Post-trafficking stressors: The influence of hopes, fears and expectations on the mental health of young trafficking survivors in the Greater Mekong Sub-region

Violence Increases Psychological Distress Among Women Trafficking Survivors in Ghana

Human trafficking is a crime that is often shaped by violence, particularly for women who are trafficked. Additionally, trafficking survivors often report severe psychological distress, though research on the causes of this psychological distress is lacking, as there is little longitudinal data available on trafficking survivors. Informed by past literature on the links between violence and mental health among other traumatized groups of women, we investigate how experiences of violence influence posttraumatic stress, depression, and suicide ideation among a unique longitudinal sample of 116 labor-trafficked women in Ghana. We find that experiencing sexual violence while being trafficked is associated with higher levels of both depression and posttraumatic stress years after the trafficking period ended. This indicates both the long-term effects of stress and the enduring nature of psychological distress among the women in this study. Our analytic account of how violent experiences while trafficked impact mental health over the period of reintegration contributes to the general literature on violence and mental health among women, as well as to literature on the health implications of human trafficking.

What is the Impact of Human Trafficking on the Biopsychosocial Health of Victims: A Systematic Review

The health consequences of human trafficking have been poorly researched compared to other aspects of this crime. A systematic review was carried out to study health from a broader perspective, beyond psychophysical symptoms, to understand the global impact of human trafficking on sexual, social, physical, and psychological health. The search identified many studies focused on the violence of sex trafficking in female samples. This work leads us to conclude that social health is an important dimension of the well-being of trafficking victims. More studies are needed on aspects of social health, especially regarding research gaps related to spirituality and nutrition, thus continuing preventing and combating human trafficking. Many gender biases were also discovered: unlike studies of trafficking in women, the few studies on men did not look at parenting, sexual health, marital status, or sex trafficking.

Psychosocial interventions to improve the mental health of survivors of human trafficking: a realist review

More than 50 million people globally are subjected to modern slavery and human trafficking. Adverse mental health consequences of extreme exploitation are prevalent and often severe. We conducted a systematic and realist review on evaluations of psychosocial interventions for survivors of human trafficking. The review aimed to identify the influence of these interventions on the mental health and wellbeing of trafficked people and examine how they worked for which survivors in which contexts. We searched eight databases (MEDLINE, MEDLINE In-Process, Embase, PsycINFO, Global Health, CINAHL Plus, Web of Science, and Cochrane) for published evaluations of psychosocial interventions for survivors of human-trafficking. We followed a realist approach to analyse the data and report on the limitations of the studies identified. We identified four mechanisms of change as being triggered by the various intervention activities: (1) awareness and understanding; (2) trust, safety, and security; (3) agency, autonomy, empowerment, and social connections; and (4) self-reflection, self-expression, and self-care. Improving mental health after traumatic events is an ongoing, nonlinear process. Intervention effectiveness and transferability would benefit from more transparent programme theories and well articulated assumptions that identify the pathways to change.

Working With Survivors of Human Trafficking: Results From a Needs Assessment in a Midwestern State, 2019

OBJECTIVES

While the needs of human trafficking survivors have been documented in the academic discourse, the saliency of such needs is understudied. This study aimed to reveal the critical needs of service provision for human trafficking survivors in a Midwestern state as perceived by multidisciplinary service providers.

METHODS

Targeting health care, social service, law enforcement, public health, and other service providers involved in anti-human trafficking service delivery, we disseminated a survey using purposive and snowball sampling. Drawing from survey responses collected in 2019 from 107 service providers working with 422 survivors of human trafficking in the previous 12 months in a Midwestern state, we examined the saliency of needs from the perspective of service providers in the health care, criminal justice, and social service sectors.

RESULTS

Respondents indicated on a Likert scale (1-5) the level of need for 37 social, health care, and legal services in their communities. The top-indicated needs statewide were mental health care, shelter/housing, peer mentorship programs, legal services, transportation, and provider training in juvenile courts, schools, law enforcement, and health care settings on human trafficking.

CONCLUSION

The results suggest the need for statewide responses, such as legal assistance networks, telemental health options, and enhanced training collaborations between interpersonal violence and anti-human trafficking service providers. The study findings are generalizable beyond the study site in 3 ways that can guide strategic action: (1) they provide a framework for state-level analysis and strategic planning that parallels the results; (2) they show that regional variation is possible and should be accounted for in state-level study design, analysis, and strategic planning; and (3) the implications for housing assistance, legal assistance, mental health/substance use disorder-related health care, and training are scalable.

The counter-trafficking apparatus in action: who benefits from it?

Based on long-term ethnographic research, including documentary research, qualitative interviews and observations made at a Portuguese shelter for “sex trafficked women,” this paper explores the counter-trafficking apparatus questioning who benefits from it. The discussion explores the contrasts between an institutional commitment to constructing this apparatus and the actuality of procedural efforts purporting to support “trafficking victims.” I argue that the higher goal of building a counter-trafficking apparatus — in itself a political objective — limits the rights of “victims,” making processes that claim to be part of their protection de facto neo-liberal anti-political exercises in reenforcing bureaucratic state power.

Paper: violence, abuse and exploitation among trafficked women and girls: a mixed-methods study in Nigeria and Uganda

Background

Africa is the global region where modern-slavery is most prevalent, especially among women and girls. Despite the severe health consequences of human trafficking, evidence on the risks and experiences of trafficked adolescents and young women is scarce for the region. This paper addresses this gap by exploring the intersections between violence, migration and exploitation among girls and young women identified as trafficking survivors in Nigeria and Uganda.

Methods

We conducted secondary analysis of the largest routine dataset on human trafficking survivors. We used descriptive statistics to report the experiences of female survivors younger than 25 years-old from Nigeria and Uganda. We also conducted 16 semi-structured interviews with adolescents identified as trafficked in both countries. We used thematic analysis to explore participants’ perceptions and experiences before, during and after the trafficking situation.

Results

Young female survivors of human trafficking in Nigeria and Uganda are exposed to a range of experiences of violence before migration, during transit and at destination. The qualitative data revealed that children and adolescents migrated to escape family poverty, violence and neglect. They had very low levels of education and most had their studies interrupted before migrating. Family members and close social contacts were the most common intermediaries for their migration. During transit, sexual violence and hunger were common, especially among Nigerians. Participants in both the quantitative and qualitative studies reported high levels of violence, deception, coercion, withheld wages and poor working conditions at destination. The adolescents interviewed in the qualitative study reported severe mental suffering, including suicide attempts. Only one reported the prosecution of perpetrators.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that interventions to prevent or mitigate the negative impact of adverse childhood experiences can contribute to preventing the trafficking of adolescents in Nigeria and Uganda. These interventions include social protection mechanisms, universal access to education, social service referrals and education of parents and carers. Importantly, effective prevention also needs to address the systemic conditions that makes trafficking of female adolescents invisible, profitable and inconsequential for perpetrators.