The hopes of West African refugees during resettlement in northern Sweden: a 6-year prospective qualitative study of pathways and agency thoughts

Conflict and Health

Toomas Timpka¹  Cecilia Nordqvist¹  Tanvir M Anjum¹ 

[1] Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

关键词: Qualitative methods;    Psychology of hope;    West African refugees;    Refugee mental health;   

Others  :  810508
DOI  :  10.1186/1752-1505-6-1

 received in 2011-07-30, accepted in 2012-01-24,  发布年份 2012

【 摘 要 】

Background

Little is known about how positive phenomena can support resettlement of refugees in a new country. The aim of this study was to examine the hopeful thinking in a group of West African quota refugees at arrival and after 6 years in Sweden and compare these thoughts to the views of resettlement support professionals.

Method

The primary study population comprised 56 adult refugees and 13 resettlement professionals. Qualitative data were collected from the refugees by questionnaires on arrival and 6 years later. Data were collected from the resettlement professionals by interview about 3 years after arrival of the refugees. Snyder's cognitive model of hope was used to inform the comparative data analyses.

Results

Hopes regarding education were in focus for the refugees shortly after arrival, but thoughts on family reunion were central later in the resettlement process. During the later stages of the resettlement process, the unresponsiveness of the support organization to the family reunion problem became as issue for the refugees. The professionals reported a complex mix of "silent agency thoughts" underlying the local resettlement process as a contributing reason for this unresponsiveness.

Conclusion

Hopes regarding education and family reunion were central in the resettlement of West African refugees in Sweden. These thoughts were not systematically followed up by the support organization; possibly the resources for refugees were not fully released. More studies are needed to further investigate the motivational factors underpinning host community support of refugees' hopes and plans.

【 授权许可】

   
2012 Anjum et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

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