The study of physiology in response to war and forced displacement can yield insight into the origin of stress-related mental health disorders. Previous studies found alterations in hair cortisol concentrations (HCC) in refugees. However, the direction of this alteration in HCC, as well as the association between HCC and psychological stress, remain unclear. Mixed findings can potentially be explained by the lack of contextual factors that have been taken into account. In this explorative study, we investigated HCCs in three female refugee samples (N = 89) in different contexts. Samples were i) asylum seekers from Syria, who sought protection in Germany two years ago (n = 37), ii) internally displaced persons (IDPs), who fled a genocide and lived in conditions of onging insecurity in Iraq (n = 14), and iii) Kurdish immigrants and former asylum seekers, who resettled to Germany 18 years ago and were used as reference group (n = 38). HCC was assessed in the scalp-nearest 6 cm of hair (2*3 cm segments). Data on mental and physical health, exposure to traumatic events, and time between immigration and HCC assessments were collected. Syrian asylum seekers had lower HCC than immigrant controls (η² = .06). PTSD symptoms and perceived stress were associated with elevated cortisol levels in IDPs (r = .66 and r = .56), while time since immigration was associated with cortisol levels only in immigrant controls (r = .38). We discuss our findings with regard to the importance of contextual factors, particularly time since displacement and on-going insecurity, when studying physiological reactions in refugees.

• Lay summary

• Female Syrian asylum seekers had lower levels of hair cortisol concentration than Kurdish immigrants in Germany. Hair cortisol concentration was associated with post-traumatic stress symptoms only in internally displaced women who were exposed to ongoing stress and insecurity in Iraq.

对战争和强迫流离失所的生理学的研究可以深入了解与压力有关的精神健康障碍的起源。先前的研究发现难民的头发皮质醇浓度（HCC）发生了变化。然而，这种改变在肝癌中的方向，以及肝癌与心理压力之间的关系仍不清楚。可能由于缺乏考虑到的上下文因素而可能解释混合的结果。在这项探索性研究中，我们调查了三种 不同背景的女性难民样本（N = 89）中的肝癌。样本是：i）叙利亚的寻求庇护者，两年前他们在德国寻求保护（n = 37），ii）种族灭绝并在伊拉克持续不安全的条件下生活的国内流离失所者（n = 14），以及iii）18年前移居德国的库尔德移民和前寻求庇护者；被用作参考组（n  = 38）。在头皮最近的6厘米头发（2 * 3厘米的部分）中评估HCC。收集有关心理和身体健康，遭受创伤事件的风险以及移民和HCC评估之间的时间的数据。叙利亚避难者具有比对照移民HCC低级（η ²  = 0.06）。PTSD症状和感觉到的压力与IDP中皮质醇水平升高有关（r  = .66和r = .56），而自移民以来的时间仅与移民控制中的皮质醇水平相关（r  = .38）。在研究难民的生理反应时，我们讨论了有关背景因素重要性的发现，尤其是自流离失所和持续的不安全感以来的时间。

• 放置摘要

• 女性叙利亚寻求庇护者的头发皮质醇浓度低于德国的库尔德移民。仅在流离失所的妇女中，头发的皮质醇浓度与创伤后的压力症状有关，这些妇女在伊拉克面临持续的压力和不安全感。