Digital Mental Health and Social Connectedness: Experiences of Women from Refugee Backgrounds

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A detailed understanding of the mental health needs of people from refugee backgrounds is important for the design of inclusive mental health technologies and services. We present a qualitative account of the digital mental health experiences of women from refugee backgrounds. Working with community members and community workers of a charitable organisation for refugee women in the UK, we identify social and structural challenges, including loneliness and access to mental health technologies. Nonetheless, participants’ accounts document their collective agency in addressing these challenges and supporting social connectedness and personal wellbeing in daily life: participants reported taking part in community activities as volunteers, sharing technological expertise, and using a wide range of non-mental health-focused technologies to support their mental health, from playing games to using religious apps. Our findings suggest that, rather than focusing only on self-help and self-care, research also needs to leverage community-driven approaches to foster social mental health experiences, from altruism to connectedness and belonging.