# The mental health of crisis migrant families: A longitudinal, mixed-methods study of Puerto Rican child-parent migrants in the post-Hurricane María years

> **NIH NIH R36** · BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS · 2024 · $46,241

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract: Over 130,000 Puerto Ricans have migrated to the US since Hurricane María in 2017.
They comprise a growing population of individuals and families who migrate due to threats on their life, safety, or
health (henceforth referred to as crisis migrants). The number of crisis migrants being displaced by cascading
disasters—the accumulation of damage and crises without the capacity to recover from the previous one—is
increasing due to climate change. Studies on the mental health of crisis migrant adults have identified many
challenges faced by displaced individuals, including but not limited to, language barriers, healthcare disruptions,
unemployment, food insecurity, and residential instability. However, research on crisis migrant mental health has
focused primarily on the time immediately following resettlement, with little known about longer-term outcomes.
There is also evidence that the effects of cascading disasters on child mental health are strongly influenced by the
response of adult caregivers, underscoring the need for longitudinal research on crisis migration within family units.
Puerto Ricans currently make up an estimated 5.4% of the Florida population, which is the largest concentration of
Puerto Ricans outside of the island. In the context of crisis migration to the US, very little is known about relationships
between basic needs insecurity, mental health, and family dynamics over time. The proposed R36 will be the first
known study to examine relationships between residential instability, neighborhood cohesion and safety, mental
health, and family functioning of Spanish-speaking crisis migrants in the US. The long-term goal of this research is to
inform policy priorities to improve the mental health and address basic needs of crisis migrant families who
experienced cascading disasters.
The specific aims of this R36 are: (1) To examine how the contextual stressors of residential instability and
neighborhood cohesion and safety predict mental health over time among Puerto Rican crisis migrant adults; (2) To
identify, using latent class growth (LCG) modeling, (a) subgroups by parent/child perceptions of family functioning
and contextual stressors, and (b) their combined influence on individual mental health outcomes; and (3) To explore,
using in-depth qualitative data, the roles of residential instability and neighborhood cohesion and safety in shaping
the lived experiences and family well-being of Puerto Rican crisis migrants. The proposed research is innovative as it
is the first known study to use a mixed methods design to understand residential instability, family dynamics, and
mental health of Puerto Rican crisis migrants. It is significant as results can inform development of evidence-based
interventions and policies to reduce mental health disparities and improve system-level resources for crisis migrant
families who experience cascading disasters. Given the expected rise in climate-related migration, this w...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10997574
- **Project number:** 1R36MH138039-01
- **Recipient organization:** BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS
- **Principal Investigator:** Yareliz Diaz
- **Activity code:** R36 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $46,241
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-08-01 → 2025-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10997574

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10997574, The mental health of crisis migrant families: A longitudinal, mixed-methods study of Puerto Rican child-parent migrants in the post-Hurricane María years (1R36MH138039-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10997574. Licensed CC0.

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