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Can!social!organisations!facilitate!refugee!integration!in!
Sweden?!
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This% thesis% is% submitted% for% obtaining% the% Master’s% Degree% in% International%
Humanitarian%Action.%By%submitting%the%thesis,%the%author%certifies%that%the%text%is%
from% his/her% hand,% does% not% include% the% work% of% someone% else% unless% clearly%
indicated,% and% that% the% thesis% has% been% produced% in% accordance% with% the% proper%
academic%practices.%%
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NOHA!Master!Thesis!! ! ! Master!program!International!
By:!Johanna!Fransson! ! ! Humanitarian!Action!
Supervisor:!Lisbeth!Larsson!Lidén! ! May!2015! ! Uppsala!University! ! ! ! 30!ECTS!
ABSTRACT!
Refugee! immigration! to! Sweden! has! during! the! last! decades! increased!
substantially,! and! good! practice! and! lessons! learned! in! the! context! of!
resettlement! and! integration! are! needed.! This! study! investigates! whether,! and!
how,!social!organisations!can!facilitate!refugee!integration!in!Sweden.!Through!
case! studies,! this! thesis! examines! two! social! organisations’! contribution! to!
integration! based! on! a! number! of! integration! dimensions,! and! identifies!
strategies! for! contribution! to! these! dimensions.! Findings! show! that! both!
organisations! examined! contribute! to! several! dimensions! of! integration,! and!
thus! are! facilitating! integration.! Findings! also! reveal! many! strategies! for! the!
facilitation!of!integration,!the!most!prominent!factor!being!interaction,!found!in!
relation!to!almost!all!integration!dimensions.!!
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PREFACE!!
First!of!all,!I!would!like!to!thank!my!supervisor!Lisbeth!Larsson!Lidén,!who!has!
carried! out! endless! discussions! with! me! on! the! very! interesting! subject! of!
integration.!She!has!provided!great!support!throughout!the!writing!of!this!thesis,!
and!I!am!so!grateful.!
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I! would! also! like! to! thank! leaders! and! participants! of! the! two! organisations!
investigated!in!this!study;!Ting!&!Kaka!and!Hej!Främling!.!There!is!no!end!to!the!
inspiration!these!organisations!have!given!me.!My!interaction!with!Ting!&!Kaka!
has! taught! me,! that! the! Swedish! society! is! in! great! need! of! alternative!
possibilities!for!persons!who,!because!of!poor!health,!disabilities,!discrimination!
or!other!reasons!happen!to!fall!outside!the!traditional!labour!market.!The!society!
is! in! need! of! alternatives! that! embrace! diversity.! Ting! &! Kaka! believes! in!
accepting! everyone! the! way! they! are,! and! helping! persons! realise! their! full!
potential! through! building! on! their! strengths.! For! all! persons! have! strengths,!
they!just!need!to!be!given!a!chance!to!show!them.!!
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Hej! Främling!,! the! initiative! in! Grytan,! Östersund! whose! main! purpose! is! to!
improve!mental!health!among!asylum!seekers!there,!taught!me!just!how!easy!it!
can!be!to!make!a!huge,!meaningful,!difference!in!people’s!life.!The!every[day!life!
for!asylum!seekers!in!Grytan!largely!surrounds!eating,!sleeping,!worrying!about!
loved! ones! and! their! own! situation,! and! waiting.! Waiting! for! a! decision! on!
whether!they!can!stay!in!Sweden.!Until!that!decision!comes!–!which!often!takes!
up! to! a! year! and! sometimes! more,! these! people’s! time! and! qualifications! are!
wasted,! and! persons! are! slowly! fading! away! with! no! stimulation,! little!
information! and! limited! possibilities! of! ventilation.! Hej! Främling!! arranges!
physical! activities! for! the! asylum! seekers! a! couple! times! a! week,! allowing!
persons!to!network,!ventilate,!get!activated,!and!have!fun.!At!first!glance!it!might!
not!seem!as!much,!but!to!persons!in!such!a!situation!it!is!seemingly!invaluable.!!
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TABLE!OF!CONTENTS!
ABSTRACT! _____________________________________________________________________________________!2! PREFACE! _______________________________________________________________________________________!3! 1.!INTRODUCTION!____________________________________________________________________________!5! 1.1.!RESEARCH!PROBLEM!__________________________________________________________________!5! 1.2.!AIM!AND!RESEARCH!QUESTIONS!_____________________________________________________!8! 1.3.!RELEVANCE!TO!THE!HUMANITARIAN!FIELD!________________________________________!8! 1.4!THESIS!OUTLINE!________________________________________________________________________!9! 2.!CONTEXT!___________________________________________________________________________________!11! 3.!METHODOLOGY!___________________________________________________________________________!16! 3.1.!METHODS!FOR!DATA!COLLECTION!__________________________________________________!16! 3.2.!METHODS!FOR!DATA!ANALYSIS!_____________________________________________________!20! 3.3.!ETHICAL!CONSIDERATIONS!__________________________________________________________!21! 3.4.!METHODOLOGICAL!LIMITATIONS!___________________________________________________!22! 3.5.!STUDY!LIMITATIONS!__________________________________________________________________!22! 4.!THEORETICAL!FRAMEWORK!____________________________________________________________!24! 5.!THE!CASES!__________________________________________________________________________________!30! 6.!EMPIRICAL!FINDINGS! ____________________________________________________________________!33! 6.1.!HEJ!FRÄMLING!!________________________________________________________________________!33! 6.1.1.%INTERVIEW%FINDINGS%____________________________________________________________%33! 6.1.2.%OBSERVATION%FINDINGS%_________________________________________________________%39! 6.1.3.%DOCUMENT%REVIEW%FINDINGS%__________________________________________________%42! 6.1.4.%IDENTIFIED%STRATEGIES%FOR%INTEGRATION%__________________________________%44! 6.2.!TING!&!KAKA!!__________________________________________________________________________!45! 6.2.1.%INTERVIEW%FINDINGS%____________________________________________________________%45! 6.2.2.%OBSERVATION%FINDINGS%_________________________________________________________%49! 6.2.3.%DOCUMENT%REVIEW%FINDINGS%__________________________________________________%52! 6.2.4.%IDENTIFIED%STRATEGIES%FOR%INTEGRATION%__________________________________%53! 7.!ANALYSIS!___________________________________________________________________________________!55! 8.!CONCLUSIONS!AND!RECOMMENDATIONS!_____________________________________________!63! 9.!BIBLIOGRAPHY!____________________________________________________________________________!66! 10.!APPENDIX! ________________________________________________________________________________!71! 10.1.!APPENDIX!1:!STUDY!INFORMATION!SHEET!ENGLISH!____________________________!71! 10.2.!APPENDIX!2:!STUDY!INFORMATION!SHEET!SWEDISH!___________________________!72! 10.3.!APPENDIX!3:!CONSENT!FORM!ENGLISH!___________________________________________!73! 10.4.!APPENDIX!4:!CONSENT!FORM!SWEDISH!___________________________________________!74! 10.5.!APPENDIX!5:!INTERVIEW!GUIDE!PARTICIPANTS!ENGLISH!______________________!75! 10.6.!APPENDIX!6:!INTERVIEW!GUIDE!PARTICIPANTS!SWEDISH!_____________________!77! 10.7.!APPENDIX!7:!INTERVIEW!GUIDE!LEADERS!ENGLISH!_____________________________!79! 10.8.!APPENDIX!8:!INTERVIEW!GUIDE!LEADERS!SWEDISH!____________________________!81! 10.9.!APPENDIX!9:!LIST!OF!INTERVIEWEES!_____________________________________________!83!
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1.!INTRODUCTION!!
1.1.!RESEARCH!PROBLEM!!
Over! the! last! decades,! immigration! to! countries! in! Europe! has! increased!
substantially! (Gang,! Rivera[Batiz,! &! Yun,! 2013).! The! United! Nations! High!
Commissioner!for!Refugees!(UNHCR)!has!reported!that!applications!for!asylum!
to! EU! Member! States! in! 2014! were! 25! per! cent! more! than! in! 2013,! and! that!
