Graduation Year
2023
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree
Ph.D.
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Degree Granting Department
Sociology
Major Professor
Elizabeth Aranda, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Sara Green, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Maralee Mayberry, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Heide Castaneda, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Elizabeth Vaquera, Ph.D.
Keywords
Florida, liminal legality, Immigration, well-being
Abstract
For over a decade, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program has provided more than 800,000 undocumented young adults with the ability to lawfully reside in the United States. Despite the program’s benefits, DACA falls short of offering long-term security and full societal integration. Over the past few years, political and legal attacks on the DACA program (e.g., actions of the former Trump administration, 2017 DACA recission, ongoing court proceedings) have made visible the precarious nature of the program and threatened the futures of young adults protected under the program. While prior studies have found that the growing anti-immigrant national climate has increased a host of negative emotions among Dacamented young adults, it is less understood how DACA recipients cope with, and manage, their negative emotions. This dissertation unpacks the emotional well-being – and coping strategies – of DACA recipients as they navigate uncertain and hostile political and legal terrain. The overarching research question guiding this dissertation is: What factors – and how do these factors - shape the emotional well-being of immigrant young adults who navigate the transition to adulthood in liminal legality? To address this question, I draw from both surveys and semi-structured interviews of 106 undocumented young adults, with DACA, who navigate the transition to adulthood during a particularly tumultuous 5-year political and legal era. Findings reveal that a complex web of structural, cultural, social, familial, and individual factors shape the emotional well-being and coping strategies of young adults who transition to adulthood in liminal legality. Overall, this study provides a foundation for future research, theoretical redevelopment, and policy initiatives that invest in the lives of this vulnerable population of young adults.
Scholar Commons Citation
Escue, Melanie Anne, "“You don’t seek help, You are just thankful for the things the country provides for you.” The Emotional Burden of Growing up Undocumented in the United States" (2023). USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/10434
