Evaluation of the Impact of a Healthy Relationship Program Among U.S. Refugees

• Published date: 01 December 2021
• Author: Michael Young,Jennifer Salerno,Sarah Rockhill,Aida Hernandez,Rita DeMaria
• Date: 01 December 2021
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12563

M YEducational Evaluators and Center for Evidence-Based Programming

J S  S R,Risk Prevention, Assessment, Consulting & Training

A HEducational Evaluators

R DMCouncil for Relationships

Evaluation of the Impact of a Healthy Relationship

Program Among U.S. Refugees

Summary: This study evaluated a program

developed by the U.S. Committee for Refugees

and Immigrants; Refugee Family Strengthening

Program (RFS). The study examined whether

two interventions based on RFS produced sig-

nicant improvements for participants in four

outcome measures, when compared to controls.

The study used a randomized control trial

design.

Findings: Signicant differences between treat-

ment participants and controls were found at

posttest and maintained at follow-up for three of

the four outcome variables: communication and

relationship skills, conict management skills,

and economic stability. For the fourth vari-

able (relationship with youngest child) treat-

ment participants did not differ from control

participants at posttest. Treatment 2 partici-

pants did, however, show an improved relation-

ship with their youngest child, in comparison

to control participants, at follow-up, when con-

trolling for pretest scores. When controlling for

pretest scores, nationality, and treatment dose,

it was Treatment 1 participants who showed an

improved relationship with their youngest child

at follow-up.

51 Harbor View, Laguna Vista, TX 78578 (evi-

dence_based@yahoo.com).

KeyWords: Immigrants and Refugees,Family Strengthening,

Randomized Control Trial.

Application: Various agencies provide pro-

gramming for refugees and immigrants, but

efforts to evaluate the effects of these programs

have been sorely lacking. This study plays some-

thing of a pioneering role, showing that RFS

programming can produce positive changes in

relevant outcome variables, and these changes

can be maintained over time. Record numbers

of refugees are looking for an opportunity to

resettle in the United States. Additional research

that helps establish the long-term success of

programming like RFS is needed.

B

This study was an evaluation of a program

developed by the U.S. Committee for Refugees

and Immigrants (USCRI), the Refugee Family

Strengthening Program (RFS). It was funded by

the Administration for Children and Families

under the Healthy Relationship and Marriage

Initiative. Over the past three decades more

than 4 million refugees have been admitted

to the United States through the legal U.S.

refugee resettlement process (Uehling, 2015).

These refugees include those from more than

70 different countries (Carey, 2016). They

come to the United States to escape persecu-

tion in their home country for reasons such as

race, religion, nationality, or political opinion.

The United Nations High Commissioner for

Refugees (UNHCR) was established in 1950

to help millions of Europeans who had been

Family Relations 70 (December 2021): 1643–16561643

DOI:10.1111/fare.12563