Sweden! are! among! the! countries! receiving! the! most! refugees! along! with!
Germany,!France,!Italy!and!the!United!Kingdom!(UNHCR,!2015).!The!huge!influx!
of! immigrants! puts! a! lot! of! pressure! on! the! countries! in! question! in! regard! to!
integration!and!taking!care!of!the!many!people!that!are!arriving.!In!Sweden,!this!
has!shown!to!be!a!challenge.!!
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The!Swedish!integration!policy!has!an!overarching!goal!of!creating!equal!rights!
and! possibilities! for! everyone! regardless! of! ethnic! and! cultural! background!
(Proposition!1997/98:16).!In!reports!from!2008!and!2013!by%Statistics!Sweden!
(Statistiska! centralbyrån),! data! shows! noticeable! inequalities! between! foreign!
and! native[born! persons! in! Sweden! in! the! areas! of! education,! housing,!
employment,!health1,!and!participation!in!general!elections,!in!every!case!to!the!
disadvantage!of!the!foreign[born!population!(SCB,!2008;!SCB!2013).!In!a!study!
carried! out! by! the! daily! newspaper! Dagens! Nyheter! and! Statistics! Sweden!
presented!in!March!2015,!more!support!for!the!above!is!found.!The!study!shows!
that! both! ethnic! and! economic! segregation! has! increased2!(Örstadius,! 2015a)!
and! that! there! is! substantial! segregation! in! election! participation! (Örstadius,!
2015b).!The!gap!between!the!degree!of!employment!and!the!amount!received!in!
wages!between!newly!arrived!immigrants!and!the!native!population!in!Sweden,!
is! the! largest! gap! in! all! of! Europe! (Szulkin,! 2012).! Dagens! Nyheter! has! also!
carried!out!a!review!of!statistics!from!the!Swedish!Migration!Board,!investigating!
the!economic!situation!of!refugees!in!Sweden.!Results!show!that!10!years!after!
being! granted! asylum,! less! than! half! of! the! refugee! population! has! an! income!
above! 13! 000! SEK! a! month,! and! more! than! 30! per! cent! of! refugees! receive!
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1!The!factor!health!was!only!included!in!the!report!from!2013.!
2!The!study,!in!contrast!to!the!study!carried!out!in!2008,!included!both!foreign[born!persons!and!
persons!with!foreign[born!parents!and!was!concentrated!on!Sweden’s!30!largest!municipalities.!
financial!compensation!from!the!state!(Örstadius,!2015c).!The!review!also!shows!
that!the!average!income!for!these!refugees!is!11!100!SEK!a!month,!a!number!that!
contrasts!substantially!with!the!23!700!SEK!that!is!the!average!income!a!month!
for!the!entire!Swedish!population3.!!
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All! of! the! above! indicate! that! integration! efforts! in! Sweden! today! are! not!
reaching! their! goals.! In! light! of! this,! I! argue! that! there! is! a! need! for! additional!
opportunities! to! increase! effective! integration.! It! is! a! common! assumption! in!
societies! that! it! is! the! state’s! responsibility! to! solve! social! problems,! but!
sometimes! that! is! not! enough! (Yunus,! 2008).! Other! entities! in! society! can!
embody!a!supporting!force!to!this!cause!as!well.!!
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In[between!the!state!and!the!profit[making!market!lies!what!is!called!the!Third!
Sector,! including! organisations! such! as! cooperatives,! community! groups,! social!
enterprises,! voluntary! organisations,! and! non[profit! organisations! (Harris! &!
White,!2014).!Although!differently!defined!around!the!world,!and!also!differing!
in! whether! being! separate! from! the! state! and! the! market! or! being! in!
collaboration! with! one! of! the! sectors! or! even! both;! cooperatives,! mutual! aid!
societies,!and!associations!are!often!run!with!the!philosophy!of!not!focusing!on!
maximizing!profit,!but!focusing!on!meeting!general!or!mutual!interests!or!social!
demands!(Laville!&!Evers,!2004).!I!will!hereafter!refer!to!such!establishments!as!
social!organisations.!Laville!and!Evers!(2004)!highlight!theories!about!the!reason!
for!the!development!of!the!third!sector!that!entail!that!the!third!sector!evolved!
due! to! shortcomings! of! the! state! to! respond! to! minority! demands,! and!
shortcomings!of!the!market!to!reduce!informal!asymmetries.!The!same!authors!
argue! that! the! third! sector! is! historically! associated! with! public! invention,! and!
has!generated!many!social!services.!Social!organisations!can,!in!light!of!this,!be!
seen! as! a! rather! natural! response! to! the! shortcomings! of! the! state! in! the!
integration!of!refugees.!!
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3!The!entire!Swedish!population!includes!the!refugee!population.!
In! many! countries! in! Europe,! there! is! much! hope! attached! to! social!
organisations4!and!the!possibilities!that!they!may!bring!(Wood,!2007).!Research!
on!social!organisations!working!with!integration!of!refugees!is!very!limited,!and!
is! largely! focused! on! immigrant! labour! integration.! Such! research! however!
suggests!that,!in!the!EU,!social!organisations!are!seen!as!part!of!the!solution!to!
the!existing!inequalities!on!the!labour!market!between!immigrants!and!native[
born!persons!(Andersson,!2012).!In!international!literature,!social!organisations!
working!with!labour!integration!for!immigrants!are!described!as!effective!tools!
to! overcome! barriers! that! immigrants! face! when! entering! the! labour! market.!
Andersson! (2012)! hold! that! labour! integrating! social! organisations! has! the!
potential! to! give! language! training,! counteract! discrimination,! enhance!
possibilities! for! an! increased! understanding! of! societal! and! cultural! practices,!
provide! access! to! social! networks,! provide! better! opportunities! to! gain!
education,! information! and! funding,! provide! possibilities! for! work! related!
knowledge! and! personal! development,! provide! better! working! conditions,! and!
provide!possibilities!to!break!social!isolation.!Moreover,!labour!integrating!social!
organisations! are! also! considered! to! have! positive! effects! on! societal! cohesion,!
Andersson! (2012)! write.! In! 2007,! around! 180! social! organisations! in! Sweden!
were! focusing! on! labour! integration! for! persons! having! trouble! entering! or! re[
entering!the!job!market!(Wood,!2007).!However,!only!around!10!of!the!above[
mentioned! social! organisations! focused! on! creating! employment! opportunities!
for! foreign[born! persons.! This! shows! that! there! is! a! potential! for! social!
organisations!to!play!a!larger!role!in!the!integration!of!refugees,!and!perhaps!not!
only!in!relation!to!employment!but!also!in!other!areas.!!
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The!inequalities!between!foreign[born!and!native[born!persons!in!Sweden!need!
to!be!addressed!through!additional!integration!efforts.!Social!organisations!are!
believed!to!have!potential!to!be!part!of!the!solution!to!existing!inequalities!on!the!
labour!market,!and!perhaps!this!is!also!so!in!other!areas.!This!thesis!therefore!
aims!to!investigate!whether,!and!how,!social!organisations!can!facilitate!refugee!
integration!in!Sweden.!!
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4!Wood!(2007)!use!the!term!social!economy!rather!than!social!organisations,!but!defines!the!term!
as!organisations!with!primary!focus!on!creating!social!value,!which!is!the!definition!I!use!for!
social!organisations.!!!
1.2.!AIM!AND!RESEARCH!QUESTIONS!!
The!aim!of!this!study!is!to!investigate!whether,!and!how,!social!organisations!can!
facilitate!the!integration!of!refugees!in!Sweden.!In!order!to!achieve!this!aim,!two!
social! organisations! working! with! integration! of! refugees! are! analysed.! The!
concept! of! integration! is! divided! into! several! dimensions! for! reasons! of!
operationalization,! see! chapter! four,! and! results! are! based! on! whether! the!
organisations!were!contributing!to!these!dimensions.!!
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The!research!questions!are:!!
