Poor mental health outcomes are associated with families who have a parent without legal U.S. residential documentation who are at-risk for detainment or deportation (Dreby, 2012; Gulbas, Zayas, Yoon, Szlyk, Aguilar-Gaxiola, & Natera, 2016; Zayas, Aguilar-Gaxiola, Yoon, & Natera Rey, 2015). With an estimated 5.7 million U.S. born youth living with parents who do not have legal residential documentation, there is a need for furthering the understanding of the needs and resiliency of this largely underserved population (Warren & Kerin, 2017). In addition to receiving less mental health and social services than families with parents with legal U.S. documentation, families who have a parent does not have legal residential documentation fate is often determined by legal and social service systems, including immigration, incarceration, and child welfare. Therefore, there is a need to explore further and examine the experiences and needs of this population to find ways in which to address negative outcomes and build upon their existing resilience. The purpose of this study was to give voice to Latino youth and their parents to further the understanding of the relationship between the experiences, needs, and resiliency factors associated with coping with having a parent at risk for detainment or deportation. This research examined the reported experiences of youth and parents to gain an in-depth understanding of their experiences with this potentially traumatic event and resiliency factors. Both developmental trauma theory (van der Kolk, 2005) and ambiguous loss theory (Boss, 1999) provided the theoretical frameworks for this study. Using a qualitative design, a constructivist grounded theory approach (Charmaz, 2006: 2013) was used to further the theoretical understanding of the interactions and experiences of Latino families who are at risk or who have experienced parental deportation. Participants include 16 families who had a least one parent who was at risk for detainment or deported. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in either Spanish or English with parents and youth separate to gather depth and descriptive richness of the participants’ story from their perspective and with their choice of language. Also, demographic information and a quantitative trauma measure were used to triangulate the qualitative findings Results revealed themes of emotional distress and injustices from both parents and youth of this population. Additionally, parents and youth identified both cultural factors and parent-youth communication about the potential trauma contributed to parent and youth resiliency. Implications for professionals in the helping field and future directions for research are discussed.
