Parental care in trajectories of forced migration: Ruptures and changing conditions for family life

Abstract

Forced migration has a major impact on family life. Yet, how the trajectory of flight and process of rebuilding everyday family life can challenge parental care is understudied and undertheorized. This article provides insight into the multiple transitions and ruptures that dramatically change the everyday conditions for parental care in the migratory process. By empirically exploring the migratory process in a family perspective, including the perspective of children and parents, and by analytically unfolding an understanding of parental care as part of shifting local structures of social practice, the article sheds light on the content of parental care so rarely studied. The analysis draws on an ethnographically inspired practice research study conducted in 2014-2017 in cooperation with five Syrian families, while they were awaiting asylum and during their first year with a temporary residence permit in Denmark. The empirical foundation consists of participant observation in the everyday life of the families and recurrent interviews with eight parents and 15 children.The article concludes with a discussion of the contribution to the conceptualization of parental care and implications for qualifying social work with refugee families.