Abstract
This paper aims to shed light on protective processes contributing to resilience and adjustment of asylum seekers. To unravel the processes underlying involuntary migration in depth, the narrations of Syrian and Iraqian asylum seekers’ pre-war, war and postwar period experiences were analyzed. Participants were recruited in reception centers located in a middle-sized town in Austria through local NGOs. The study included 14 asylum seekers (4 women), aged 18–46 years, who participated in face-to-face interviews. Data analysis revealed that hope and resilience were the underlying processes for asylum seekers to cope with life challenges in restricted environments and were the sources for their strength and motivation. Five phases of the migration process characterized by a series of goals and individual pathways that were implemented into practice were identified in the narratives. Understanding these goals, pathways, and sources of strength of asylum seekers within restricted contexts can guide social workers, counselors, and other professionals to enhance the efficacy of their practice, inform policy development, and form the basis for potential research.
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) Research Fellowship Program for Postdoctoral Fellows. The author was able to spend a research stay at the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria where the present study was conducted. The author wishes to thank Prof. Dr. Dagmar Strohmeier and Dr. Angela Mazzone for their invaluable feedback and support during data collection and data analysis of the present study.
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Yıldız, A.D. (2020). The Role of Hope to Construct a New Life: Experiences of Syrian and Iraqian Asylum Seekers. In: Güngör, D., Strohmeier, D. (eds) Contextualizing Immigrant and Refugee Resilience. Advances in Immigrant Family Research. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42303-2_8
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