In intercultural psychotherapy with migrant women it is useful to differentiate between culture and migration specific issues that characterize the main reasons for use of the health care system. Culture related intra psychic conflicts are primarily connected with conflicting female role models, which finally may lead to symptom manifestation and seek for treatment. It is especially the 2nd generation migrant women who show a high amount of emotional distress having to cope with life events and psychological developmental tasks. Migration related issues also may have an impact on the development of mental disorder as well as on the treatment and the course of it. Consequences of migration experience, such as severe intergenerational and family conflicts reflecting ambivalences between the orientations towards the host versus home society, subsequently may in migrant women lead to the development of high psychological burden.

However, attitudes towards psychotherapeutic treatment among migrant women vary significantly, and are mainly dependent on age, duration of stay in the host country, and the culture of origin. In migrant women, culture dependent role models and behavioral norms are questioned on a very existential psychological level. Hence the integration of two different cultures is a challenge and often accompanied by affective, somatoform or dissociative disorders.

Chances and limitations of intercultural psychotherapy in migrant women will be discussed.