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"Syrian Refugee Children and Their Families" Research on CNN International
The "Syrian Refugee Children Research", led by the Department of Psychology at Bahçeşehir University (BAU) and conducted for the first time in the world, has also made a strong impact in the USA.
Research conducted at the refugee camp in Islahiye, Gaziantep, by a team led by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Serap Özer of Bahçeşehir University and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Selçuk Şirin of New York University revealed that the effects of the civil war in Syria on children are far greater than expected.
The report, presented last week in Washington at a press conference also attended by UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova, received wide coverage on the American television channel CNN and NPR radio.
Speaking to CNN, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Şirin stated that, following one-on-one interviews with about 500 children in the camp, they collected information on what kinds of events that could be considered "trauma" the children had witnessed, their psychological reactions to these events, stress disorders, depression and psychosomatic problems; according to the data obtained, they found that three out of every four children had lost a close family member in the war, one in every three children had been a victim of physical violence, and two out of every three children had seen a family member subjected to physical violence.
Dr. Şirin stated that if these children are not treated, in the long term they will have no other option and will choose to resort to violence, and that to break this cycle, they need to be given professional help and provided with high-quality teachers.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Selçuk Şirin's interview on CNN International: click here to watch.
