title: Lack of perceived social support among immigrants after a disaster: comparative study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Disaster research suggests that immigrant groups who are affected by a  disaster receive less emotional support than their native counterparts.  However, it is unclear to what extent these differences can be attributed to  post-disaster mental health problems or whether they were present before the  event.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To examine the association between lack of social support, immigration  status and victim status, as well as differences in support between immigrants  and Dutch natives with disaster-related post-traumatic stress disorder  (PTSD).
  
  
  METHODS
  Social support and psychological distress were assessed among immigrants  and Dutch natives, among affected and non-affected individuals 4 years post  disaster. Post-traumatic stress disorder was examined in the affected  groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Affected immigrants more often lacked various kinds of perceived social  support compared with affected Dutch natives. Remarkably, we found no  differences in support between affected immigrants and non-affected  immigrants. Immigrants with PTSD differ on only two out of six aspects of  support from the Dutch natives with PTSD.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results clearly indicate that differences in support between immigrants and  Dutch natives are not so much a consequence of the disaster but were largely  present before the disaster.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Psychotrauma, Nienoord 5, 1112 XE, Diemen, The Netherlands. annelieke.drogendijk@ivp.nl
authors.forename: Annelieke N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Drogendijk
authors.forename: Peter G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: van der Velden
authors.forename: Berthold P R
authors.initials: BP
authors.lastname: Gersons
authors.forename: Rolf J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Kleber
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D004190:Disasters; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000523:psychology*; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D054527:Mass Casualty Incidents / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D008913:Minority Groups / Q000523:psychology*; D009426:Netherlands; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012944:Social Support; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult