In following the lives of displaced female youth in South Sudan and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the research team was struck by how central mental health—in particular poor mental health and psychosocial functioning (MHPSS)—was to the lives of the study participants. This briefing paper outlines the general situation of displaced female youth—unmarried, married, divorced, widowed—from a MHPSS lens. The study shows how female youth in displacement are negatively impacted by traumatic experiences coming from their families, communities, and as a result of war. It also provides evidence for the long-term negative impacts of being forcibly married, divorced, and widowed. However, some participants who married early, or had pregnancies out of wedlock described the positive impacts of these events. The main findings of this study include:
- Female youth in the study, on average, experienced 14 types of traumatic events despite their young age. In both countries, the more traumatic events experienced, the lower their scores on a standardized resilience measure
- Participants faced ongoing threats to their personal security, which negatively impacted their mental health and psychosocial functioning.
- MHPSS was poorer amongst adolescents who were forcibly married, as well as those that were divorced or widowed. Suicidal ideation and attempts were not uncommon.
- Female youth living with disabilities faced social exclusion, harassment, and difficulties accessing school. Most felt that they are a burden to their families.
- In both countries, female youth described that they derived strength and well-being from social connections, including friends, boyfriends, husbands, and members of their natal families and in-laws.
- Poor mental health and psychosocial functioning was found to stem from patriarchal norms and gender inequalities—dictating the types of abuse and deprivation female youth suffer, as well as the family, community, and legal responses to such abuses.