**1. Introduction**

There is dearth of information about the mental health needs of Africans, especially young people in Australia, and most refugees do not present for mental health services. As part of the major study aimed to identify contributors of increased suicides among African youths in South Australia, themes including negotiation of identity strongly emerged from participants' narratives. The formation of identity and the ways youths negotiated these in their new environment, in Australia, were further analysed and considered to be an important discovery, leading to the authors' decision to unpack further and write this paper to contribute to the body of migrant and refugee health knowledge. Identity construction is an important process for migrant and refugee youths. It helps youths to construct realistic ambitions and reasonable ideals for themselves, develop a sense of free will and self-efficacy, and form a secure perception of self [1,2]. Additionally, planning for the future at this stage occurs within a social and cultural context that influences the ability of youths to engage in society successfully [2]. This process is likely to be particularly challenging for migrant and refugee

youths given the additional complexities associated with negotiating identity in a new environment [3], often from a starting point of socioeconomic disadvantage [4]. Constructing and negotiating identity by migrant and refugee youths is concerned with social belonging and developing modalities of social relations in their new environment, as opposed to ethnic identity. Ethnic identity refers to how individuals relate themselves to a particular ethnic group through labelling, exploration, personal behaviours, and shared attitudes and beliefs [5]. There are complex links between constructing and negotiating identity and successful settlement outcomes. How a person negotiates their identity following immigration can have a significant impact on social and psychological adjustment in their new environment. A study suggests that forming a strong host-country identity is important in enhancing socio-cultural adjustment [6]. The same study reported that maintaining a strong country of origin identity is important for psychological adjustment. In some instances, identifying with heritage culture is protective against harmful behaviours [6] and improves academic performance [7] among youths. It is also worth noting that the effect can differ according to the nature of the heritage culture [8,9]. It appears that the ability to draw on the country of origin and the host country identity is vital to facilitate settlement in a new environment [10]. Evidence suggests that this acculturation strategy, referred to as 'integration' or 'biculturalism', is associated with higher self-esteem, lower rates of depression, and greater prosocial behaviours, especially among migrant youths [11]. However, 'bicultural' identity could present problems for a successful adaptation in a new environment. It is difficult for individuals to negotiate a bicultural identity when a sizeable cultural gap exists between the beliefs and practices of their country of origin and their host country. Additionally, there are issues that exist beyond individuals' control, which shape their negotiating of identity [11]. For example, issues such as the cultural characteristics of interacting ethnic groups, socioeconomic status and social hierarchies, the availability of social and economic resources, and the socio-political aspects of the host country are vital dimensions that influence the negotiating of identity. The question of bicultural identity is particularly relevant for migrant and refugee youths in Australia. The first issue is that refugee youths often find it difficult to associate with a country of origin due to protracted stay in refugee camps. As a result, identity could become tied with their refugee status following such protracted situations [3]. Additionally, there is a difference in the racial construction of migrant and refugee youths and their peers in Australia, which shapes their cultural identity [12]. Moreover, the difference in cultural identity is formed by the effect of opposing individualist and collectivist forms of social organisation between migrant and Australian communities [13]. Although those immigrating to Australia may obtain national rights and access to services, many experience difficulties in connecting with Australian culture due to experiences of exclusion and cultural difference. Their experience is that of 'guests' in a foreign country [14]. Lastly, migrant and refugee youths focus on building identity and social networks with their new host community. This focus shapes the differences in acculturation between youths and the older generation in their community who are more likely to hold an identity associated with their place of origin [15].

It is well acknowledged that migrants and refugees generally undergo readjustment and adaptation on arrival to Australia, and initially experience decreased satisfaction when faced with the realities of life following their settlement. Evidence of phases of the refugee adjustment framework suggests that their ability to integrate with or become marginalised from Australian society depends on forces of social inclusion and exclusion, the existence of discrimination, and access to economic resources such as housing and meaningful employment [16]. It is of particular public health significance to understand how the social, cultural, political, and economic conditions of resettlement influence the negotiation of cultural identity among migrant and refugee youths.

Migrant and refugee youths are recognised as a vulnerable population group, especially to self-harm behaviours [17]. Additionally, refugee youths in particular are likely to have experienced multiple social stressors that make resettlement challenging. For example, the literature cites issues such as histories of trauma and abuse, loss of status and social networks, language barriers, unemployment, financial problems, and addiction to alcohol and substance use as challenges facing refugees following resettlement [4,17,18].

Although aspects of personal and group identity have been examined elsewhere [3,10,19–21], this study intended to explore this issue using an ecological perspective, [22] given the recognition of the socioeconomic and cultural challenges experienced by African migrant and refugee youths during resettlement in Australia, [4] and a desire to move beyond trauma-based understandings of refugee mental health and consider factors within the environment in which resettlement occurs, as echoed elsewhere [21,23,24].

This paper explores how African migrant and refugee youths in Australia negotiate cultural identity, given the limited understanding of the issue in the context of their local settlement. The aim of the paper is to better understand how cultural identity is negotiated and shaped among African migrant and refugee youths in South Australia. There are over 20,000 persons of African background in South Australia, and this number is increasing [25]. This understanding is important to inform health promotion practice and policy efforts to create appropriate environments that enable the healthy negotiation of cultural identity among migrant and refugee youths.
