Abstract
Background
The world has been facing a chronic refugee crisis. Nations that accept refugees are expected to provide culturally effective services, often without benefit of an evidence-based approach to resettlement.
Summary
This study examines refugee service providers in three municipalities in Iceland and the recipients in the first six months of resettlement. Through a purposeful sampling (N = 35) of social workers and program managers (N = 10) and adult Syrian refugees (N = 25) who had arrived in Iceland six months prior, interviews were conducted and analyzed for thematic content.
Findings
Providers developed methods for providing services that varied depending on resources and their expectations for the recipients. Recipients’ expectations influenced which services were perceived helpful. Integration had different meanings among the participants, and those differences informed experiences of resettlement.
Applications
Countries can benefit from creating a team among the service sectors. Providers were unable to anticipate needs of refugees despite careful planning. The perceived importance of language acquisition varied among the participants. Community involvement was seen as a critical factor in the resettlement process. The initial case management of the families consumed more time and energy than some of the providers expected.
A case study: First six months of resettlement in Iceland
This is a case study of Iceland’s reception of several Syrian refugee families. The study examines the providers’ experiences in working with the refugee families for the families’ first six months after arrival and the adult family members’ experiences with the services provided. The families were granted refugee status by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and assigned to Iceland for resettlement after nearly two years in refugee camps in Lebanon.
The legal definition of “refugee” was created in 1951 in reaction to post-Second World War displacements, and states that a refugee is one who is forced to flee their home country based on a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group (UNHCR, Iceland, 2018). The UNHCR was formed with the expectation that it would exist for three years, whereby displaced persons would no longer need such assistance. However, today there are nearly 26 million refugees (UNHCR, 2020). This has global consequences that affect nations around the world. While countries and agencies have varying approaches to aiding refugees, each country faces similar challenges in meeting the needs of the new arrivals, such as finding housing and employment. In addition, many refugees arrive with health and mental health issues, including trauma (Al-Husban & Adams, 2016; Jones, 2017; Khan et al., 2016; Miles, 2017; Plener et al., 2017).
As the UNHCR refugee definition implies, refugees have often suffered trauma. The internal conflicts or conditions that caused the refugee to flee are often traumatic and may cause lasting conditions that must be addressed by case workers to enable successful resettlement. These conditions may include witnessing or experiencing torture. Once in resettlement camps, refugees can also experience traumatic events. All these traumatic events have long-term health and behavioral health consequences that affect their experiences integrating into a new country, even decades after resettlement (Dalgaard et al., 2016; Hudson et al., 2016; Lacroix & Sabbah, 2011; Lindert et al., 2016; Puvimanasinghe et al., 2015; Rossi, 2013; Tay & Silove, 2017).
Providers working with refugees need to be trained in trauma informed care. There are many symptoms associated with trauma, including but not limited to confusion, hypervigilance, insomnia, anxiety, depression, nightmares, attention deficit, ruminations, and somatic symptoms (Mollica et al., 1992). These symptoms can be persistent and debilitating. Lindert et al. (2016) have documented the lasting effects of trauma throughout the life course. These effects can hamper language acquisition and learning new skills. In addition, it can make seeking social support difficult as the trauma can make trusting others challenging. It can also shape future generations’ self-identity and their ability to interact with the larger society (Dalgaard et al., 2016).
The burden to manage the needs of refugees is placed on health and social service providers, as well as the policy makers responsible for managing the available resources to meet the needs of all those involved (Fike & Androff, 2016; Khan et al., 2016; Mott, 2010; Pittaway et al., 2016; Westoby & Ingamells, 2010). Providers working with refugees can experience vicarious trauma (Puvimanasinghe et al., 2015). Vicarious trauma can have similar symptoms as primary trauma and can limit the capacity of the worker to be effective. Understanding the impact trauma has on refugees and on the service providers is important when assessing the needs of refugees and the effectiveness of the services provided.
In addition to the challenges of trauma, refugees must navigate entry into a new country and culture. They may be relocating to an environment vastly different from their country of origin. For those in rural settings, indoor plumbing, large grocery stores, and banks may be new and challenging to adapt to. These stressful experiences of acculturation can cause anxiety, depression, and physical illness (Berry, 1980). This stress is daily and culmative. For refugees forced to flee and assigned where to resettle, acculturation stress can be exacerbated. Their strategies for coping may be effective and aid them in adapting, or the strategies may feel like barriers for providers who misunderstand the behaviors (Berry, 2011; Sam & Berry, 2010).