1. Are!the!investigated!social!organisations!facilitating!integration?!!
2. What!current!strategies!for!facilitating!integration!can!be!identified?!!
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1.3.!RELEVANCE!TO!THE!HUMANITARIAN!FIELD!
As!mentioned!above,!there!is!little!research!on!the!role!of!social!organisations!in!
the!integration!of!refugees,!and!more!studies!are!needed.!
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Also,! current! integration! approaches! by! the! state! are! insufficient! and! if!
integration!efforts!are!not!improved,!several!negative!consequences!may!become!
reality:!!
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First,!benefits!of!integration!will!not!be!optimised.!Integration!plays!a!big!role!in!
the!sense!that!realizing!the!benefits!of!immigration!may!contribute!to!economic!
progress!and!the!development!of!human!capital,!which!in!turn!increases!human!
welfare! in! society! (Wiesbrock,! 2011).! Second,! integration! is! important! in! the!
undermining! of! xenophobia! and! other! anti[immigrant! attitudes.! Entzinger! and!
Biezeveld! (2003)! writes! “Failure! to! develop! an! inclusive! and! tolerant! society,!
which! enables! different! ethnic! minorities! to! live! in! harmony! with! the! local!
population! of! which! they! form! a! part,! leads! to! discrimination,! social! exclusion!
and!the!rise!of!racism!and!xenophobia”!(p.!4).!They!also!write!“the!best!way!to!
combat!racism!is!to!provide!immigrants!with!opportunities!that!enable!them!to!
become!successfully!integrated”!(p.!30).!Third,!in!line!with!Sweden’s!integration!
policy,! integration! is! important! for! creating! equal! rights! and! possibilities! for!
everyone! regardless! of! ethnic! and! cultural! background! (Proposition!
1997/98:16).!!
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In! humanitarian! settings,! people! migrating! to! other! countries! have! different!
experiences! of! their! integration.! Some! experience! acceptance! and! support,!
others! experience! xenophobia! and! rejection.! The! creation! of! strategies! for!
refugee!integration!could!be!used!in!humanitarian!settings,!such!as!those!fleeing!
from! conflict! or! natural! disasters.! Both! the! refugee! and! host! population! may!
adopt!these!strategies.!Some!may!be!context[specific,!but!strategies!that!can!be!
generalised! can! help! improve! relationships! between! the! refugee! and! host!
population,!and!identify!the!benefits!that!are!associated.!!
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If!this!study!can!show!that!social!organisations!can!contribute!to!integration!of!
refugees,!as!well!as!outline!strategies!for!contribution!to!integration,!the!results!
of! this! study! could! bring! with! it! new! ways! for! how! to! achieve! goals! for!
integration.! Hopefully! it! could! be! informative! and! add! valuable! knowledge!to!
government! authorities! and! other! actors! in! municipalities! searching! for! better!
ways! to! support! activities! for! the! integration! of! refugees! in! society.! ! If! the!
outcomes!of!the!study!show!fruitful!ways!for!approaches!to!be!adopted!for!the!
integration!of!refugees,!it!may!as!well!inspire!people!to!create!more!initiatives!
like!the!ones!mentioned!in!this!study.!!
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1.4!THESIS!OUTLINE!
This!thesis!is!divided!into!ten!chapters.!In!this!first! chapter,!I!have!introduced!
the! research! problem! of! the! existing! shortcomings! to! the! integration! efforts! in!
Sweden,! argued! that! there! is! a! need! for! additional! efforts,! and! proposed! that!
social! organisations! working! with! refugee! integration! might! be! a! promising!
effort.!I!have!also!outlined!the!study’s!research!questions!that!aims!to!investigate!
whether! and! how! social! organisations! can! facilitate! refugee! integration! in!
Sweden,!and!I!have!outlined!the!relevance!to!the!humanitarian!field.!To!provide!a!
deeper!understanding!for!the!research!topic!and!questions,!a!text!dealing!with!
context!is!outlined!in!the!second!chapter,!involving!a!brief!historic!overview!of!
the!immigration!and!integration!in!Sweden,!as!well!as!a!discussion!surrounding!
various! definitions! of! social! organisations.! The! third! chapter! deals! with! the!
methods! for! data! collection! and! analysis,! as! well! as! ethical! considerations! and!
limitations!to!the!methods!used!and!the!study!itself.!The!fourth!chapter!consists!
of!theory!surrounding!the!concept!of!integration,!a!term!which!is!here!explored!
and!operationalized.!In!the!fifth!chapter,!the!two!social!organisations!examined!
in!this!study!are!described.!In!the!sixth! chapter,!the!study’s!empirical!findings!
are!presented,!which!are!thereafter!analysed!in!chapter!seven.!In!chapter!seven,!
the! research! questions! are! answered,! and! findings! are! connected! to! previous!
literature! on! the! topic! of! refugee! integration! through! social! organisations.!!
Chapter!eight!consists!of!concluding!notes!and!recommendations,!followed!by!a!
bibliography!in!chapter!nine,!and!appendices!in!chapter!ten.!!
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2.!CONTEXT!
To!provide!a!better!understanding!for!the!context!of!the!study,!the!following!text!
entails! a! short! description! of! the! history! of! immigration! in! Sweden! and! an!
overview! of! the! development! of! Sweden’s! integration! policy.! Following! this,! a!
short!discussion!on!the!different!definitions!and!meanings!of!social!organisations!
will! be! given! to! provide! an! enhanced! understanding! of! the! terms! used! in! this!
paper!and!a!more!nuanced!analysis!further!on!in!this!paper.!
%
Immigration%to%Sweden%–%then%and%now%
At! the! beginning! of! the! 20th! century,! emmigration! from! Sweden! was!
significantly!more!common!than!immigration.!It!was!not!until!after!the!Second!
World! War! that! immigration! started! to! take! place.! When! Swedish! industries!
expanded,! a! need! for! increased! labour! evolved,! which! resulted! in! substantial!
labour! immigration.! The! labour! immigrants! mainly! originated! from! Nordic!
countries!and!other!countries!in!Europe,!immigrants!from!elsewhere!were!rare!
at!the!time.!In!the!1970s!the!reasons!for!immigrating!to!Sweden!began!to!change.!
Labour!was!no!longer!the!main!reason!for!immigration,!instead!people!began!to!
immigrate! to! seek! refuge.! Between! 1945! and! 2008,! the! total! number! of!
immigrants!to!Sweden!exceeded!over!a!million!persons,!and!in!2007!more!than!
13!per!cent!of!Sweden’s!population!were!foreign[born!(SCB,!2008).!The!amount!
of!applications!for!asylum!in!Sweden!varies!from!year!to!year,!but!numbers!were!
especially!high!in!1989[1993,!when!the!amount!of!applications!ranged!between!
30!000!and!84!000,!and!between!2010[2014,!when!numbers!ranged!between!30!
000! and! 81! 000! (Migrationsverket,! 2015a).! During! the! first! three! months! of!
2015,! a! total! of! 13060! refugees! applied! for! asylum! in! Sweden,! of! which! 8731!
were!male!and!4329!were!female.!4164!of!these!persons!were!children,!1502!of!
which!were!unaccompanied!(Migrationsverket,!2015b).!12219!applications!have!
been!managed!at!the!time!of!writing,!of!which!6093!cases!have!been!approved.!
Residual!applications!have!been!rejected!or!transferred!to!another!state!in!!
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accordance!with!the!Dublin!Regulation!5!6!(Migrationsverket,!2015c).!!
To! clarify,! asylum! is! the! protection! of! refugees! provided! by! a! state.! The! term!
asylum!seeker!relates!to!a!person!seeking!protection!in!a!country!and!claims!to!
be! a! refugee! but! who! have! not! been! definitely! evaluated! (UNHCR,! 2015;!
Migrationsverket,! 2014).! A! refugee! is! someone! who! has! crossed! his! or! her!
national! border! because! of! risks! of! persecution! in! the! native! country,! and! an!
unwillingness!or!inability!to!have!protection!there.!!By!definition!in!the!1951!UN!
