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CC BY V4.0, Open Access
Journal article
A Mixed Methods Inquiry into How Legal Professionals Respond to Recurring Trauma and Mental Distress among Refugees and Asylum Seekers with Insecure Visa Status in Australia
Health & social care in the community, Vol.2024
2024
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate how legal professionals in Australia responded to the mental distress experienced by clients with insecure visa status in the Fast Track Assessment (FTA) process. This article reports on survey findings obtained from 38 legal professionals followed up by focus groups and interviews with 16 participants. The participants were all involved in providing legal assistance to refugees and asylum seekers with insecure visa status, the majority delivering that assistance via pro bono or community law centre settings. An inductive thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. The study uncovered a complex interplay of practical challenges, emotions, and ethical dilemmas that legal professionals encounter while assisting asylum seekers in the FTA process. The study participants’ experiences highlight that a migration law practice frequently becomes the initial setting where asylum seekers disclose mental distress. Legal professionals found themselves simultaneously witnessing human suffering and endeavouring to prevent re-traumatisation of their clients. Responding to distress was difficult to achieve as the operational setting in which they provided legal assistance and the prevailing hardline political messaging by the Australian government toward asylum seekers who arrived by boat was hostile and (re)traumatising. There is a pressing need for more trauma-informed education and training for both current and future legal professionals. Findings are discussed alongside practical suggestions for trauma-informed interviewing for legal professionals who interview asylum seekers.
Details
- Title
- A Mixed Methods Inquiry into How Legal Professionals Respond to Recurring Trauma and Mental Distress among Refugees and Asylum Seekers with Insecure Visa Status in Australia
- Authors/Creators
- Mary Kenny - Murdoch University, School of Law and CriminologyNicholas Procter - University of South AustraliaCarol Grech - University of South Australia
- Publication Details
- Health & social care in the community, Vol.2024
- Publisher
- Blackwell Publishing Ltd
- Identifiers
- 991005701566007891
- Copyright
- © 2024 Mary Anne Kenny et al.
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Law and Criminology
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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InCites Highlights
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- Citation topics
- 6 Social Sciences
- 6.24 Psychiatry & Psychology
- 6.24.93 Trauma and PTSD
- Web Of Science research areas
- Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
- Social Work
- ESI research areas
- Social Sciences, general