Integration is a term that describes when an immigrant identifies and/or fully interacts with the original culture and the new culture (Sam & Berry, 2010). Integration is often used by agencies and policies to gauge the success of a refugee’s resettlement into the new country (Lacroix & Sabbah, 2011). Integration is just one form of adapting to acculturation. Acculturation can be seen on a continuum with integration on one end and marginalization on the other, with marginalization describing greater isolation from the new culture. This isolation can be forced upon the new arrivals or self-determined largely due to tension between the cultures (Berry, 1980). Many factors are involved in the process of acculturation including oppressive policies, racism, available resources, attitudes and perspectives of either the new arrival group or the dominant society. If the new culture is more similar to their own, studies have shown that the adaptation is less challenging. However, when the culture is different or perceived to be different than the original culture, the new arrival and/or host country can feel that there is a cultural distance between the two groups (Demes & Geeraert, 2014). This cultural distance perspective is an added factor in assessing the challenges of acculturation.
Adapting to a new culture is inherently stressful. As resiliency and acculturation studies have shown, one’s ability to manage this stress and access available resources are key indicators of successful adaptation (Ungar, 2010; Ward & Geeraert, 2016). Providers and policy makers can be better prepared to serve this population by understanding the factors involved in acculturation. These include the conditions for which new arrivals enter into a new culture, the resources they possess, the resources provided to them, as well as the environment in which they enter.
Examining the experiences of the participants (providers and adult family members) in the first six months of resettlement is valuable to policy makers, communities, educators, and health and behavioral health providers who seek to provide culturally effective services to refugees. While much has been studied about resettlement, rare is there an opportunity to examine how a nation develops a new program of resettlement with a small participant size and with one coordinated effort as Iceland’s. This study addressed the following questions: After preparing agencies and the community for the arrival of the families, did the providers feel prepared? What were their experiences working with the families six months after the families’ arrival? What were the experiences of the families? How did the families experience the services and community?
Iceland, an island nation near the Arctic Circle, is considered a homogenous culture as evident by its national religion (Lutheran), language (Icelandic), culture, and close genetics. In comparison to many nations, Iceland is new to refugee resettlement. Since receiving its first refugees in 1956 during the Hungarian Revolution, Iceland has resettled roughly 550 refugees from several countries over 59 years. Since the civil war in Syria began in 2011, 6.7 million Syrians have been designated refugees by the UNHCR (2020). In 2016, Iceland, with a total population of 340,000 (less than 40,000 foreign-born) began accepting Syrian refugees. After this initial year, Iceland expected to resettle roughly 70 per year (Borgen Project, 2018; UNHCR, Iceland, 2018).
This study examines the experiences of social workers, program managers, and adult Syrian refugees after the first six months of resettlement. Interviewing the participants at six months was an opportunity to better understand the refugees’ experiences early in the resettlement process. Acculturation, belonging, transnational, and resiliency theories were used to deepen understanding of the findings (Marlowe, 2017; Sam & Berry, 2010; Ungar, 2010; Ward, 2001).
Methods
This is a qualitative study that explores the experiences of providers of refugee services and adult consumers of those services in Iceland. This study used a purposeful sampling (N = 35) of social workers and program managers (N = 10) and adult Syrian refugees (N = 25) who had arrived in Iceland six months prior. Individual and group interviews were conducted and then analyzed for thematic content. The study was approved by the institutional review board of the principal investigator’s (PI) University.
Participants
The participants were social workers and administrators from the Ministry of Welfare and the International Red Cross (N = 10), as well as 25 Syrian refugee adults (10 family units) from three municipalities that received the families. Two municipalities were located near each other in urban areas and one was in a rural area. The PI recruited social workers and administrators from previous contacts. The Syrian refugees were made aware of the study through the Ministry of Welfare and International Red Cross workers. Those interested were contacted by the PI through a paid interpreter who spoke Arabic, Icelandic, and English.
