handbook of the Economics of International Migration, v1B: The Impact. Elsevier Science, 2014.

Derwing, Tracey M, and Erin Waugh. Language Skills and the Social Integration of Canada's Adult Immigrants. Institute for Research on Public Policy, 2012.

Jenny B.( 2014).A Short Essay on Being http://www.triquarterly.org/issues/issue-138/short-essay-being)