Factors Affecting Migrant Domestic Workers' Access to Mental Health Support: A Critical Feminist Scoping Review

Previous studies have documented the nexus between employment and mental health status of migrant domestic workers (MDWs) in host countries. The majority of these studies are situated in countries that are common destinations for domestic and care work, such as Singapore (Anjara et al., 2017; Dutta, 2018; Dutta et al., 2018; Dutta & Jamil, 2013; Kaur-Gill et al., 2021), Malaysia (Simkhada et al., 2018; Wong et al., 2023), Lebanon (Fernandez, 2018), and China (Bagley et al., 1997; Cheung et al., 2018; Choy et al., 2022; Chung & Mak, 2020; Hall et al., 2019; Holroyd et al., 2001; Lai & Fong, 2022; Ullah, 2015; Yeung et al., 2021). Despite the burgeoning recognition of the mental health challenges faced by MDWs in the academic literature, it is worth noting that more attention has been focused on their inclination toward informal support systems (e.g., emotional support they receive from friends, family members, and employer), and less on access to formal mental health services (e.g., interventions and services provided by professionals such as psychologists and social workers). The unequal attention toward formal and informal mental health support warrants a holistic examination of the dynamics or relationships between the two approaches. In an attempt to conduct a more in-depth examination of the complex dynamics between formal and informal mental health support for MDWs while in host countries, this scoping review was conducted to address this need. Specifically, it aims to (1) systematically examine the existing knowledge about formal and informal mental health support within the context of MDWs; (2) identify the research gaps to establish the directions of my dissertation and its potential contribution to the field; and (3) develop a preliminary conceptual framework based on the concepts or themes that will surface in the scoping review findings.