The participants came from one of three urban areas, predominately Icelandic in ethnicity and language, reflecting the nation-wide demographics: 93% of the population is Icelandic, 3% Polish, and the remaining 4% a mixture of foreign-born residents (World Population Review, 2019). The communities, like the nation, are Lutheran. In one community there is a Muslim Association of Iceland which was founded by a Palestinian immigrant in 2008. There is an estimated 0.3% of Muslims in Iceland (Pew Research Center, 2019).
The sample included 10 professionals who had prepared for the refugee families’ arrival and had worked with the families for six months after their arrival. Most of the professionals were female and all were Icelandic. The sample also included 25 adult Syrian family members (14 males, 11 female) from 10 Syrian families, 10 married couples, and 5 adult children (four male and one female). Family members under the age of 18 were not interviewed. Since much information could be obtained through adult participation, the potential benefits of including under-age participants did not warrant asking children questions that they might find difficult or confusing to answer. Refugees are a vulnerable population and research with this population needs to be performed ethically, paying close attention to protecting participants. It was deemed most ethical to not include minors in this study.
The PI interviewed participants individually. All provider interviews were conducted in English without the use of an interpreter. Interviews with Syrian participants were conducted in Arabic with the use of an interpreter. To minimize any potential misinterpretations when using an interpreter, the PI reviewed field notes with the interpreter after each interview. There were two focus groups, one of providers (N = 4) and one of the Syrian participants (N = 6). The focus groups were held after all the individual interviews had been conducted. General initial coding themes were shared with the focus group participants to ensure that themes matched the experiences of the participants. Participants chose the time and location of the interviews. Most interviews occurred in a private room in an agency or in the participant’s home and lasted about an hour. The two focus groups lasted between 1.5 and 2 hours. Each participant was informed of his/her rights and how the information will remain confidential and any published data anonymous. The participants signed the consent form prior to being interviewed. The interviews were audio-taped with permission and later transcribed for data analysis. A semi-structured interview schedule was used, and the topics explored the participant’s experience providing or receiving refugee services. Questions included: Which services have been most helpful? What resources would enhance the services provided? What have been the challenges of resettlement?
Data analysis
The interviews were transcribed from the audio files. The transcriptions of the provider audio files included the PI and the participant’s verbatim. The transcriptions of the Syrian participants included the PI and the interpreter’s English interpretation of the participant’s Arabic. The interview transcriptions were uploaded to NVivo, a qualitative data analysis application. The PI analyzed the data using a process of inductive qualitative data analysis. The transcribed interviews were open-coded, reviewed, concepts expanded or collapsed to ensure accuracy, and relationships across the concepts considered according to thematic content analysis (Neuendorf, 2016). Finally, direct quotes were identified that reflected the concepts that had surfaced through the coding process. The initial content analysis was reviewed in focus groups of the providers and the Syrian participants to ensure the themes accurately reflected the participants’ narratives. The Syrian participant focus group was especially helpful as the transcriptions were only of the interpreter’s English interpretations.
Findings
The findings are organized within the categories of the areas of concern that the providers had prior to the families’ arrivals. In addition to the previously stated service areas of housing, education, and so forth, the providers tried to anticipate issues that might arise around cultural or religious differences, the needs of the receiving communities, and the coordination of services among the providing agencies. The following are major experiences, divided into the areas of the services offered, that wove throughout the interviews, were present for both the providers and the refugees, and reflect overarching challenges in the resettlement process.
Housing
Obtaining safe and adequate housing for the families was the priority. From this decision other decisions could be made (e.g. school, work opportunities). Prior to the families’ arrival, the Ministry of Welfare provided each municipality funds with which to secure housing for the families. Each municipality used different approaches to secure the needed apartments, depending on the local housing market. The municipalities near the capital city had challenges finding affordable apartments that were large enough to accommodate the families. There were few available apartments, and even fewer that were affordable. There was also a waiting list of two to three years for residents looking for subsidized housing. This caused added tension within the receiving communities as residents who were on subsidized housing wait-lists felt they were being “pushed down” the list so that the refugee families could have housing sooner. As one program manager (participant #15) described, “The housing officials received the brunt of the negative calls. Why do these families get to the top of the waiting list? We’ve been on it longer?”. The program manager stated that when people asked her this question she responded, “They have already been waiting two years in Lebanon. That was their waiting period.”