Convention! Relating! to! the! Status! of! Refugees! (1)(2)! and! the! 1967! Protocol!
Relating!to!the!Status!of!Refugees!(1)(2)!the!status!of!refugee!is!to!be!accorded!
someone!who!has!a!”well!founded!fear!of!being!persecuted!for!reasons!of!race,!
religion,!nationality,!membership!of!a!particular!social!group!or!political!opinion,!
is!outside!the!country!of!his!nationality!and!is!unable!or,!owing!to!such!fear,!is!
unwilling!to!avail!himself!of!the!protection!of!that!country;!or!who,!not!having!a!
nationality!and!being!outside!the!country!of!his!former!habitual!residence!as!a!
result!of!such!events,!is!unable!or,!owing!to!such!fear,!is!unwilling!to!return!to!it”!
(UNHCR,!2010).!
!
The! integration! policies! in! Sweden! have! been! modified! over! time.! Before! the!
1970s!there!were!no!integration!policies!in!Sweden!(Valenta!&!Bunar,!2010).!It!
was!believed!that!immigrants!would!adopt!the!Swedish!culture!in!time,!and!they!
were! also! granted! equality! in! basic! rights.! In! 1975,! Sweden! adopted! an!
immigration! integration! policy,! stating! that! immigrants! should! have! the! same!
rights! as! the! established! population,! the! freedom! to! choose! if! they! wanted! to!
take! part! in! the! Swedish! culture! or! not,! and! emphasising! the! importance! of!
cooperation! between! immigrants! and! members! of! the! established! community.!
This! policy! facilitated! multiculturalism.! In! a! government! proposal! from!
1997/1998! the! integration! policy! was! slightly! changed,! emphasising! cultural!
pluralism! instead! of! multiculturalism! (ibid).! The! intention! was! to! present!
integration! as! something! that! involved! the! entire! society,! although,! the! actual!
focus! has! much! remained! on! immigrants! (Valenta! &! Bunar,! 2010).! After! 1997,!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
5!The!Dublin!Regulation!is!a!law!regulating!which!EU!Member!State!who!has!the!responsibility!to!
handle!certain!asylum!applications.!
6!Decisions!of!asylum!cases!are!handled!in!three!instances.!The!numbers!above!only!refers!to!
decisions!taken!in!the!first!instance,!by!the!Swedish!Migration!Board.!
the! integration! policy! was! based! on! cultural! and! ethnic! diversity,! and!
encouraged! equal! rights! and! the! prevention! of,! and! combatting! against,! ethnic!
discrimination,!xenophobia!and!racism.!Since!then,!this!underlying!mantra!of!the!
integration!policy!has!not!been!altered,!although!different!efforts!of!integration!
have!been!implemented!(Wiesbrock,!2011).!!
!
Responsibility!for!the!reception!of!asylum!seekers!and!refugees!in!Sweden!today!
lies! with! several! levels! of! the! Swedish! government! (Bevelander,+ Hagström+ &+
Rönnqvist,* 2009).* The* Migration* Board* (Migrationsverket)! has! the! main!
responsibility!for!the!reception!of!asylum!seekers!and!the!primary!evaluation!of!
asylum!applications.!The!Migration!Board’s!objective!is!to!finalise!the!evaluation!
within!three!months,!but!if!there!are!many!applications,!the!evaluation!can!take!
more! time! (Migrationsverket,! 2015d).! Together! with! County! Administrative!
Boards,!the!Migration!Board!also!has!the!responsibility!for!the!dispersal!of!the!
refugees! to! municipalities( (Bevelander,( Hagström( &( Rönnqvist,( 2009).!
Thereafter!the!Migration!Board!is!to!arrange!suitable!housing!for!asylum!seekers!
who! cannot! provide! housing! for! themselves.! The! housing! arranged! for! the!
asylum!seekers!is,!as!a!first!option,!an!apartment!(Justitiedepartementet,!2014).!
When!apartments!are!not!available,!asylum!seekers!are!placed!in!hostels,!holiday!
villages! and! other! facilities! (Migrationsverket,! 2015e).! Asylum! seekers! cannot!
choose! where! to! be! placed! and! have! to! accept! that! they! will! have! to! move! to!
wherever! there! is! available! housing.! When! someone! is! granted! a! residence!
permit,!the!Swedish!Employment!Agency!or!the!Migration!Board!can!help!with!
new! housing! (Migrationsverket,! 2014).! The! Swedish! Employment! Agency!
(Arbetsförmedlingen)! has! the! responsibility! of! coordinating! introductory!
activities!for!refugees.!County!Administrative!Boards!have!the!responsibility!of!
promoting! cooperation! between! municipalities,! government! agencies,!
corporations! and! organisations! providing! integrating! activities,! and!
municipalities! have! the! responsibility! to! arrange! social! services! for! the! newly!
arrived!immigrants!(Lag!om!etableringsinsatser!för!vissa!nyanlända!invandrare,!
2010:197).!!
!
!
Social%organisations%
Social! business,! social! economy,! social! enterprise,! economic! association,! and!
non[profit! association.! These! terms,! and! probably! many! more! like! them,! are!
described! by! authors! in! a! variety! of! ways,! with! many! different! organisational!
formations,!and!sometimes!used!interchangeably.!Most!common!is!however!the!
(often)! mutual! factor! of! focusing! on! social! value.! What! term! is! used! often!
depends!on!the!legal!form!of!the!organisation,!but!even!then!the!descriptions!are!
inconsequent.!For!example,!while!the!term!social!enterprise!has!been!defined!as!
any! initiative! with! the! purpose! of! helping! others,! irrelevant! to! whether! the!
initiative!is!for!profit!or!non!profit!(Yunus,!2008),!it!has!also!been!defined!as!a!
strictly!non!profit!initiative,!carried!out!by!organisations!or!even!governments,!
as!well!as/or!basing!the!initiative!on!business!principles!(Dacin,!Dacin!&!Matear,!
2010).!Common!to!most!definitions,!as!mentioned!above,!seems!to!be!the!criteria!
of! a! primary! focus! of! creating! social! value! ! (Austin,! Stevenson,! &! Wei[Skillern,!
2006;!Seelos!&!Mair,!2005;!Dacin,!Dacin,!&!Matear,!2010).!Creating!social!value!
in! this! context! refers! to! addressing! societal! needs! or! problems,! i.e.! reducing!
poverty,!diseases,!criminality,!unemployment,!or!similar.!
!
Also! the! term! social! business! has! been! identified! as! an! organisation! with! the!
purpose! of! creating! social! value! and! reducing! social! problems! rather! than! the!
purpose!of!maximising!profit!(Yunus,!2008).!The!structure!in!social!business!is,!
according!to!Yunus!(2008),!the!same!as!any!for[profit!business!or!organisation,!
but! what! differs! are! the! primary! goals.! It! is! an! organisation! concerned! with!
economic! management! but! where! the! profit! goes! into! the! company! after! the!
investors! have! gained! back! what! they! invested.! Gawell! (2008)! states! that,! in!
Sweden,! there! is! no! consensus! on! the! definition! of! social! business,! no! formal!
criteria! of! what! a! social! business! is.! Gawell! (2008)! describes! four! different!
meanings!of!the!term!that!are!commonly!used!throughout!the!country.!The!first!
version! is! social! business! based! on! a! common! business! model.! In! this! model,!
social!values!and!profit!are!both!important!goals!of!the!organisation.!The!second!
version! is! social! business! based! on! cooperative! principles! in! combination! with!
social!value!goals.!These!organisations!attempt!to!provide!individuals!outside!of,!
or!far!from,!the!labour!market!with!tools!to!enhance!their!individual,!social!and!
economic! position! in! society.! The! third! version! is! social! business! run! by! non[
profit! organisations.! These! social! businesses! engage! in! social! value! creation! in!
combination! with! financial! management! with! the! aim! of! improving! the!
organisation,! rather! than! the! purpose! of! profit.! Gawell! (2008)! calls! the! fourth!
version!”undisciplined”!social!business!and!includes!types!of!social!business!that!
don’t!fit!the!description!of!the!versions!above.!!
