Perceived availability of and satisfaction with social support and posttraumatic growth in Latina immigrants in refugee-like situations

This study examined the relationship between perceived availability of and satisfaction with social support and posttraumatic growth in 62 Latina immigrants in refugee-like situations. Lazarus' (1966) stress theory and Tedeschi and Calhoun's (1998) model of posttraumatic growth provide the theoretical framework for this research project. Participants completed four instruments (the prescreening questionnaire, a two-question stressfulness proxy measure, the Social Support Questionnaire, the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory, and a demographic questionnaire). Pearson's product moment correlations revealed the following: a positive relationship between posttraumatic growth and social support satisfaction; a negative correlation between posttraumatic growth and perceived availability of social support; a negative association of posttraumatic growth with education in the United States as well as with talk levels about immigration experiences. It is speculative that spirituality/religion may moderate the associations among perceived social support as well as talk levels. Additionally, the findings revealed a positive relationship between high levels of stress and spouse or parents left in participants' home countries. The results have practice implications for understanding the unique experiences of Latina immigrants in refugee-like situations who report posttraumatic growth.