Over the next few months, the negative calls lessened. There were differences in the apartments obtained among the municipalities. After a few months post-arrival, the families who lived in adjacent municipalities compared their living situations. The program managers of the two nearby municipalities stated that this ability to compare their experiences added additional stress when working with the families. The program manager often had to assure the families that they were not discriminating against anyone. They didn’t understand that we were doing our best with the resources we had. They wanted to make sure everything was fair. Well, everything wasn’t equal. Each municipality has their own challenges. It is going to be different. But it was fair. (participant #11)
Language
Language acquisition was expected of all the families and efforts were made to help them acquire basic skills early. Icelandic is the official language in Iceland and is the only country that speaks it. The families attended language classes when they first arrived. The families from the adjacent municipalities met together. The families in the municipality that is furthest from the others met among themselves. After a few weeks, the orientation with language classes ended and the children continued with language classes in school while the adults were able to attend classes through adult learning courses. The municipalities were provided funds to support one year of language courses. It was hoped that this would be enough to have a functioning level of Icelandic.
Attending the adult learning courses was more challenging for some of the adults. Those who were illiterate in their native language found learning a new spoken language difficult. Some of the adults who had advanced degrees in Syria found the immersion approach to language learning confusing. Here too, many of the Syrian participants felt that Iceland’s pedagogy difficult after years of learning in a more structured, textbook focused approach in Syrian schools. The providers described poor attendance by some adults, and the adults who missed classes reported being too busy to be able to attend. The providers understood that it is harder for adults to learn a new language, and especially when recovering from trauma, and believed the absences were attributed to this difficulty. Refugee participants reported feeling overwhelmed with adapting to a new country, feeling self-conscious in their Icelandic skills, and managing feelings about the conditions in their homeland.
Employment
The families were expected to be self-sufficient within a year. In that time it was hoped that an individual would have basic language skills and find sustaining work. The Ministry of Welfare provided each municipality with funds to support the families for one year. It was anticipated that near the one-year mark most of the families would have found sustainable employment. At six months, some of the adults secured employment or had briefly worked. Those who had briefly worked had felt the work a poor fit or the language barrier and adjustments to resettlement too difficult. Those who were consistently working were men who were able to obtain entry-level trade jobs in areas for which they were previously trained. In these positions, their trade skill levels compensated for the lack of Icelandic fluency.
At six months, the providers were not concerned that families were unemployed. As one provider stated, “They have time. There is work here for when they are ready. Maybe not the work they once did, but work.”
To the language difficulty, the providers responded with a perspective that conveys the complexity of trauma, adjustment, among other issues involved in resettlement, “It’s hard. Some of those men who are most vocal about wanting work are also the ones less likely to go to the language courses. I wish they would focus on learning Icelandic and then a job” (participant #9). For the male participants, work would help them feel competent and useful. They saw their value to their family and to their new community in the level of skilled work they could find. For the men, this was more critical than to learn Icelandic. Additionally, the family members each reported that learning a new language was challenging and overwhelming.
Healthcare
In the early weeks, the families were brought to various medical appointments by the program managers. In two of the municipalities the program managers were solely assigned to work with refugees, and chose to accompany, with an interpreter present, the families to the appointments. In the other municipality, the program managers managed both refugee cases and asylum-seeker cases. Case managers expressed that these added tasks limited their time and influenced their approach in working with the refugee families. These program managers provided families with information to take public transportation to the medical appointments rather than driving them. Each managing approach appeared to have benefits, according to the providers. Accompanying the families to appointments allowed the providers to get to know the families, whereas the less hands-on approach encouraged families to be self-sufficient.
The families varied in their experiences with the healthcare services. Participants who did not have a greater need for healthcare other than the required medical evaluations described the healthcare services as helpful. Those that required further medical services compared the services to those they were used to in Syria and wished that there wasn’t time delay in obtaining services.
