TY - JOUR A1 - Abujarour, Safa’a A1 - Köster, Antonia A1 - Krasnova, Hanna A1 - Wiesche, Manuel T1 - Technology as a source of power BT - Exploring how ICT use contributes to the social inclusion of refugees in Germany JF - Proceedings of the 54th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences N2 - Since the beginning of the recent global refugee crisis, researchers have been tackling many of its associated aspects, investigating how we can help to alleviate this crisis, in particular, using ICTs capabilities. In our research, we investigated the use of ICT solutions by refugees to foster the social inclusion process in the host community. To tackle this topic, we conducted thirteen interviews with Syrian refugees in Germany. Our findings reveal different ICT usages by refugees and how these contribute to feeling empowered. Moreover, we show the sources of empowerment for refugees that are gained by ICT use. Finally, we identified the two types of social inclusion benefits that were derived from empowerment sources. Our results provide practical implications to different stakeholders and decision-makers on how ICT usage can empower refugees, which can foster the social inclusion of refugees, and what should be considered to support them in their integration effort. KW - culture, identity, and inclusion KW - empowerment KW - ict KW - refugees KW - social inclusion KW - technology Y1 - 2021 UR - https://hdl.handle.net/10125/70936 SN - 978-0-9981331-4-0 U6 - https://doi.org/10.24251/HICSS.2021.322 SN - 0073-1129 SP - 2637 EP - 2646 PB - Western Periodicals Co. CY - North Hollywood, Calif. ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Khalil, Samir A1 - Kohler, Ulrich A1 - Tjaden, Jasper Dag T1 - Is There a Rural Penalty in Language Acquisition? Evidence From Germany's Refugee Allocation Policy JF - Frontiers in Sociology N2 - Emerging evidence has highlighted the important role of local contexts for integration trajectories of asylum seekers and refugees. Germany's policy of randomly allocating asylum seekers across Germany may advantage some and disadvantage others in terms of opportunities for equal participation in society. This study explores the question whether asylum seekers that have been allocated to rural areas experience disadvantages in terms of language acquisition compared to those allocated to urban areas. We derive testable assumptions using a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) which are then tested using large-N survey data (IAB-BAMF-SOEP refugee survey). We find that living in a rural area has no negative total effect on language skills. Further the findings suggest that the “null effect” is the result of two processes which offset each other: while asylum seekers in rural areas have slightly lower access for formal, federally organized language courses, they have more regular exposure to German speakers. KW - refugees KW - allocation policies KW - rural KW - language acquisition KW - intergroup contacts KW - language courses KW - integration Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2022.841775 SN - 2297-7775 VL - 7 SP - 1 EP - 11 PB - Frontiers CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Khalil, Samir A1 - Kohler, Ulrich A1 - Tjaden, Jasper T1 - Is there a rural penalty in language acquisition? BT - evidence from Germany's refugee allocation policy JF - Frontiers in sociology N2 - Emerging evidence has highlighted the important role of local contexts for integration trajectories of asylum seekers and refugees. Germany's policy of randomly allocating asylum seekers across Germany may advantage some and disadvantage others in terms of opportunities for equal participation in society. This study explores the question whether asylum seekers that have been allocated to rural areas experience disadvantages in terms of language acquisition compared to those allocated to urban areas. We derive testable assumptions using a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) which are then tested using large-N survey data (IAB-BAMF-SOEP refugee survey). We find that living in a rural area has no negative total effect on language skills. Further the findings suggest that the "null effect" is the result of two processes which offset each other: while asylum seekers in rural areas have slightly lower access for formal, federally organized language courses, they have more regular exposure to German speakers. KW - refugees KW - allocation policies KW - rural KW - language acquisition KW - intergroup KW - contacts KW - language courses KW - integration Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2022.841775 SN - 2297-7775 VL - 7 PB - Frontiers Media CY - Lausanne ER - TY - JOUR A1 - AbuJarour, Safa'a A1 - Ajjan, Haya A1 - Fedorowicz, Jane A1 - Köster, Antonia T1 - ICT support for refugees and undocumented immigrants JF - Communications of the Association for Information Systems : CAIS N2 - Immigrant integration has become a primary political concern for leaders in Germany and the United States. The information systems (IS) community has begun to research how information and communications technologies can assist immigrants and refugees, such as by examining how countries can facilitate social-inclusion processes. Migrants face the challenge of joining closed communities that cannot integrate or fear doing so. We conducted a panel discussion at the 2019 Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS) in Cancun, Mexico, to introduce multiple viewpoints on immigration. In particular, the panel discussed how technology can both support and prevent immigrants from succeeding in their quest. We conducted the panel to stimulate a thoughtful and dynamic discussion on best practices and recommendations to enhance the discipline's impact on alleviating the challenges that occur for immigrants in their host countries. In this panel report, we introduce the topic of using ICT to help immigrants integrate and identify differences between North/Central America and Europe. We also discuss how immigrants (particularly refugees) use ICT to connect with others, feel that they belong, and maintain their identity. We also uncover the dark and bright sides of how governments use ICT to deter illegal immigration. Finally, we present recommendations for researchers and practitioners on how to best use ICT to assist with immigration. KW - refugees KW - immigration KW - social inclusion KW - deterrence KW - ICT KW - bright side KW - dark side Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.17705/1CAIS.04840 SN - 1529-3181 VL - 48 SP - 456 EP - 475 PB - Association for Information Systems CY - New York, NY ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bösch, Frank A1 - Su, Phi Hong T1 - Competing contexts of reception in refugee and immigrant incorporation BT - Vietnamese in West and East Germany JF - Journal of ethnic and migration studies N2 - Scholars have long recognised the importance of contexts of reception in shaping the integration of immigrants and refugees in a host society. Studies of refugees, in particular, have examined groups where the different dimensions of reception (government, labour market, and ethnic community) have been largely positive. How important is this merging of positive contexts across dimensions of reception? We address this through a comparative study of Vietnamese refugees to West Germany beginning in 1979 and contract workers to East Germany beginning in 1980. These two migration streams converged when Germany reunified in 1990. Drawing on mixed qualitative methods, this paper offers a strategic case for understanding factors that shape the resettlement experiences of Vietnamese refugees and immigrants in Germany. By comparing two migration streams from the same country of origin, but with different backgrounds and contexts of reception, we suggest that ethnic networks may, in time, offset the disadvantages of a negative government reception. KW - Contexts of reception KW - refugees KW - contract workers KW - ethnic social capital Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2020.1724418 SN - 1369-183X SN - 1469-9451 VL - 47 IS - 21 SP - 4853 EP - 4871 PB - Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group CY - Abingdon ER -