!
As!there!is!no!comprehensive!consensus!on!the!definition!of!these!organisational!
terms,!I!have!assumed!a!very!broad!perspective!regarding!the!terms!in!question.!
When!referring!to!any!of!the!terms!above!I!assume!the!working!definition!that!all!
of! the! above! mentioned! organisational! forms! entail! an! initiative! that! has! the!
primary!purpose!of!creating!social!value!and/or!reducing!social!problems,!with!a!
main! focus! on! non[profit! initiatives.! As! previously! mentioned,! I! will! use! the!
collective!term!social!organisations.!!
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3.!METHODOLOGY!!
3.1.!METHODS!FOR!DATA!COLLECTION!!
This!study!is!based!on!qualitative!research!implemented!through!a!multiple!case!
study! design.! The! cases! analysed! were! two! different! social! organisations!
working!with!integration!of!refugees.!The!first!case,!Hej!Främling!,!is!in!its!initial!
phase,!not!yet!having!taken!a!specific!organisational!structure,!but!working!as!a!
non[profit!project.!The!other!initiative,!Ting!&!Kaka,!is!an!organisation!taking!the!
legal! form! of! an! economic! association! and! a! social! enterprise7.! For! the! sake! of!
simplicity,! I! will! in! this! study! refer! to! both! initiatives! as! organisations.! Hej!
Främling!!is!located!in!Östersund,!Sweden,!where!they!work!to!improve!health!
among! asylum! seekers! and! to! facilitate! social! connections! between! asylum!
seekers!and!the!local!population!through!a!different!range!of!outdoor!and!indoor!
activities.!Ting!&!Kaka!is!located!in!Uppsala!and!Tierp,!Sweden,!and!works!with!
labour! integration! and! rehabilitation! through! providing! opportunities! for!
development,! employment,! support! and! commitment! for! a! sustainable! society.!
The!target!group!are!persons!who!are!unable,!unwilling!or!have!trouble!engaging!
in! the! traditional! labour! market.! This! means! that! there! are! many! different!
persons!working!at!Ting!&!Kaka!with!a!range!of!different!backgrounds,!of!which!
persons! with! refugee! backgrounds! are! included.! More! detailed! information!
about!the!organisations!will!be!provided!in!chapter!5.!!
!
Sampling%of%the%cases%
The! two! cases! described! above! were! chosen! through! a! purposive! sampling!
method.!The!reason!for!this!was!to!ensure!that!the!social!organisations!examined!
were!relevant!for!the!research!question.!It!was!also!because!it!made!it!possible!to!
target!social!organisations!with!a!focus!on!different!dimensions!of!the!concept!of!
integration,! which! provides! more! nuance! in! my! study.! The! organisations!
targeted!involve!just!this;!both!focus!on!the!different!dimensions!of!integration,!
but! have! different! ways! of! working! and! different! structures.! This! is! valuable!
because! it! shows! how! different! social! organisations! can! be,! and! sheds! light! on!
whether! such! organisations! can! facilitate! integration! of! refugees.! The! cases!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
7!The!organisation!is!defined!as!both!an!economic!association!and!a!social!enterprise.!
chosen! are! what! Bryman! (2012)! calls! representative,! typical! or! exemplifying!
cases.!What!characterises!such!cases!are!that!they!exemplify!a!broader!category!
of! which! they’re! a! member! and! provide! a! suitable! context! for! the! research!
questions!to!be!answered!(p.!70).!The!case!studies!are!of!a!comparative!design,!
that! is,! the! study! of! two! contrasting! cases! using! similar! methods! (ibid).! Case!
studies!enable!the!detailed!and!intensive!examination!of!cases!which!is!why!this!
method!was!chosen.!
!
Operationalization%of%integration%%
To!investigate!whether,!and!how,!the!chosen!social!organisations!could!facilitate!
the! refugee! integration! in! Sweden,! the! concept! of! integration! had! to! be!
operationalized.! This! resulted! in! the! identification! of! several! integration!
dimensions! that! could! facilitate! the! investigation! of! whether! integration! was!
taking! place.! The! dimensions! identified! were! employment,! education,! housing,!
health,!social!connections,!active!citizenship,!language!skills,!culture,!and!sense!
of! belonging.! See! chapter! 4;! Theoretical! framework,! for! a! more! detailed!
description.!!
!
To! answer! the! research! questions;! 1.! are! the! investigated! social! organisations!
facilitating!integration?,!and!2.!what!current!strategies!for!facilitating!integration!
can! be! identified?,! interviews,! participant! observation! and! document! reviews!
were!carried!out.!!
!
The%interviews%
The! interviews! were! held! with! persons! working! with! the! organisations! and!
refugee!participants,!lasting!on!average!around!50!minutes.!In!almost!all!cases,!
the!interviews!were!audio!recorded.!There!was!one!case!where!the!respondent!
didn’t!feel!comfortable!with!the!recording,!which!resulted!in!typing!the!interview!
replies!instead.!The!interviews!were!semi[structured!with!both!open!and!closed!
questions,!following!an!interview!guide,!see!appendix!5,!6,!7!and!8.!The!use!of!a!
semi[structured!interview!guide!entails!that!there!is!a!list!of!questions!or!topics!
to!be!followed!but!that!the!researcher!is!free!to!pose!follow[up!questions!if!it!is!
deemed! relevant! or! change! the! order! of! the! questions,! although! a! similar!
wording!is!used!between!the!interviewees!(Bryman,!2012).!This!is!to!enable!the!
researcher!to!follow!up!on!things!that!might!be!relevant!for!the!study,!even!if!not!
considered!from!the!beginning,!which!is!the!reason!for!applying!such!a!structure!
on!the!interviews!in!this!study.!Also,!this!method!is!commonly!used!when!focus!
lies!primarily!on!the!view!of!the!interviewee!(ibid),!which!is!also!the!case!in!this!
study.! The! participants! of! the! organisations! were! selected! with! a! convenience!
sample,!partly!due!to!time!constraints!but!also!due!to!practical!reasons.!For!Hej!
Främling!,! there! are! no! records! of! participants! because! many! come! and! go! as!
they!want,!which!would!make!a!randomised!sample!difficult.!!
!
The!conditions!of!the!interviews!varied!because!of!lack!of!access!to!facilities!and!
time! constraints.! Interviews! with! four! male! participants! from! the! case! Hej!
Främling!! took! place! on! March! 9th,! 2015,! in! a! room! with! other! people! present.!
One!interview!with!one!male!participant!was!held!on!March!11th,!2015,!over!the!
phone.!Two!interviewees!did!not!know!English!or!Swedish!so!an!interpreter!who!
is! also! seeking! asylum! helped! with! the! translation.! An! interview! with! a! female!
leader!from!Hej!Främling!!took!place!over!phone!on!March!15th,!2015.!Interviews!
with!two!female!participants/leaders!from!the!case!Ting!&!Kaka8!took!place!face[
to[face! on! March! 12th! and! 13th,! 2015,! one! interview! with! a! female!
participant/leader!took!place!over!the!phone!on!March!12th!and!one!interview!
with!a!female!participant/leader!took!place!face[to[face!on!March!16th,!2015.!All!
interviews!with!persons!from!the!organisation!Ting!&!Kaka!took!place!in!private.!
The!interviews!with!respondents!from!Ting!&!Kaka!were!all!held!in!Swedish.!See!
appendix!9!for!a!list!of!the!interviewees!including!specifics.!!!
!
The! questions! were! formed! based! on! the! working! definition! of! integration!
outlined! in! chapter! 4,! and! the! integration! dimensions! identified! there.! Below!
follows!a!description!of,!and!support!for,!the!interview!questions.!
!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
8!At!the!organisation!Ting!&!Kaka,!there!is!no!clear!distinction!between!participant!and!leader!
from!my!understanding,!because!everyone!takes!part!and!contributes!to!the!organisation.!
Consequently,!I!won’t!be!making!such!a!distinction!in!this!paper.!!
The! interview! guides,! one! formulated! for! persons! working! with! the!
organisations!and!one!formulated!for!the!refugee!participants,!were!provided!in!
both! Swedish! and! English! because! of! the! variety! in! language! skills! among!
respondents.!The!interviews!consisted!of!two!parts.!The!first!part!was!made!up!
of! background! and! context! questions,! and! the! second! part! was! made! up! of!
questions! relating! to! the! dimensions! of! integration.! The! interview! guides!
differed! regarding! part! one;! background! and! context! questions,! but! were! alike!
regarding!part!two;!questions!relating!to!integration.!!
!
All! questions! relating! to! the! dimensions! of! integration! were! formulated! as! to!
elicit!the!respondents’!views!on,!first,!whether!or!not!the!organisation,!directly!
or! indirectly,! was! contributing! to! integration! in! the! specific! dimension.! The!
reason! for! including! both! direct! and! indirect! contribution! was! that! if! the!
organisation!only!indirectly!contributes!to!integration!in!the!relevant!dimension,!
it! would! still! be! a! contribution! to! integration.! Second,! the! respondents! were!
asked! to! elaborate! on! the! topic,! the! purpose! being! to! identify! strategies! for!
integration.!An! exception! to! the! above! was! made! regarding! question! no.! 9,!
relating! to! the! dimension! of! a! sense! of! belonging! in! the! Swedish! society.! The!
wording!of!“direct!or!indirect!contribution”!(see!appendix!5!and!7)!was!excluded!
because! it! was! not! found! applicable.! A! sense! of! belonging! is! something! very!
subjective!and!not!something!that!can!be!actively!promoted,!but!rather!is!a!side!
effect!of!other!activities.!
!
The%participant%observations%
The! observations! consisted! of! analysing! the! activities,! interaction! and!
surroundings! to! gain! better! insight! in! whether! the! organisations! were!
contributing!to!the!different!integration!dimensions,!and!documenting!thoughts!
and!reflections.!The!observations!were!unstructured,!the!reason!being!that!the!
method! provided! more! flexibility! than! a! structured! observation! where! each!
participant!is!observed!for!the!same!amount!of!time!and!follows!an!observation!
schedule! to! ensure! that! the! behaviour! is! systematically! recorded! (Bryman,!
2012).!The!unstructured!observation!does!not!require!an!observation!schedule!
and!aims!to!record!as!much!detail!as!possible!about!the!case!and!the!participants!
(ibid).!The!observation!was!a!limited!form!of!participant!observation!that!took!
place! on! 1[2! occasions.! According! to! Bryman! (2012)! participant! observation!
usually! takes! place! over! a! prolonged! period! of! time.! However,! there! is! often!
much!variation!in!how!much!the!researcher!participates!in!the!social!setting!of!
which!they!are!in!(ibid).!!
!
The%document%reviews%
The!documentation!reviewed!for!Hej!Främling!!was!the!organisation’s!Facebook!
page,!which!is!the!organisation’s!main!communication!channel,!with!associated!
pictures,! films! and! text,! and! two! films! that! the! organisation! has! uploaded! to!
YouTube.! The! documentation! reviewed! for! Ting! &! Kaka! consisted! of! the!
organisation’s! Annual! report! from! 2013,! organisational! statutes,! the!
organisation’s! web! page! and! Facebook! page.! The! review! was! carried! out! as! to!
identify! signs! that! could! support! the! organisations’! contribution! to! the! various!
integration! dimensions.! By! covering! a! range! of! different! sources! I! could! gain! a!
better!understanding!of!the!organisations!in!regard!to!my!research!questions.!!
%
3.2.!METHODS!FOR!DATA!ANALYSIS!!
Analysis!of!data!collected!through!the!interviews!consisted!of!a!transcription!of!
the! audio! recordings,! followed! by! a! thematic! analysis! of! the! transcripts.! In! the!
thematic! analysis,! core! themes! were! identified! within! and! between! the!
transcripts;!did!the!respondents,!or!did!they!not,!experience!a!contribution!to!the!
relevant!dimension!and!what!were!the!experiences!surrounding!contribution!to!
that! dimension! (strategy! identification).! To! facilitate! the! thematic! analysis,! the!
transcripts! from! the! different! interviews! were! incorporated! as! to! more! easily!
compare! the! replies! to! the! various! questions.! Analysis! of! the! conducted!
observations!consisted!of!a!review!of!my!personal!notes!regarding!whether!the!
organisations! were! contributing! to! the! various! dimensions,! and! an! analysis! on!
the! material! to! elicit! whether! the! observation! supported! the! replies! given! by!
respondents.!Documentation!review!data!was!analysed!by!identifying!signs!that!
could!support!respondents’!replies!regarding!the!organisations’!contribution!to!
the!various!integration!dimensions.!
!
3.3.!ETHICAL!CONSIDERATIONS!
Bryman!(2012)!describe!the!four!main!areas!of!ethical!principles!that!include!1)!
that! no! harm! should! come! to! participants,! 2)! that! participants! should! express!
consent! to! the! study,! 3)! that! particpants! shouldn’t! be! exposed! to! invasion! of!
privacy,!and!4)!that!participants!shouldn’t!be!deceived.!This!study!is!guided!by!
these! ethical! guidelines! and,! to! ensure! that! they! are! followed,! the! following!
precausions! are! taken.! Participants! to! the! study! are! chosen! through! a!
convenience!sampling!method.!One!reason!for!choosing!this!method!is!that!only!
those! who! express! that! they! want! to! be! in! the! study! will! be! selected! as!
participants.!Where!a!face[to[face!interview!is!conducted,!an!information!sheet!
about!the!study!will!be!given!to!all!participants.!The!information!sheet!includes!
information! about! the! purpose! and! outline! of! the! study,! as! well! as! what!
participation!in!the!study!entails!and!how!the!information!collected!will!be!used.!
In! the! information! sheet! it! is! also! clarified! that! participants! will! remain!
anonymous,! that! they! can! withdraw! from! the! study! at! any! time! and! that! any!
questions!regarding!the!research!can!be!asked!whenever.!A!consent!form!based!
on! such! a! form! outlined! in! Social% Research% Methods! by! Bryman! (2012)! was!
provided!to!the!participants!along!with!the!information!sheet.!The!consent!form!
takes! the! outline! of! a! contract! between! researcher! and! participant! providing!
information! about! participants! rights! in! regard! to! the! study.! The! reason! for!
including!such!a!form!in!this!study!is!to!ensure!the!consent!of!the!participants,!as!
well!as!clarifying!what!participating!in!the!study!entails.!The!information!sheet!
and! the! consent! form! are! provided! in! both! Swedish! and! English! depending! on!
what! language! the! participants! are! most! comfortable! with.! The! information!
sheet!and!the!consent!form!can!be!found!in!both!languages!in!Appendix!1!and!2.!
Where! face[to[face! interviews! are! not! possible! and! telephone! interviews! are!
conducted! in! its! place,! the! information! about! the! study! and! the! ethical!
considerations! mentioned! in! the! information! sheet! and! the! consent! form! is!
explained!to!them!and!oral!consent!and!agreement!is!gathered!instead.!
!
!
!
3.4.!METHODOLOGICAL!LIMITATIONS!!
Limitations!with!purposive!sampling,!which!was!used!for!the!selection!of!social!
organisations,! and! convenience! sampling,! which! was! used! for! the! selection! of!
respondents,! is! that! because! they! are! not! random! sample! approaches,! it! is! not!
possible!to!generalize!the!conclusions!to!a!population.!This!was!however!not!the!
goal! with! the! study,! but! instead! to! investigate! if! a! contribution! to! integration!
dimensions!could!at!all!be!identified.!Though!the!results!of!this!study!cannot!be!
generalized!to!every!case!of!social!organisations!working!with!integration,!it!can!
be!useful!in!providing!strategies!of!approaches!to!refugee!integration,!as!well!as!
provide! knowledge! about! whether! or! not! integration! through! social!
organisations!can!facilitate!integration.!!
!
3.5.!STUDY!LIMITATIONS!!
Some!limitations!were!identified!regarding!the!interviews.!First,!interviews!with!
Hej! Främling!! respondents! were! carried! out! with! other! persons! present.! It! is!
possible!that!such!a!setting!could!affect!respondents’!replies!in!such!a!way!that!
the! individual! respondent! didn’t! want! to! express! potential! negative! opinions!
about!the!organisation.!Despite!such!a!probability,!there!were!no!such!signs!of!
insecurity! or! hesitation! that! indicates! that! respondents! weren’t! completely!
sincere!in!their!replies.!!
!
Another! limitation! found! in! regard! to! the! interviews,! was! the! imbalance! in!
gender! among! the! respondents,! and! thereby! limited! variation! among!
respondents.!All!respondents,!except!for!the!leader,!in!Hej!Främling!!were!male,!
and!all!respondents!in!Ting!&!Kaka!were!female.!The!reason!for!this!is!because!of!
the! gender! imbalance! that! exists! within! the! two! organisations;! a! majority! of!
participants! to! Hej! Främling!! are! male! because! a! majority! of! persons! in! the!
refugee!camp!are!male,!and!a!majority!of!persons!involved!in!the!work!of!Ting!&!
Kaka!are!female.!!
!
A! limitation! regarding! interviews! with! refugee! participants! to! Hej! Främling!!
were! language! barriers.! Only! one! respondent! spoke! Swedish,! and! few! others!
barely!spoke!English,!making!the!interview!process!difficult.!One!asylum!seeker!
was! an! interpreter,! speaking! seven! languages! fluently,! and! helped! with! the!
interviews.! This! made! the! interviews! possible,! but! there! were! still! some!
misunderstandings!as!well!as!loss!of!data!due!to!the!language!barriers.!However,!
loss!of!data!occurred!mainly!in!part!one!of!the!interviews!relating!to!background!
questions,!and!understanding!was!achieved!regarding!the!questions!relating!to!
integration!dimensions.!!
!
The! number! of! interviews! carried! out! was! five! for! Hej! Främling!,! and! four! for!
Ting!&!Kaka.!These!are!not!significant!numbers.!However,!the!interviews!were!
long,!and!developed!answers!were!given.!Moreover,!the!questions!posed!to!the!
refugee! participants! were! aimed! at! themselves,! entailing! that! if! one! person!
experienced! that! the! organisation! was! contributing! to! their! integration,! a!
contribution!has!still!taken!place.!!
!
One! last! limitation! that! should! be! mentioned! is! regarding! the! documentation!
reviewed! for! the! organisation! Hej! Främling!.! Because! Hej! Främling!! is! an!
organisation! in! its! initial! stage,! documentation! such! as! annual! reports! and!
statutes! do! not! yet! exist.! Therefore,! the! documentation! consisted! of,! as!
previously! mentioned,! the! organisation’s! Facebook! page! with! associated!
pictures,! films! and! text,! and! two! films! that! the! organisation! has! uploaded! to!
YouTube.! I! argue! that! the! reviewed! documentation! did! provide! indicators! that!
helped! determine! whether! the! organisation! was! contributing! to! dimensions! of!
integration!as!well!as!strategies,!but!the!documentation!review!would!probably!
have! generated! more! reliable! findings! if! also! based! on! formal! organisational!
documentation.!!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
4.!THEORETICAL!FRAMEWORK!!
Below! follows! the! theoretical! framework,! which! includes! concepts! and!
definitions! that! will! guide! my! research.! Here,! the! concept! of! integration! is!
explored!and!operationalised.!!
!
The%concept%of%integration%
Integration! is! seen! as! a! central! mechanism! for! societal! unity! (Diaz,! 2004).!
Integration!is!a!very!fluid!concept,!with!no!proper!consensus!of!the!definition!or!
the!criteria!for!being!“integrated”!(Ager!&!Strang,!2008;!Ager!&!Strang,!2010;!Da!
Lomba,!2010).!It!is!a!concept!that!is!used!with!many!different!meanings,!but!that!
is! related! to! the! resettlement! of! refugees! and! other! migrants! (Ager! &! Strang,!
2008).! What! determines! when! a! person! is! integrated! in! a! new! country?! Is! it!
when!he!or!she!has!acquired!skills!of!language,!knowledge!of!culture!and!norms!
of!the!society!in!question?!Or!perhaps!when!he!or!she!has!obtained!employment?!
Citizenship?!Scholars!seem!unable!to!define!what!it!really!means!to!be!integrated!
into!a!society.!!
%
Integration%as%a%oneYway%or%twoYway%process?%
To! determine! what! integration! really! entails,! we! can! first! explore! where! the!
responsibility!of!refugee!integration!lies.!A!common!view!of!integration!is!that!it!
is!a!one[way!process!(Da!Lomba,!2010).!This!view!supports!the!reasoning!that!
refugees! and! immigrants! should! adapt! to! the! host! society,! but! the! host! society!
needs! not! adapt! to! them.! Integration! then! takes! the! form! of! an! assimilatory!
approach,! meaning! that! refugees! and! immigrants! should! abandon! their! own!
norms!and!cultures!for!the!adoption!of!norms!and!cultures!of!the!natives.!Ager!
and!Strang!(2010)!critique!the!assimilatory!approach!and!write!that!if!the!goal!is!
for!everyone!to!be!the!same,!then!everyone!who!does!not!fit!in!becomes!located!
as!a!problem.!Da!Lomba!(2010)!has!similar!arguments!and!mean!that!the!one[
way! process! places! the! burden! and! the! responsibility! of! integration! on! the!
newcomers.! The! author! also! argues! that! because! of! the! assimilatory! approach,!
the! one[way! process! does! not! recognise! a! diversity! of! cultural! and! social!
patterns!that!exist!in!a!multicultural!society.!Interestingly,!Sweden’s!integration!
policy!is!much!based!on!the!principle!of!diversity,!which!differs!from!many!other!
countries!in!the!EU!who!tend!to!be!more!assimilatory!(Wiesbrock,!2011).!
!
Many!scholars!have!another!view!of!the!integration!process.!These!scholars!are!
in!agreement!that!integration!is!a!two[way!process,!with!focus!on!both!refugees!
(and! immigrants)! and! the! members! of! the! established! community! (Ager! &!
Strang,!2010;!Da!Lomba,!2010;!European!Commission,!2015).!Da!Lomba!(2010)!
describes! the! two[way! process! of! integration! in! terms! of! the! local! community!
having! a! responsibility! to! make! sure! that! refugees! have! access! to! integration!
domains!such!as!employment!and!education,!and!that!they!are!accepted!in!social!
interaction.! Refugees’! own! will! and! efforts! to! become! integrated! is! also!
important,!without!which!integration!will!be!substantially!undermined.!Ager!and!
Strang! (2010)! explain! that! the! two[way! process! of! integration! support! a!
reciprocal! accommodation! where! both! parts! adapt! to! each! other,! instead! of!
problematizing!refugees!and!immigrants.!
! !
Integration%as%described%in%the%Theory%of%Acculturation%
Through!his!theory!of!acculturation,!Berry!(2013)!supports!the!two[way!process!
of! integration.! Berry’s! (2013)! theory! of! acculturation! describes! what!
psychologically! and! culturally! happens! when! two! or! more! culturally! different!
groups! come! in! contact.! This! contact! can! take! place! due! to! many! different!
reasons,! through! migration! and! colonisation,! for! example! (Berry,! 2013).! The!
acculturation! theory! holds! that! when! such! a! contact! occurs,! an! adaptation!
process! is! initiated! in! order! for! the! groups! to! work! out! how! to! relate! to! each!
other! and! avoid! conflict.! This! process! is! called! acculturation.! It! is! important! to!
note! that! the! process! is! initiated! in! both! groups,! and! not! only! in! the! dominant!
one.!The!process!continues!for!as!long!as!the!culturally!different!groups!are!in!
contact,! and! the! cultural! and! psychological! changes! lead! to! psychological! and!
sociocultural! adaptations! in! both! groups.! On! an! individual! level! this! includes!
changes!in!behaviour,!and!on!a!group!level!it!includes!changes!in!institutions!and!
social!structures!(Berry,!2005).!Adaptation!can!take!various!forms,!but!can!entail!
the! learning! of! the! other! group’s! language,! adapting! to! common! social!
interaction!and!the!other!group’s!forms!of!dress.!Depending!on!what!orientation!
someone!has!towards!the!own!group!and!the!other!group,!i.e.!whether!there!is!a!
preference! to! maintaining! the! own! group’s! culture! or! a! preference! of!
participating!in!the!other!group,!Berry!(2005)!holds!that!persons!adopt!different!
strategies! for! acculturation.! These! strategies! are:! assimilation,! separation,!
marginalisation!and!integration.!!