The providers described the health services differently. “They (the families) are actually getting appointments a lot sooner than any of us would. It takes everyone at least six months to get an appointment. But we are used to it” (participant #20). The providers felt the families’ responses not only reflected the differences in the two countries’ healthcare systems, but also the families’ concern on being treated equally and fairly. “You know, they came from a government that betrayed them. It’s not surprising they would be vigilant” (participant #27). The program managers felt that the healthcare services were receptive to the families and that the interpreters were helpful in bridging cultural concepts. However, the program managers wondered why the families had not been screened for possible traumatic brain injury or post traumatic disorder. One program manager remarked, “This is a real high-risk group for trauma. Maybe the doctors don’t know that, or don’t know to assess for that” (participant #12). Those program managers who had prior experience with refugees shared this concern, while the other program managers assumed the health centers would address trauma, if needed, eventually.
Education
The program managers had several concerns regarding education. When should the children begin school? What arrangements would be best for the children to learn Icelandic and integrate into the schools? Did the teachers and school counselors need special resources or knowledge to work with the children?
Each municipality developed an orientation for the families. Once the children arrived, there were weeks when the families attended an orientation together. Five days a week for a few hours each day, the families received language lessons and information to help them access services. In one municipality, the program manager realized that the families were afraid when they saw the police. She had asked the families about this and was told that in Syria, the police were not to be trusted. To address this, she organized an outing to the police department. The officers greeted the family members, showed them around the unit, and drove them through town in the police cars. She stated, “I am so glad I did this. It made a big difference. Even now they tell me how much more safe they feel after having met our police” (participant #3). At one point the families requested that the children start school. Many of the Syrian participants stated that they worried about “losing time.” This was most acutely felt regarding the children’s education. As one father (participant #23) stated, It’s like we lost all that time after the war broke out. Then when we were in the camps. Now here, they are held back because they need to learn the language. I feel like we have lost so many years of their schooling. How are they ever going to catch up?
The providers reported that the families adjusted well to the school system. They described that the placements were grade appropriate, that the language acquisition was moving forward, and that socially there didn’t appear to be any conflicts or notable issues. The parents, however, were taken aback by the differences between the Icelandic school system and the Syrian system. As one father (participant #22) stated, In Syria we have respect in our schools. Here, here you see children with their feet on their desks and reading off their cell phones. And, where is the homework? I don’t see my children bring home books to study at home.
Community
During the planning stage, providers imagined many possible needs from the families and the community. They discussed possible activities, events, and services that might enable the families and community to engage with each other. However, the first six months “went fast” according to the program managers. “Most of my time was getting the families to doctor appointments and hooking them up with the schools” (participant #8). There didn’t seem to be time to get the families involved in community events. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) trained Icelandic volunteer-families to provide social support for the Syrian families. The participants stated this program was very helpful in welcoming the families, assisting them in getting settled, and in bringing them to an occasional public event, like a craft fair. The Syrian participants described the supportive families as “welcoming,” “helpful,” and “they made me feel wanted and safe.”
Religion/culture
Before the families’ arrival, the providers considered many possible religious and cultural issues. How would a Christian country/culture welcome Sunni Muslims? Would Christian curricula in schools need to change? Would the families feel safe and welcomed? At six months, the providers felt that the transition was moving forward well, however, were also surprised by concerns they hadn’t considered.
Religion
The participants reported feeling safe practicing Islam. The women covered their heads with formal wraps and felt accepted and safe throughout the city. The families stated they felt comfortable talking about their religion and found non-Muslims interested in their beliefs. Some members found other Muslims, immigrants who were established in the community, and met regularly in the basement of a Lutheran church. The providers had wondered if the Lutheran curricula in the schools would be an issue for the families. However, the Syrian participants reported feeling comfortable with the nation’s religion and more concerned with meeting other practicing Muslims to find community.
Cultural expert
The providers didn’t speak Arabic nor were familiar with Syrian culture. In one municipality, a resident originally from Morocco was hired as an interpreter. It quickly became clear that he was needed for much more than interpreting. For weeks before the families arrived, he met with providers. He answered their questions about possible cultural and religious issues. Once the families arrived, it was evident that both the providers and the families relied on him to be the bridge between the languages and cultures. He accompanied family members to the doctors, social work appointments, and with the support families that the IRC provided. He translated written materials and met with families in their homes to help them with paperwork. By the time of this study, he had become a family friend to each of the families. The providers expressed great appreciation for him. The families responded similarly, stating that having him in their lives made resettling in Iceland possible.
