# Psychosocial Wellbeing and Service Needs of Post-Deportation US Citizen-Children in México

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · 2020 · $219,695

## Abstract

Project Summary
When undocumented immigrants are deported from the United States, they often take their US-born children
with them. This relocation has familial, social, educational, emotional, and physical consequences for US
citizen-children (USCC). USCC may go with their deported parents to a country like Mexico with its lower
standard of living than the US, more limited educational opportunities, and substantially higher rates of
violence. There are other social-psychological challenges (e.g., language; peer groups; knowledge of local
history, geography, and culture; new interpersonal rules of conduct and social-behavioral repertory) and other
demands of living in a new environment. There are an estimated 500,000 USCC in Mexico but we know very
little about their circumstances. How are USCC in Mexico faring in their overall psychosocial wellbeing? A
binational research team from The University of Texas at Austin, Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de
Hidalgo, and Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City will collaborate on a mixed-method study of 240
USCC in Mexico on five domains of well-being. The aims are to
1. Develop procedures, test objective measures, and develop qualitative interviews that facilitate the
collection of high quality data from USCC and parents residing in Mexico after deportation from the US.
2. Describe the well-being of USCC in Mexico along five domains essential to youth development [1.] Family;
[2.] Neighborhood/Community; [3.] Education; [4.] Health/Mental Health; and [5.] Social Integration).
3. Identify the service needs and the extent to which the needs of USCC are being met in Mexico.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9937828
- **Project number:** 5R21HD098451-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
- **Principal Investigator:** LUIS H ZAYAS
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $219,695
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-06-01 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9937828

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9937828, Psychosocial Wellbeing and Service Needs of Post-Deportation US Citizen-Children in México (5R21HD098451-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9937828. Licensed CC0.

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