!
Berry!(2005)!describes!assimilation!as!a!process!where!a!person!abandons!their!
cultural! identity! and! seeks! interaction! with! other! cultures,! and! “become!
absorbed! into! the! dominant! society”! (p.! 705).! ! Separation! can! occur! when!
persons! turn! to! their! heritage! culture! and! have! no! interest! in! interaction! with!
other! cultural! groups! and,! as! such,! distance! themselves! from! them.!
Marginalisation!can!occur!when!there!is!little!possibility!or!interest!of!creating!
relations! with! other! cultural! groups,! perhaps! because! of! discrimination! or! the!
like,!or!little!possibility!or!interest!to!maintain!the!heritage!culture!(Berry,!2005).!
Lastly,! when! there! is! an! interest! in! both! maintaining! the! own! culture! and!
interacting! with! the! other! cultural! groups,! integration! can! occur.! Then,! the!
person!is!maintaining!a!double!cultural!engagement,!seeking!to!participate!in!the!
larger! societal! network! as! well! as! maintaining! a! degree! of! their! own! cultural!
integrity!(Berry,!2005).!Berry!(2005)!also!holds!that!integration!has!been!found!
to!be!the!least!stressful!strategy.!This!means!that!persons!seeking!the!strategy!of!
integration!achieve!the!best!sociocultural!and!psychological!adaptions.!
!
Berry’s!(2005;!2013)!definition!of!integration!supports!a!multicultural,!as!well!as!
a!two[way!approach,!to!integration.!These!approaches!are!in!line!with!Swedish!
integration! policy.! Berry’s! definition,! mentioned! above,! will! therefore! be! the!
guiding!definition!in!this!study.!However,!more!theoretical!support!is!needed!to!
understand!the!criteria!of!integration.!Below!follows!therefore!an!investigation!
of! different! dimensions! of! integration,! and! an! attempt! to! identify! integration!
indicators!that!can!be!used!as!a!framework!in!this!study!to!answer!whether!the!
social!organisations!are!contributing!to!integration.!!!
!
!
!
A%dimensional%approach%to%integration%
To!further!understand!integration,!some!scholars!have!divided!the!concept!into!
different!dimensions.!Ager!and!Strang!(2008)!argue!that!there!are!four!key!areas!
of! integration,! involving! several! different! dimensions.! The! areas! are:! “1.!
achievement! and! access! across! the! sectors! of! employment,! housing,! education!
and! health;! 2.! assumptions! and! practice! regarding! citizenship! and! rights;! 3.!
processes! of! social! connection! within! and! between! groups! within! the!
community;! and! 4.! structural! barriers! to! such! connection! related! to! language,!
culture! and! the! local! environment”! (Ager! &! Strang,! 2008,! p.! 166).! To! clarify,!
when! achievement! and! access! has! been! reached! within! the! areas! above,!
successful!integration!has!taken!place.!Similarly,!Valenta!and!Bunar!(2010)!and!
Da! Lomba! (2010)! write! about! different! dimensions! in! integration.! Valenta! and!
Bunar! (2010)! mention! the! dimensions! of! cultural! integration,! residential!
integration,! economic! integration! and! social! integration.! Da! Lomba! (2010),! on!
the! other! hand,! only! mention! two! dimensions;! the! public! and! the! private!
dimension,!but!that!these!dimensions!include!social!and!legal!environment,!also!
in! relation! to! employment,! housing,! education,! health! and! social! connections.!
Though!not!expressed!in!the!same!manner,!the!different!dimensions!mentioned!
above!touch!upon!many!of!the!same!areas!as!Ager!and!Strang!(2008)!describe;!
culture,!residential/housing,!economy/employment,!social/social!connection!etc.!!
!
Integration! in! Sweden! is! primarily! focused! on! employment! (Bevelander,!
Hagström,! &! Rönnqvist,! 2009).! Employment! integration! of! refugees! and! other!
immigrants!is!deemed!so!important!because!it!increases!self[sufficiency,!which!
leads!to!empowerment.!It!is!also!seen!as!a!better!way!to!encounter!society!than!
through! orientation! programmes,! for! example! (ibid).! ! However,! a! dimensional!
approach!to!the!concept!of!integration!seems!to!be!useful!when!determining!if!
integration! has! occurred.! Diaz! (2004)! writes! that! it! is! theoretically! weak! to!
analyse! integration! within! only! one! dimension.! What! is! relevant,! the! author!
states,% is% to% analyse% the% integration% process% in% its% complexity.% Also% Bevelander,%
Hagström)and)Rönnqvist)(2009))write)that)integration)programmes)should)aim) to! counter! exclusion! in! all! fields! of! society.! Based! on! the! arguments! above,! a!
dimensional!approach!to!integration!will!be!adopted!in!this!study.!!
!
To! operationalise! the! concept! of! integration,! the! European! Commission! have!
created! integration! indicators,! known! as! the! Zaragoza! indicators,! enabling!
member! countries! to! ”measure”! integration! (Huddleston,! Niessen,! &! Tjaden,!
2013).!They!identified!successful!integration!based!on!achievement!and!access!in!
the! areas! of! employment,! education,! social! inclusion,! active! citizenship! and!
welcoming!society.!It!is!particularly!interesting!that!they!involve!the!indicator!of!
a! welcoming! society! important! to! integration,! because! this! indicator! is! in! line!
with! the! two[way! process! approach! to! integration! discussed! above.! Although!
developed! for! measuring! integration! at! a! national! level,! I! argue! that! the!
indicators!developed!by!the!European!Commission,!as!well!as!the!theories!about!
integration!dimensions!above,!can!provide!a!basis!for!the!development!or!design!
of!integration!indicators!applicable!to!this!study.!!
%
Operationalisation%of%integration%
The! identified! dimensions! by! the! European! Commission:! employment,!
education,!social!inclusion,!active!citizenship!and!welcoming!society,!provides!a!
strong!basis!for!the!development!of!a!framework!that!can!be!used!to!identify!if!
integration! has! taken! place.! However,! Ager! and! Strang! (2008),! Valenta! and!
Bunar!(2010)!and!Da!Lomba!(2010)!all!mention!the!dimension!of!housing,!and!
both! Ager! and! Strang! (2008)! and! Valenta! and! Bunar! (2010)! include! the!
dimension! of! culture,! indicating! an! importance! of! such! dimensions.! Similarly,!
both! Ager! and! Strang! (2008)! and! Da! Lomba! (2010)! include! the! dimension! of!
health.! In! the! working! definition! that! will! be! used! in! this! study! to! identify! if!
integration! has! taken! place,! the! just! mentioned! dimensions! will! therefore! be!
included.! The! dimension! of! language! that! was! mentioned! by! Ager! and! Strang!
(2008),! was! also! marked! out! as! an! indicator! by! the! European! Commission.!
Therefore! the! dimension! of! language! will! also! be! included! in! the! working!
definition.!!
!
In!relation!to!the!dimension!of!social!inclusion,!Ager!and!Strang!(2008)!and!Da!
Lomba! (2010)! use! the! wording! social! connections,! enabling! a! more! clear!
indicator.! Therefore,! the! last! mentioned! term! will! be! used! in! this! study! in! the!