Interpreters
The other municipalities are closer to the capital city and therefore are more densely populated with diverse groups. These municipalities could find trained interpreters. The providers used a few interpreters among them. These interpreters were hired per hour and used exclusively for interpretation services. The families did not use the interpreters for other services and did not invite them to the families’ homes.
Coordination
To coordinate the services, the Ministry had created two working groups. One group included project managers and Ministry administration. This “background group” received information about the needs of refugees and communities from the “Action Team” that consisted of social workers, Red Cross members, and educators. The groups met one to two times a month, more often in the first few months and then less as the months drew on. The providers stated this had helped them understand what other agencies were experiencing and allowed them to trouble shoot issues and prevent potential problems. While these groups were developed for the year-long program, the providers hoped that they would continue to meet after the year had ended. The providers felt less isolated in managing the families. They felt supported emotionally and through the information and guidance they received from colleagues. They also felt that this model allowed them to assess and trouble shoot issues as they arose among the families.
Discussion
Refugee resettlement varies among countries and is influenced by many factors including the reactions and perceptions of the arriving refugees, the resources available, and the expectations of both the receiving country and the new arrivals (Al-Husban & Adams, 2016; Jones, 2017; Khan et al., 2016; Plener et al., 2017). This study examines the experiences of providers and refugee families six months after the families’ arrival in Iceland. Their experiences reflect the intention, preparation, and services provided by the agencies, and the challenges, strengths, and needs of the participants. The providers and families reflected on various aspects of the families’ lives in resettling: housing, education, community, language, trauma, employment, healthcare, and religion/culture. The quotes of the participants highlight the major areas of concern for those involved. This examination provided a glimpse into the complexity of anticipating refugee needs and the effects of those efforts.
Rare for many policy makers and providers of refugee services is the opportunity to start a new resettlement program. Iceland has previously resettled refugees. However, they made a concerted effort to develop a program around this new group of arrivals from Syria. Examining a resettlement process that has been established for years and adapts with each new population of arrivals is different from examining one that developed in response to a recent crisis.
The providers were able to describe their expectations for the program and reflect on its progress. They reported that the first three months involved intensive case management, and that at the six-month mark, the work became less time intensive. This is important when assessing caseloads for workers and how to prioritize resources. The providers saw their own roles differently, with some providers accompanying families to doctors and others encouraging the families to use public transportation. This suggests that agencies might want to consider how best to use the case workers and which services need to be available for the families. Families that live near public transportation may need a worker to ride the buses with them early on before the families feel competent to navigate the system alone. Families who live way from public transportation may need taxi vouchers or dedicate transportation service, which may or may not be the case worker. Going to the doctors with a family can be an effective case management intervention. However, if the workers are feeling overwhelmed by the needs in their caseloads, agencies may need to find other transportation resources for the families.
It can be difficult to discern which needs are most urgent for a family when many needs feel urgent. Having regular meetings in groups like the “action team” in this study might help workers discuss cases and share ideas. In working with high-need populations, such groups can minimize staff burnout. The “action teams” seemed to be an effective way of knitting services together and ensuring the families were receiving a continuity of services and accessing recommended resources.
The providers viewed a “cultural expert” as helpful to not only help the providers understand the new arrivals’ culture, but to also help the arrivals understand the host country from a non-native perspective. The expert provided a social learning model of the new culture, coaching and informing the new arrivals to the customs and norms. The “cultural expert” can enhance the socio-cultural adaptation of the refugees, and thereby help new arrivals integrate (Ward, 2001). Cultural experts can be persons residing in the city where the new arrivals resettle. This person might be bicultural and share cultural knowledge with the refugees or could be a person who was forced to resettle years earlier from the same region as the new arrivals. For the former, the “cultural expert” might help educate workers on cultural issues as well as help the new arrivals understand the new culture. If there is no one else that speaks the refugee’s language, this person may be relied on to be both a language interpreter and a culture interpreter. This can place a lot of work and responsibility on the “expert.” For the latter, the “cultural expert” may have insights into being a refugee, but this can be emotionally challenging if the expert has similar traumatic experiences.
