THE MENTAL-HEALTH PATTERN OF MIGRANTS - IS THERE A EUPHORIC PERIOD FOLLOWED BY A MENTAL-HEALTH CRISIS

Sluzki's 1986 mental health model of the migratory process was tested with migrants (both refugees and immigrants), to New Zealand. Its cent ral feature, suggesting an initial symptom free and euphoric phase aft er arrival in the country of settlement, followed by a crisis stage, w as examined for 129 Southeast Asian refugees, 57 Pacific Island immigr ants and 63 British immigrants. A questionnaire and the Hopkins Sympto m Checklist-25, in English and in three Southeast Asian language trans lations, were administered face-to-face. All respondents had arrived i n New Zealand within the last 15 years. The findings did not support S luzki's model. Refugees and immigrants in the group with less than six months of residence were not symptom free. Neither did the group with six months to six years residence demonstrate a deterioration in ment al health. However, mean depression levels were slightly lower for tho se who had lived in New Zealand for over six years, suggesting that me ntal health may improve the longer both refugees and immigrants reside in the host country.