Young Refugees Research Articles

The Reproduction of Inequality Through Volunteering by Young Refugees in Uganda

Research confronting inequality in volunteering has mostly focused on the attribution of its benefits to different groups and communities, with little attention paid towards fundamental factors that shape such inequalities and how these intersect with volunteering opportunities. This paper highlights the importance of volunteering for young refugees in Uganda, as a means of both learning new skills and earning a livelihood. However, evidence suggests that not everyone has equal access to these opportunities, with inequalities primarily distributed along the lines of language, gender and education. The paper provides a critical examination of the kinds of volunteering organised and promoted by state actors and civil society organisations with a particular focus on access to volunteering opportunities and the ways they can produce inequalities among young people. Based on data drawn from a study among young refugees from South Sudan, Burundi, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in four settings in Uganda, the paper explores issues of access to opportunities as a core premise around which these inequalities are shaped. It demonstrates that rather than address social inequality, the obfuscation of these experiences in how volunteering is organised only serves to reinforce the status quo.

Researching educational barriers in participatory real-world labs: vocational training of refugees in rural counties in Germany

IntroductionAs a result of the large-scale arrivals of refugees and migrants, Germany is facing the challenge of providing inclusive education pathways not at least for a successful integration into the labor market. In our research project laeneAs (Ländliche Bildugnsumwelten junger Geflüchteter in der beruflichen Ausbildung/The Rural Educational Environments of Young Refugees in Vocational Training), we focus on educational barriers and good practices within the vocational education and training system (VET) for refugees in rural counties. In particular, racism and discrimination are significant barriers to refugee participation in society and education. Our contribution addresses the following research question: How is educational inclusion discussed and defined in and through real-world labs among stakeholders in four rural districts: social workers, educators, policymakers, administration, and young refugees?.MethodsWe initiated real-world labs as a space for collaborative research, reflection, and development to promote inclusive pathways for young refugees in vocational education and training in four research sites. We used futures labs as a method to identify key challenges and develop action plans as an activating method with stakeholders and refugee trainees. Our data consisted of audio recordings of group discussions in the real-world future labs, which were analyzed using deductive content analysis.ResultsThe analysis identified the following areas as important barriers to education and for practice transformation: (1) infrastructural and cultural barriers; (2) day-to-day problems in vocational schools and companies (3) restrictive immigration policies and regulations.DiscussionEducational barriers are imbedded in a contradictory immigration regime with reciprocal effects so that refugee trainees have difficulties in completing their education and further their social inclusion. On the other side of this contradictory immigration regime, social work and social networks provide fundamental support in obtaining a vocational qualification.

Post-migration stress, quality of life, and mental health among accompanied and unaccompanied young refugees in Germany: How do adolescents feel after fleeing?

This study examines the impact of post-migration living difficulties (PMLDs) and quality of life (QoL) on the mental health of 55 young refugees who arrived in Germany either accompanied or unaccompanied. The results reveal that nearly 62% of the participants exhibited clinically significant symptoms of depression or post-traumatic stress disorder. Regression analyses indicate that psychopathology was associated with being unaccompanied and experiencing lower QoL, while QoL was associated with higher economic status and lower PMLDs. Mediation analysis further demonstrates that higher economic status and reduced PMLDs were associated with higher QoL, which, in turn, correlated with lower levels of psychopathology. These findings emphasise the importance of considering PMLDs and QoL, as well as economic status and being accompanied/unaccompanied, in the assessment and treatment of young refugees in the host country.

Forced Migration: A Relational Wellbeing Approach

In this Special Issue, we consider the ways in which a relational wellbeing approach can be used to understand the lives and trajectories of refugees in general and young refugees in particular [...]

Narratives of Symbolic Objects: Exploring Relational Wellbeing of Young Refugees Living in Scotland, Finland, and Norway

Background: In this study, objects are used as a representation of relational wellbeing to help young refugees living in Norway, Scotland, and Finland to talk about important persons who make them feel well. At the time of this research, there is no known study that uses objects to facilitate narratives of how young refugees and members of their social networks generate relational wellbeing. Methods: Using a qualitative approach, young refugees participated in individual interviews about the objects they brought to art workshops to understand their experiences, feelings, and acts of wellbeing. Results: Treating each object as unique to the owner was powerful in revealing how relational wellbeing is experienced and expressed. There were overlaps in experiences and expressions of wellbeing, hence our themes of discussion: overlaps between old and new social ties; between time and space; and between the three constructs of relational wellbeing. Old ties were not forgotten; instead, they evolved to a different form, supporting young refugees from a distance, while new ties contributed to what is needed in their present and at their current age. Experiences of relational wellbeing transcended time and space between their disrupted places of origin, their experiences on the journey, and settling in their new countries. The constructs of relational wellbeing—feeling good, being connected, and having enough—were inseparable in the participants’ experiences. Conclusions: We conclude that these overlaps have implications for a relational wellbeing approach in theory and practice. The results leave a challenge for both researchers and practitioners to develop complex research and intervention methods that can capture these tapestries of young refugees’ experiences of relational wellbeing.

