ABSTRACT
Research on migrants and other diseases suggests that two factors, social networks and support, and personal coping resources, influence the risk of falling ill due to migration stresses. Together these factors comprise a migrant individual or community’s resistance resources. Put simply, those with the fewest resistance resources are the most vulnerable to illness (Dressler, 1990, p. 256). Social relationships can contribute to good health in at least three ways: by creating secure zones of social contact and affection; by reducing or mediating interpersonal conflict and tension; and by exerting a buffering effect in times of acute and chronic stress (Williams and House, 1991). In an unequal world, access to social support and the ability to develop successful personal coping skills are linked to one’s social position and experiences (Dressler, 1988; Evans et al., 1994). Central to migrant vulnerability to HIV and AIDS are the personal and cultural strengths which they bring on the journey. Pre-migration experiences are known to influence adjustment. For example, Vietnamese immigrants were observed to suffer post-traumatic stress disorder connected with the Vietnam War (August and Gianola, 1987), as do migrants from Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia. Mexican women migrating to the United States were better adjusted when they had stronger pre-migration support and could maintain contact with their pre-migration support network (Vega et al., 1987). The literature on illness and resistance resources is complex and there is inadequate space here to explore its relevance for AIDS prevention and care. However, two contrasting examples of community responses to AIDS suggest a number of themes and issues worth exploring in relation to migration and AIDS.
