The project is a co-financed research project between MANTRA, Aarhus University and the Agency for International Recruitment and Integration. The purpose of the project is to focus on the experiences of female refugees and immigrant with the Danish labour market. There is a focus on which life circumstances and motivational factors have or have had an impact on women’s entry into the labour market. The project thus uncovers motivation for work in harmony with other aspects of life such as education, work experience, ’meetings’ with employment efforts, everyday life, state of health, family structures and settlement patterns.
The project consists of two tracks:
1. Interview with female refugees and immigrants.
2. Field visits and participant observations with some of the women.
The 22 interviews are based on the individual woman’s journey to employment using a narrative interview approach. The individual woman selects the topics and factors that she experiences and finds relevant to talk about in relation to her motivation and path to employment. It is central to the project that we talk to both women who have gained employment and women who are not employed. MANTRA will focus on asking about what the women mention and find important in their personal situation and motivation for work. Follow-up questions are then asked to touch on factors, themes and barriers that existing literature and reports find to be central.
Anthropological field visits are carried out with some of the women to gain an insight into their life circumstances and the dimensions that the interviews do not uncover. The field visits will include visits to the woman’s private home, meeting with a case manager or job consultant and other everyday activities such as doctor visits, language lessons, social gatherings, etc. This will create knowledge about how the current practice around refugee and immigrant women plays out across the various contexts, which the women are part of. This will provide an opportunity to learn more about the women’s interaction with caseworkers and other activities in relation to their employment. The field visits will thus give a deeper insight into what potentials and challenges the women see and experience in relation to getting into employment.
Liane Krogh Bæk, Research Assistant, Anthropologist
Pernille Bertram-Larsen, Research Assistent, Anthropologist
Abir Mohamad Ismail, Research Assistant, Anthropologist and Ph.D. student of Anthropology
Johanne Korsdal Sørensen, Project Manager, Anthropologist and Ph.D. of Sociology, External relations manager in MANTRA
The project is mentioned in the following media:
School of Culture and Society d. 05.01.22: Kvindelige flygtninge og indvandreres oplevelser med det danske arbejdsmarked undersøges i nyt forskningsprojekt