Designing for Social Justice: A Decolonial Exploration of How to Develop EdTech for Refugees

This paper reflects on the lived experiences of young refugees located in Pakistan and Rwanda when interacting with education technology (EdTech) during and following displacement. We offer a broad decolonial commentary on issues related to the design and development of EdTech initiatives for refugees, noting some of the historical trends prevalent in the education and emergencies sector. We are guided by questions such as: Why EdTech to start with? Who designs the products? Where are they designed? How are they designed? And, which power dynamics are at play during the design process? From this, we draw on qualitative data generated through three focus groups, where we explore young refugees’ experiences of EdTech. The focus group included a creative element inviting participants to imagine what a liberatory EdTech practice would look like. We aim to illustrate the practical implications of design choices taken by EdTech developers and, from this, recommend a set of justice-centred design principles for developers of EdTech in refugee contexts. These insights relate specifically to the experiences of refugees in Rwanda and Pakistan, though we also discuss the implications of these learnings for other contexts.

“I still don’t know how someone gets pregnant”: determinants of poor reproductive health among young female refugees in South Africa

BackgroundStudies exploring the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) of refugee women have focused primarily on first generation refugees in humanitarian and crisis settings. There is a paucity of research exploring the reproductive health of girls and young women who are born to refugee parents in a host country or who have migrated with their parents at a very young age and who have since reached sexual maturity. We conducted a qualitative study which aimed to explore the reproductive health and rights’ needs and challenges amongst young refugee women in South Africa.MethodsThe study was carried out in the city of eThekwini (Durban) in South Africa in 2021 and 2022. A total of 35 semi-structured, in person interviews were conducted amongst young refugee women between the ages of 18 and 24 years living in the city centre.ResultsTwenty-five participants were 17 years or younger on arriving in South Africa, one of whom was born in South Africa. Eleven of these women had experienced one or more pregnancies while living in South Africa and all of these women had experienced at least one unintended pregnancy. Participants had poor reproductive health knowledge of the role of menstruation and how conception occurs. Economic, social, and legal insecurities intersected in complex ways as determinants of poor reproductive health outcomes. Despite availability, contraceptive use was poor and linked to lack of knowledge, myths and unwanted side effects. There were negative economic and social impacts for young refugee women experiencing early pregnancies irrespective of whether they were intended or not. Being unable to conceive or experiencing an unintended pregnancy negatively impacted sexual relationships which were entered primarily for material support. Desire for confidentiality shaped lack of access to legal termination of pregnancy in the public health sector.ConclusionParticipants experienced specific vulnerabilities resulting from their position as refugees despite length of stay in South Africa. It is important to better understand these specificities in the design of programmes and policies aimed at ensuring positive health outcomes for these young women. Peer education amongst refugee communities may be an important tool in the provision of culturally acceptable SRH education.

Addressing challenges faced by young refugees in the Netherlands: Adapting problem management plus (PM+) with an emotional processing module.

Young refugees face numerous challenges before, during, and after their journey, leading to higher rates of mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder. These problems often remain untreated due to barriers like limited services, stigma, and varied distress expressions. One effective scalable intervention that bridges this treatment gap is problem management plus (PM+), a transdiagnostic program delivered by trained nonspecialists. However, PM+ lacks a module directly targeting posttraumatic stress, which is a common problem in young refugees. This study presents the cultural and contextual adaptation process of PM+ for young refugees in the Netherlands that includes a newly developed emotional processing module. Qualitative data collection included free list interviews with youngsters (n = 33), key informant interviews with professionals (n = 9), policymakers (n = 5), key people from communities (n = 10), focus group discussions (n = 11) and one focused interview. A new module targeting distressing memories was developed and reviewed by experts (n = 14). Results supported protocol adaptations, including culturally and age-appropriate language, examples, illustrations and length. This research aims to develop feasible, culturally sensitive mental health interventions tailored to the unique needs of young refugees.

