Protective Paradox: Caregiving in Protracted Crises Across 72 Countries

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Forced Displacement Studies
• Global Health

Background:

• Millions of children experience protracted displacement in ongoing crises.
• Protective parenting in these contexts is under-researched globally.
• Parenting strategies often involve a trade-off between immediate safety and long-term child development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct the first global systematic review of protective parenting behaviors in protracted refugee situations.
• To identify common parenting strategies and their impact on child well-being.
• To develop evidence-based principles for supporting displaced families.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of studies in 22 languages across 10 databases.
• Inclusion of humanitarian reports and global web data from 72 host countries.
• Analysis of 45 studies to categorize parenting behaviors.

Main Results:

• Identified three parenting categories: Control, Conceal, and Concede.
• These strategies, while addressing immediate risks, can negatively impact education, social development, independence, and psychological well-being.
• A 'protective paradox' exists where safety measures hinder development.

Conclusions:

• Three principles are proposed: demonstrate alternatives, stratify interventions by vulnerability, and replace unsafe strategies with safer ones.
• These principles aim to help practitioners and policymakers support refugee families in balancing threat mitigation and developmental needs.
• Effective interventions must acknowledge and address the complex vulnerabilities influencing parental decision-making.