Association between Adverse Childhood Experiences, Neighborhood Safety, and Mental Health Outcomes Among Immigrants and Non-Immigrants

Background and Purpose: Established literature on the relationship between adverse childhood events (ACE), neighborhood safety, and mental health outcomes informs the critical need for further investigation with diverse groups. The influx of immigrant families in the United States who often experience adverse events, such as war zone exposure, indicates the demand for more research with immigrant groups, especially children and adolescents. Additionally, both physical activity and sleep appear to be related to social disparities, especially among those with ACEs living in unsafe neighborhoods. The current study intends to examine how neighborhood safety and adverse childhood experiences influence mental health outcomes among children of immigrant families. Methods: In a national sample of 34,362 immigrant and non-immigrant youth, logistic regression was used to test the association between ACEs, neighborhood safety, and mental health after considering physical activity and sleep. The 2022 National Survey of Children’s Health dataset used for this project comes from the United States Census Bureau. The purpose of this survey was to collect information on the physical and mental health of children ages 0 through 17 years old throughout the U.S. Results:Logistic regression analysis revealed that immigrant families who indicated that their children experienced adverse childhood experiences and are living in a neglected or unsafe neighborhood were at greater odds of mental health problems after adjusting for physical activity and sleep (OR, 0.48 [95% CI, 0.46– 0.51]). Conclusions and Implications:The current study indicates the adversities that the immigrant community experiences due to previous traumatic experiences and surroundings, along with health factors such as physical activity and sleep. These findings can better inform intervention methods to emphasize how the environment and surroundings of children and adolescents can influence their mental health. These outcomes can further inform advocacy groups that focus on immigration policy in that there is a need for improving neighborhoods where immigrant children and adolescents reside. Future studies can specifically examine the aspects of the neighborhood creating distress, including social factors such as racial discrimination.