The Impact of Family Migration and Reunification on the Mental Health of Adolescents in Spain

Since the early 2000s, Spain has become one of the largest destinations for international migration: the foreign-born population has increased from under 4% to 14%. Immigrants in Spain are diverse, including 30% from Latin America or the Caribbean, 20% Eastern European, 20% from EU countries, 14% Moroccans, and 2% Chinese. This significant increase in immigration into Spain, and the latter's open and egalitarian immigration policy, presents a unique case for understanding how immigrant adolescents adjust to their new country. As a relatively recent country of immigration, research on immigrant adolescents in Spain has followed the European trend where research has focused exclusively on educational outcomes. No previous research has examined the mental health wellbeing of foreign-born adolescents in Spain. In this paper, we are particularly interested in Latin American immigrants who have advantages for immigration to Spain, including shared language (Spanish), religion (Catholic) and preference for acquiring Spanish nationality. We examine the mental health wellbeing of immigrant adolescents in Spain and identify factors that are highly associated with the outcomes, with a focus on the impact of disruptions to migrant families' lives. Specifically, we are interested in examining the impact of separation and timing of family reunification on migrants' mental health wellbeing. Our study therefore contributes not only to the current public health literature on the mental health wellbeing of immigrant adolescents but also to the sociology of immigration in Europe, by underscoring the importance of mental health outcomes as a measurement of the successful integration of immigrant children.