Family members’ experiences varied. While all Syrian participants stated they felt welcomed and safe, there was a range of feelings regarding their experiences with the services. Some felt overwhelmed with the language lessons and wished they could wait until they felt more settled. Some worried that the services were not provided equally among the families. Schools were a shared concern among the adult family members. They worried that their children were falling behind and that they would have limited opportunities because they were learning Icelandic which is the only country that speaks it. Employment was also a strong concern and especially for those who had professional jobs in Syria. It can be difficult for refugees to obtain employment. Those with professional training can find their education and skills not acknowledged in the new country. Just as a family is trying to establish a new life, it can be demoralizing to not be validated and compensated for previous work accomplishments (Ellis et al., 2014; Isakson et al., 2015; Sangalang et al., 2017). While the providers saw work as eventually necessary for self-sufficiency, they may have underestimated the demoralizing effect of unemployment and under-employment on the Syrian men. Host countries could benefit from these skills, and the individual could feel competent and valued. However, often countries do not have a mechanism to accept a refugee’s certifications and professional licenses. Developing such a mechanism would substantially help refugee families thrive.
As discussed earlier, integration is often an assumed goal of resettlement, although as a concept not one universally agreed upon. If integration is to be a goal, then it should be well-defined with policies and services to support it. If language acquisition is a component of integration then there needs to be more economic, educational, and emotional support for refugees. This support needs to include the impact trauma has on learning, and trauma-informed care needs to be provided. If self-sustaining employment is a component, then policies need to accommodate past education and skills. If the feeling of belonging is a component of integration, then schools need to have inclusive curricula and culturally sensitive campuses, and communities need to feel safe for families to express their cultural identity.
However, there should be caution in the goals of resettlement. While integration might be a goal for agencies and communities, for many families it might not be their goal. Families in this study varied on what they wanted. Some hoped that Syria’s war would stop, and they could return home. Others saw Iceland as a stopover before permanently resettling in a country of their choosing. Policy makers and workers need a resettlement program that is flexible and allows self-agency within the family, letting the family decide their own future.
It is possible that the refugee crisis we now face, and the rapidity of changing global forces, are adding new dimensions to how people acculturate and how they adapt to this acculturation. As posits, societal forces, socio-economic-political forces inform these processes. Iceland has been historically homogenous in language, culture, history, and religion. Acculturation is a process that is both cultural and psychological and exists over time as distinct groups interact. Syrians in Iceland may develop unique acculturation strategies. The internet allows the Syrian families to remain connected to their own culture despite being isolated within Iceland. The Syrian families stand out in Iceland’s homogenous environment. According to the participants, their differences have been welcomed within their new communities. These factors may affect how the two groups interact and how the process of acculturation unfolds. If other groups relocate to Iceland, making it more culturally diverse, this may also affect both the Syrian’s and the Icelanders’ acculturation process.
As cultures become more engaged with other cultures, the concept of acculturation may evolve. Marlowe’s (2017) theory of a transnational experience might provide a glimpse into how people will self-identify. Marlowe suggests that as we experience more of our social and relational life distally through the internet and social media venues, our physical geographic positions may be less defining of one’s self and group identity. While historically, resettlement meant leaving family members behind and trying to adapt into a new country, transnational theory offers another possible perspective. It is possible that the families in this study experienced resettlement less as a permanent separation from their former life, and more as an expanded connection that exists with the use of social media.
This expanded connection may affect the acculturation process by closing or widening the cultural distance that new arrivals experience. The families stayed in contact with family members still in Syria and in resettlement programs around Europe. They spoke with their distant family members daily. Those Syrian participants who were not planning to enter the workforce wondered if they needed to learn Icelandic since Arabic was spoken at home, on social media, and on other media sites. For these participants, transnational belonging might match the experiences more than a concept regarding integration. This is important in that it could reshape resettlement services’ understanding of integration. If families experience resettlement as transnational, perhaps the services needed by the families will vary as well.
Agencies that provide services to refugees are often cobbling together resources based upon availability, funding priorities, and the expected needs of those served. Therefore, it is important that agencies understand the needs of refugees. In our changing global environment, those needs may also be changing. Families are becoming transnational with the integration of the internet in all aspects of life, and their resettlement needs are changing as well.
Implications
There are important insights from this study. The resettlement process is not one-sided. It involves providers, available resources, the hosting communities, the needs and expectations of the refugees, the ability of agencies to work together, providers trained in issues of trauma, brain injuries, and the stresses of resettling. All of these factors should be used to enhance resiliency among the new arrivals by empowering them to identify and use available resources (Marlowe, 2017) while policies should increase the availability of those resources (Yoosun, 2008).