Age at arrival and integration outcomes of refugee youth and emerging adults: a longitudinal study.

Age at arrival is one factor that could influence the integration of humanitarian migrants, especially for children and teenagers. Previous research has focused on the influence of the age at arrival on education, employment, social and language learning outcomes, but there is limited research, especially for longitudinal study, on other important measures of integration. Moreover, young adult and adolescent refugees, and the relationship between age and integration outcomes are under-studied. To address these gaps, this study examined the relationships between age at arrival and different dimensions of integration of young refugees in Australia, using five years' panel data from the Building a New Life in Australia (BNLA) longitudinal study from 2013 to 2018 (282 individuals). Our findings indicate that age at arrival is significantly correlated with multiple integration outcomes. Old entrants tend to have a higher probability of having a paid job but have poorer mental health and English proficiency. On the other hand, older entrants were more likely to know their rights well compared to younger entrants at arrival. However, younger entrants' knowledge of their rights overtook older entrants four to five years after their arrival. These findings suggest that a shorter assessment process and enabling earlier entry especially among refugee youth and young adults could effectively improve their future settlement outcomes under the current humanitarian policies and system.

Reading the Fortune Seeker: (Dis)Empowerment in the Dutch Refugee Experience

Abstract: Suspicion and distrust of migrants and asylum seekers have been part of the Dutch media landscape for decades, particularly regarding youth from Muslim countries. These minors have been framed as inherently violent, religiously radical, and incompatible with Dutch social mores by dominant cultural narratives, represented by both the media and political debates. The narrative framing young asylum seekers, especially Muslims, combined with the disenfranchisement suffered by refugees in the asylum-seeking process, means young refugees are systematically demonized and disempowered. This article analyses a novel that contradicts the pervasive narratives surrounding young asylum seekers in the Netherlands. De Gelukvinder stars a protagonist doubly oppressed by Dutch society, both as a refugee and a teenager. We analyze how the narrative reflects the power dynamics and agency involved in the Dutch asylum process and discuss how the novel itself, an award-winning co-written project between a Dutch-born adult author and an Afghan refugee teen, counteracts the disempowerment stemming from Dutch public discourse. We argue that De Gelukvinder empowers the adolescent asylum seeker whilst foregrounding to an adolescent audience the disempowerment refugees face when coming to the Netherlands.

Funds of knowledge: Towards an asset‐based approach to refugee education and family engagement in England

AbstractThis paper reports findings from a doctoral study that investigated how young refugees and their families encounter England's education system. All children have the right to education in England; however, there are no specific educational policies for young refugees' education. Their invisibility in policy makes it more challenging for them to access appropriate support and contributes to them being portrayed through a deficit‐based lens. Due to limited school–home partnerships, educators may often be unaware that people with ‘refugee’ and ‘asylum seeker’ statuses face various barriers in and outside of school, further disadvantaging them. In this doctoral research, I drew on the concept of funds of knowledge (FofK) to highlight young refugees' and their families' practices and knowledge(s). I conducted a critical ethnography combined with arts‐based activities to investigate young people's and their families' experiences and perspectives of education. Based on the research findings, I argue that families' FofK can be used as resources for teaching and learning and to help overcome deficit‐based views of young learners. An FofK framework may help schools establish young people's and families' expectations, understand their circumstances in England and build deeper school–home partnerships.

"Kultura" and Its Forgotten University in Exile

Instytut Literacki Kultura (ILK) was the core of anti-communist resistance during the Cold War: it promoted independent political thought and understanding among central and eastern European countries while showing resilience against Communist regimes. Although ILK is mostly known for its monthly exile magazine Kultura, edited in Polish, its founder-editor Jerzy Giedroyc had anticipated another project in addition to a Literary Institute after the war. Foreseeing a long period of exile because of the Soviet occupation of Poland, he envisioned setting up a university for young Poles. His idea, which was delayed a few years because of the beginning of the Cold War, developed into a project with Józef Czapski to create a university for young refugees fleeing their communist countries from behind the Iron Curtain. After three years of preparation within ILK, the Free Europe University in Exile and its study center, Collège de l’Europe libre, were established in 1951 under the auspices of the American anti-communist organization National Committee for a Free Europe, yet Giedroyc and Czapski were excluded from its activities. The aim of this article is to trace the history of this essentially unknown initiative of the Polish exile group using archival holdings in Europe and the United States, and to highlight its importance within ILK.

