Refugee integration and social media: a local and experiential perspective

Abstract

The refugee crisis has spurred the rapid development of creative technology and social media applications to tackle the problem of refugee integration in Europe. In this article, a qualitative study with 18 refugees from Syria, Eritrea and Afghanistan is presented in order to investigate the uses and purposes of social media associated to the different areas of refugee integration in the Netherlands. The results indicate that social media networking sites were particularly relevant for refugee participants to acquire language and cultural competences, as well as to build both bonding and bridging social capital. Another important finding concerns the role of government, host society and the agency of refugee actors in determining the way refugees experience social media. Building on these results, a theoretical model for analyzing refugee integration through social media is demonstrated.

How Can Social Media Be Helpful for Immigrants to Integrate Society in the US

“…Consequently, new technologies such as social media will help in the integration process by providing the immigrants with general information regarding their rights, support services, citizenship while also assisting them not to feel isolated (Alencar, 2017). Social media also has the capacity of propagating the human-interest frame necessary for integration.…”

“…Social media has also assisted the immigrants to integrate by enabling them to keep in touch with their families and allies in their home countries (Alencar, 2017). This aspect is significant for their social, as well as, emotional support.…”

Refugee resettlement, social media and the social organization of difference

“…The literature on refugee integration in resettlement contexts has begun to advocate moving beyond a normative paradigm to recognizing the diversification of difference, or the ways in which superdiversity influences settlement trajectories and outcomes (Alencar 2017;Grzymala-Kazlowska and Phillimore 2018). Through the 'diversification of diversity' (Vertovec 2007), superdiversity provides a context in which to understand these dynamics and contemporary developments as refugees integrate into a receiving resettlement society.…”

“…Within this diversification, the role of social media has attracted substantial attention in relation to how it can influence integration outcomes, the development of social capital, and sustain transnational relationships (Alencar 2017;Marlowe 2018). For instance, Keles's (2016) study of the Kurdish diaspora in the UK determined that, despite predictions of communication technologies eroding political participation and civic engagement, social media increased these activities.…”

Magyarországi menekültek integrációjának vizsgálata

“…Ez a magas szám a szerb-magyar határra felépülő kerítés, a menedékkérelmek benyújtási feltételének szigorítása és a törvényi szabályozások következtében lényegesen csökkent (Magyar Helsinki Bizottság 2017). A menekültek nagyszámú migrációja váratlanul érte az EU országainak menekültügyi rendszerét, és megkérdőjelezte azon képességüket, hogy az újonnan érkezetteket fogják-e tudni integrálni a társadalmukba (Alencar 2018 Eredmények A mintában szereplők nemi megoszlása 10 férfi, 2 nő. Származási országokat tekintve 3 fő Afganisztánból, 2-2 fő Kamerunból és Szudánból illetve 1-1 fő Egyiptomból, Eritreából, Etiópiából, Iránból és Pakisztánból érkezett.…”