The resettlement process is also a global phenomenon, not just as it affects many nations, but as it is experienced by the individuals and families involved. Perhaps with our digital age we need to rethink concepts like integration and belonging. Perhaps successful resettlement programs will need to incorporate a global view of connections when understanding the acculturation process.
Iceland had the opportunity to plan the services offered. They developed a communication system among the agencies involved that included regular meetings. They approached this program as a team endeavor with social services, education, healthcare, and the IRC. They were conscious of the potential impact this program might have on communities, neighborhoods, and neighbors. It is a dramatic example of a program whose intent was to help refugee families resettle and to feel welcomed. In current times, this seems rarer.
Many questions remain: (1) What can we learn from this example? Perhaps other countries can benefit from creating a team among the service sectors. While the providers worked hard to anticipate needs and provide relevant services, the families still presented needs in unexpected ways; (2) How much preparation is helpful? Which preparations will be reported as helpful in six more months, or a year? (3) From the families’ perspectives, when should language classes be introduced? When should language competency be expected? (4) Should host communities be prepared for the arrival of the families? If so, how? Should there be mentor families from the host community paired off with new arriving families? (5) All the participants felt the orientation meetings that included all the families were helpful. Could orientations such as these be tailored to host communities as the one municipality did with the visit to the police department?
Although much is unique to Iceland’s experience, there also appears to be lessons for other countries that seek to address the needs of refugee populations. Perhaps exploring how one country could carefully plan, can present alternative approaches for other countries that are overwhelmed with the resettlement of refugee families. This study needs to continue. The first six months are an important time in resettlement services, but also important is how well the gains are sustained in one year, and longer. Future studies might reveal challenges and successes of this program, and in so doing, help other programs develop culturally effective resettlement services.
Limitations of the study
This study describes the experiences of providers and refugee families in Iceland and therefore the findings might not be transferable to other countries that have more diverse immigrant populations, larger number of refugee arrivals, and long-established services. The children were not interviewed, and their perspectives might add valuable information about best-practices in school and intergenerational issues. Not all the families had an equal number of adults and therefore some families’ perspectives might be more represented than others. However, the difference in number of adults per family varied at the most by two.
There are many more issues involved in resettlement than this study explores. Its scope is limited to the questions posed. Those questions were framed by an investigator who is neither from Iceland nor from Syria and therefore might be biased via culture and perspective. The interviews of the Syrian participants were in Arabic and questions were asked through an interpreter. There could be meanings lost within the interpretation, as well as in the transcription. The researcher could not be certain that the interviews were interpreted verbatim and therefore the interpreter’s own biases may have affected the participants’ understanding of the questions and their responses.
In addition, the researcher is not a member of either Iceland’s culture or Syrian culture and therefore unconscious cultural biases of the PI may have limited or misinterpreted the findings. The researcher was an outsider to both cultures which may have affected various aspects of the research design and execution. Being an outsider, the researcher may not have examined elements of the phenomenon that either cultural group would have deemed important, as well as misunderstood behaviors and comments of the participants. However, the analysis was shared with focus groups of the Syrian participants and the providers, and therefore it is hoped that this limitation is small.
Conclusion
For nearly 68 years, the UNHCR has played an active role in resettling individuals and families who have been forced from their homelands. What was originally designed to be a three-year program, the UNHCR has developed into a critical player in the chronic refugee crisis. Its original mission needs to be revisited and understood in the context of our current global society. Integration needs to be better defined and operationalized. Using integration as a measure of successful resettlement needs to be discussed further. In our global age, integration needs to be redefined and evaluated as a desired outcome of resettlement. A transnational perspective might prove helpful when conceptualizing current resettlement experiences. We are more of a global society than a planet of countries, and our understanding of resettlement, homeland as a place, what one needs to have a sense of belonging need to change. While this refugee crisis demands our urgent attention, these global questions have far reaching implications for everyone’s sense of belonging, home, community.
Footnotes
Ethics
Ethical approval for this project was given by the Institutional Review Board of San Jose State University (reference #, 0001).
Funding
The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The study was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation; grant number 1641180.