Transitivity Analysis on ‘The Clay Marble’ Novel by Minfong Ho

The need to study language use in literary texts arises due to linguistic complexity, writers’ linguistic choices and subjective understanding of the contextual meaning conveyed by writers. By using Halliday’s (1994) transitivity system, this study analysed ‘The Clay Marble’ novel which highlights the Cambodian Civil War and its implications through the representation of events and characters. By looking at the transitivity processes through the clausal structures and word choices, findings showed that all six processes were employed with material process (69 clauses) used most, followed by relational (42 clauses) and mental (31 clauses) process. Material and relational process is dominantly used to represent themes such as the effects of war, community life among refugees as well as the growth and character development of young refugees during the war. Therefore, transitivity analysis on literary texts helps to uncover writer’s language use and the contextual meaning conveyed through the writer’s linguistic choices.

Young refugees’ experiences of accumulating horizontal and vertical social capital through organised and informal sports

For the last 20 years, Putnam's conceptualisations of bonding and bridging social capital have become a common reference for policies and programmes that seek to promote integration in and through sports. However, few researchers have looked beyond face-to-face interactions to how sports may develop migrants’ relations to formal associations, institutions, and agencies in civil society. In this article, we aim to explore how young refugees accumulate diverse forms of social capital through participation in sports clubs and informal sports. Drawing on Lewandowski's conceptualisations of horizontal and vertical social capital, we analyse 10 young refugees’ experiences with sports participation in Norway. The results show that informants found it challenging to participate in sports clubs due to conflicting views on how to ‘do sports’ as well as processes of ‘othering’. As a result, their opportunities for accumulating vertical social capital (social connections and resources across vertical power differentials) were limited and only identified for the most highly skilled informants. Consequently, the informants dropped out of sports clubs and instead joined informal sports to experience a sense of community and belonging with peers similar to themselves. By doing so, the informants were able to accumulate horizontal social capital (resources within a specific socioeconomic or cultural stratum) as well as negotiating specific types of vertical social capital. Overall, our findings illustrate some of the challenges and limitations of Norwegian sports policy and clubs in facilitating social capital and, thus, social mobility for young refugees.

Drawing Together in Scotland: The Opportunities and Challenges for Young Refugees within a ‘Relational Wellbeing’ Approach to Integration

In this paper, we consider how young refugees in the Drawing Together project experience integration in Scotland. We critically examine the term ‘refugee integration’ and emphasise its multiple dimensions. Specifically, we analyse Scotland’s role as a country committed to the protection and care of young refugees by mapping some key Scottish legal, political, social and cultural policies and strategies that provide the contexts for refugee integration as a mutual endeavour based on hospitality and reciprocity. Finally, we show the ways young refugees talk of rebuilding a life in Scotland that feels coherent in relation to their past and present circumstances, and their future plans despite the challenges that they encounter in their everyday lives. We suggest that a ‘relational wellbeing’ approach to integration in Scotland is tangible. It confirms the importance of the practical and social opportunities available to young refugees as they resettle. This approach extends the meaning of integration beyond its political and social categories, to include young refugees’ attachment to their faith of origin as well as the natural environment of Scotland. In all, we suggest that young refugees face the challenges and use the opportunities for integration in Scotland in ways that are of sustained benefit, for them as well as Scotland as their new country.

Family-like Relationships and Wellbeing of Young Refugees in Finland, Norway, and Scotland

In this article, we explore the role of family-like relationships in creating wellbeing for unaccompanied minor refugees (UMRs) to Europe. Our theoretical point of departure is a relational approach to wellbeing as conceptualized by Sarah C. White. The data comprises interviews with 51 settled UMRs in Finland, Norway, and Scotland, focused on their social networks, and a selection of paired interviews with young people alongside someone they defined as family-like and important for their wellbeing today. Findings illuminate the important role family-like relationships have in meeting the daily needs of young refugees. These relationships are ascribed meaning in the context of young people’s wider networks and ideas of ‘what family should do’. Family-like relationships gain particular importance for UMRs in two different ways: first, the physical absence of the family of origin enforces children and young people’s need to create trusted, reciprocal networks. Second, building family-like relationships is necessary in a new country where UMRs grow up and face new expectations, needs, and opportunities. We argue that relational wellbeing is built in a hybrid ‘third space’. A welfare state should support the wellbeing of UMRs by nurturing welcoming communities and providing UMRs help with building family-like relationships through formal and other support networks.

