In a groundbreaking new study published in BMC Psychiatry, researchers have unveiled striking insights into the mental health landscape of Afghan migrant children and adolescents, a population often overshadowed in global health discourse. This research unearths the pervasive nature of psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) within this marginalized group, and delves deep into the psychological and trauma-related factors that may predict these phenomena. The investigation provides an unprecedented quantitative and qualitative exploration of how childhood trauma, cognitive flexibility, and mindfulness intersect to influence mental health outcomes in young migrants.
Psychotic-like experiences, which are subclinical and not necessarily indicative of full-blown psychotic disorders, serve as crucial markers of mental health vulnerability. The high prevalence of PLEs reported in this study underscores a silent crisis faced by Afghan migrant children and adolescents living in Mashhad, Iran. With 94% of the 770 participants admitting to experiencing at least one psychotic-like symptom, the data signals an alarming mental health burden that has largely gone unaddressed in this demographic.
The study’s authors employed the Prodromal Questionnaire-Brief Child Version (PQ-BC), a validated tool designed to screen psychotic-like experiences among young populations. This approach allowed for a nuanced identification not just of the presence of PLEs but also the distress associated with these symptoms. Notably, around 34% of the sample surpassed the clinical cutoff point — indicating they experienced significant distress related to their psychotic-like symptoms — which highlights the urgent need for targeted mental health interventions.
A notable facet of this research is its differentiation between children and adolescents within the migrant cohort. Adolescents were found to be nearly twice as likely as younger children to report PLEs, a finding that aligns with developmental psychology frameworks suggesting heightened vulnerability during adolescence due to emotional, neurological, and social transitions. This age-related trend offers critical implications for designing age-appropriate and developmentally sensitive mental health services.
Central to the study’s inquiry was the examination of childhood trauma, particularly emotional abuse, as a predictor of PLEs. Emotional abuse, often elusive and underreported compared to physical or sexual abuse, emerged as a significant contributing factor. The study quantified this relationship, revealing that higher degrees of reported emotional abuse were associated with increased odds of experiencing psychotic-like symptoms. This finding resonates with a broader body of psychiatric literature that links early traumatic experiences with long-term alterations in cognitive and emotional processing.
Beyond trauma, the researchers explored two psychological constructs known to influence resilience and mental health outcomes: mindfulness and cognitive flexibility. Mindfulness, defined as the ability to maintain non-judgmental awareness of the present moment, was inversely correlated with the occurrence of PLEs, suggesting that higher mindfulness may serve as a protective factor amidst the mental health challenges posed by displacement and trauma. Conversely, higher cognitive flexibility — the capacity to adapt one’s thinking and behavior in response to changing environments and demands — was unexpectedly associated with increased PLEs, posing intriguing questions about how adaptability interacts with vulnerability in stress-exposed populations.
A comprehensive multivariate analysis integrating these variables confirmed their collective explanatory power for PLEs, accounting for 22% of variance in children and 29% in adolescents. While these figures indicate substantial unexplained variance remains, they firmly establish the interrelation between traumatic experiences and cognitive-emotional processes in shaping psychotic-like experiences. This multifaceted insight emphasizes the necessity of holistic mental health strategies that address not only trauma but also enhance adaptive cognitive skills and mindfulness.
The implications of these findings stretch beyond academic interest. Afghan migrant children and adolescents embody a distinctly vulnerable group, navigating the complexities of displacement, socio-economic marginalization, and cultural dislocation. This study elevates their mental health needs to the forefront, challenging policymakers, clinicians, and educators to rethink and strengthen support systems in host countries, particularly those bordering conflict zones like Iran.
Importantly, this research does not merely diagnose problems but gestures toward pathways of resilience and hope. The protective role of mindfulness interventions, widely accessible through schools and community programs, opens avenues for scalable mental health promotive practices. Simultaneously, the nuanced findings on cognitive flexibility invite renewed investigation into how adaptive cognitive traits can be harnessed or potentially moderated to mitigate psychological distress.
These results add a crucial new layer to the global psychiatric understanding of how migration-related adversity manifests in the mental health profiles of youth. They spotlight the subtleties of psychotic-like experiences — often hidden and misunderstood — as significant indicators of distress, underscoring the urgency for early detection and culturally congruent therapeutic approaches.
Moreover, the authors advocate for future longitudinal and intervention studies, encouraging a dynamic exploration of how these psychological factors evolve over time and how targeted therapies might recalibrate the mental health trajectories of young migrants. Such efforts align with contemporary agendas in psychiatry aimed at precision medicine and individualized care.
In conclusion, this pioneering study amplifies the voices of Afghan migrant children and adolescents, weaving a complex narrative that intertwines trauma, mindfulness, cognition, and psychotic-like experiences. It challenges prevailing stigmas around mental health in migrant populations and calls for science-informed, compassionate responses. As global displacement and migration trends persist, the insights gleaned here will be vital for informing mental health policies and services that are equitable, effective, and sensitive to the lived realities of migrant youth worldwide.
Subject of Research: Psychotic-like experiences among Afghan migrant children and adolescents, with predictive roles of childhood trauma, mindfulness, and cognitive flexibility.
Article Title: Prevalence of psychotic-like experiences among Afghan migrant children and adolescents: examining the predictive role of childhood trauma, mindfulness, and cognitive flexibility
Article References:
Rezaee, A.R., Hosseini, S.R. & Firoozabadi, A. Prevalence of psychotic-like experiences among Afghan migrant children and adolescents: examining the predictive role of childhood trauma, mindfulness, and cognitive flexibility. BMC Psychiatry 25, 678 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-025-06979-x
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