Almost half of new Hong Kong immigrants in Britain have symptoms of depression or anxiety, survey finds

But more than half of Hongkongers report an improvement in their mental health after moving to the country

Study by graduate student and advocacy group Hongkongers in Britain is the first UK-wide one on the mental health of new immigrants from city

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Britain launched a BN(O) scheme after the national security law was imposed on Hong Kong. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 8:00am, 18 May 2022Updated: 12:39am, 20 May 2022

Corrected [12:27am, 20 May, 2022]

[12:27am, 20 May, 2022]
This article has been updated to clarify that the survey in question was not conducted by the University of Cambridge.

Almost half of newly arrived Hong Kong immigrants in Britain have symptoms of depression or anxiety, with one in four reporting signs of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to the 2019 protests and implementation of the national security law, the first UK survey of its kind has found.

But more than half of respondents reported an improvement in their mental health after moving to Britain.

The study, by a university graduate student and advocacy group Hongkongers in Britain, was the first United Kingdom-wide one on the mental health of new Hong Kong immigrants.

Hong Kong was rocked by months of anti-government protests in 2019. Photo: Winson Wong

Some 658 people answered an online survey from March to April and additional interviews were carried out with 12 case studies. Among the respondents, 90 per cent were British National (Overseas) passport holders and the rest UK citizens or asylum seekers. Most were between 35 and 44 years old and had spent between seven and 11 months in Britain. Such surveys are used by Britain’s National Health Service (NHS).

The survey found one in four respondents reported clinically significant symptoms of anxiety disorder, with 18 per cent reporting symptoms of depressive disorder.

An anxiety disorder is a mental illness which can cause a person to worry and fear almost everything that happens.

Mark Liang, a graduate student at the University of Cambridge who led the study, said scholars had previously questioned whether anxiety or depression experienced by Hongkongers in the UK was a normal part of immigration, the result of culture shock for example, or feelings specific to the group.

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Almost half of new Hong Kong immigrants in Britain have symptoms of depression or anxiety, survey finds

But more than half of Hongkongers report an improvement in their mental health after moving to the country Study by graduate student and advocacy group Hongkongers in Britain is the first UK-wide one on the mental health of new immigrants from city

But more than half of Hongkongers report an improvement in their mental health after moving to the country

Study by graduate student and advocacy group Hongkongers in Britain is the first UK-wide one on the mental health of new immigrants from city