Greg Jurkovic and his students are researching diverse populations of children and families including indigenous and refugee groups from around the world affected by war and related stressors. Greg’s work in this area was inspired by his exploration, alongside faculty (Gabe Kuperminc) and students (Tamara Sarac & Deb Weisshar), of the long-term effects of war on preadolescents and young adolescents in Sarajevo, Bosnia. Their findings suggested that the terror and injustice experienced by these youths and their families during the war understandably disrupted the justice structure of the families (reciprocity of give-and-take), thus contributing to the youths’ ongoing distress.

Returning to the U.S., Greg became interested in understanding and helping address needs of refugee children and their families. He discovered that Atlanta has the largest concentration of refugees in the Southeast. He and his students joined in the development of the Refugee Health and Wellness Coalition of Metropolitan Atlanta and conducted a needs/resource assessment in the area. They discovered that while the refugees’ host communities appear sensitive to many of the needs of refugees, they struggle to help them satisfy these needs as a result of limited resources.

Another project that Greg and his students are conducting with the Coalition involves the development of a culturally competent refugee mental health screening program for use by public health nurses. Partnering with one of the refugee service organizations, Refugee Family Services, Greg and his students have also implemented an innovative mentoring program for refugee youths.

Dr. Jurkovic is an associate professor in the clinical psychology program.