A Mixed-Methods Analysis of Socio-Emotional and Cognitive Development and Perceived Changes Among Asylum-Seeking Children In Transit

Background and Purpose

Humanitarian aid institutions in Mexican border cities have hosted thousands of families seeking protection from compounded violence in their countries of origin, as well as restrictive migration policies and procedures, such as the CBP One application, which have contributed to prolonged conditions of strandedness. Pre-migration trauma, experiences during transit, and living conditions in shelters can disrupt children’s learning environments and developmental trajectories. Within these contexts, caregivers adopt adaptive strategies, and institutional support plays a role in sustaining caregiving and buffering potential adverse developmental effects. This study examines how caregivers perceive and interpret socio-emotional and cognitive developmental changes in their children while residing in shelters in Tijuana, Mexico, as well as the protective mechanisms they employ to address these challenges.

Methods

A multiphase, sequential explanatory mixed-methods design, grounded in a pragmatic paradigm, was employed. First, survey data from 196 caregivers in asylum-seeking families were analyzed using STATA 18.5 to identify the prevalence and predictors of reported developmental changes. Subsequently, 19 caregivers from the same shelters participated in in-depth interviews. Verbatim transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis with intercoder agreement among three coders, employing MAXQDA24. Mixed-methods integration was conducted through joint displays and the development of meta-inferences.

Results

Quantitatively, 37.2% of caregivers reported developmental changes, most commonly antisocial behaviors (29.1%) and socio-emotional difficulties (24%), while prosocial behaviors were infrequently reported (4.1%). Longer shelter stays significantly increased the likelihood of reporting developmental changes (OR = 2.14, p = .013), whereas family size and parental depression showed limited or marginal effects. Qualitatively, caregivers described learning regression, sadness, anxiety, withdrawal, shifting peer relationships, and occasional signs of resilience. These changes were situated within contexts of deprivation, instability, disrupted routines, and caregiving overload. Caregivers also reported strategies—such as storytelling, emotional closeness, maintaining routines, and values-based guidance—that functioned as protective mechanisms.

Conclusions

Quantitative associations gained meaning when interpreted alongside caregivers’ narratives: prolonged shelter stays heightened the visibility of developmental changes through cumulative stress; parental emotional distress influenced caregivers’ attunement to children’s needs; and crowded living conditions reduced opportunities to observe prosocial behaviors. These findings suggest that perceived developmental changes are deeply embedded in—and mediated by—the structural, emotional, and relational conditions of shelter life. The study offers a contextualized understanding of both risk and resilience processes shaping migrant children’s socio-emotional development during displacement, with important implications for social work practice in humanitarian settings.