Between Two Worlds

Abstract Anna Vörös’s collection of short stories, Vadoma (2022), offers a completely novel perspective on refugees in contemporary Hungarian literature. The collection focuses on Vadoma, a young refugee girl of Syrian origin, who is the first-person narrator of most of the short stories. The reader can follow the young girl’s path from Aleppo to Budapest as she faces dilemmas and problems. The main issue of our hero is the fact that she is stuck between two worlds, as her old life and city of origin do not exist anymore, but Budapest has yet to become her home. Her mother tongue and words are no longer enough to express her experiences, but she has not learnt a new language yet. Mariangelo Pallodino’s concept of “islandment”, which refers to landing without arrival, expresses Vadoma’s situation perfectly. The present study examines whether Anna Vörös’s short stories can be read in the context of refugee literature, and it looks at how the figure of the refugee appears in them. Special attention is paid to the themes of cultures, religions, languages, and the in-betweenness of identities.

'I don't know exactly what that means to do check-ups': understanding andexperiences ofprimary care among resettled young adult refugees.

Young adult refugees have suboptimal primary care use, including having a regular provider and engaging with a regular source of care for primary and preventive healthcare needs. Our purpose was to understand how young adult refugees (ages 18-29 years) resettled to the United States understand and experience primary care. We conducted 23 semi-structured interviews with young adult refugees and explored their ideas about and experiences of key characteristics of primary care. Emergent themes were synthesized. Young adult refugees reported a lack of an understanding of the idea of primary care. However, they also described the lack of accepted key components of primary care, such as being the first contact and providing continuity, coordination and comprehensiveness. The importance of developing an ability to ask questions, get answers and feel empowered was a facilitator of primary care successes. Young refugees lack access to healthcare that exemplifies quality primary care. Improving understanding of the primary care model and its value as well as increasing access and ease of engagement could improve primary care engagement for young adult refugees.

Reflection of Individual Cognitive Load Theories in Digital Learning from a Pedagogical Point of View – an Empirical Study of the Impact of Language Skills in an E-learning Program For Migrants And Refugees

Cognitive Load Theory (CLT) and the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning (CTML) deal with the thesis that human working memories can only store and retain a limited number of items and address how to utilize individual capacity in the learning process without provoking cognitive overload. Based on these theoretical insights, traditional ways of non-digitalized learning are usually perceived to be more effective, as there may be less cognitive overload due to digital multimedia design; however, with the use of modern technology, digital educational offerings such as e-Learning programs can be effective as modified and tailored to the learners’ needs. This article studies how language barriers can negatively impact the success of eLearning programs for migrants and refugees from the perspective of CLT and a pedagogical point of view. The theoretical framework of CLT and CTML applied to interpret the findings from empirical data collected as part of the EU-funded project “Young Refugees AI Student Empowerment Program – RAISE.” The project aims to capture the participants´ experiences and cognitive skills by shaping pedagogical strategies that adjust to the learner’s optimal pace and learning needs. The study explores the structural requirements of eLearning programs for migrants and refugees based on Cognitive Load Theories. The baseline is that eLearning is complex and demands significant working memory resources. This effect is significantly elevated to a point where it harms learning when the external demands vastly exceed the corresponding cognitive working memory resources.

Barriers and Lifelines for Young Refugee Children’s Education: The Experiences of One Young Iraqi Refugee Living in the Northern Suburbs of Beirut

This paper identifies key barriers to young Iraqi and Syrian refugee children’s access to education in Lebanon and highlights how local initiatives serve as glimmers of hope, or ‘lifelines’, for their well-being and learning. Reporting on aspects of my doctoral study, the paper homes in on one case study with an Iraqi family and their 5-year-old son, Kefa. The ‘Day in the Life’ methodology enabled rich insights into Kefa’s home life and the informal school he attended, supplemented by interview data with his schoolteacher and observation of his school. The paper also draws on questionnaire data to situate this case study in a broader spectrum of refugee children’s experiences in Lebanon (n = 100). Framed by sociocultural approaches to learning, the findings illustrate the interplay of social, economic and relational barriers that impede refugee children’s access to quality education, and demonstrate how, despite limited resources, the informal school offered an inclusive and anti-discriminatory environment and pedagogy to break down barriers that bred racism, bullying and isolation. The paper argues that, although important, these lifelines are limited in their scope. State intervention is needed to build non-discriminatory systems that promote inclusive education, so all children can receive quality education, feel safe and belong.