Main objective
The intention of the project is to both investigate and compare how asylum seeking and refugee children are received in Nordic countries concerning health, care assistance and educational opportunities. The collected data allows looking at the reception process both in Norway and the rest of Nordic countries and allows comparing the two.
Method
All of the aspects of the reception process of refugee children will be examined. This encompasses both unaccompanied refugee children and children accompanied by their family. Who are these children, where do they come from, how long have they stayed at the different receptions centers, what type of medical assistance, care and educational opportunities have they been offered- are some of the questions that will be asked.
The data will be collected by the following different methods:
- literary review/ review of reports
- review of public policy documents (for example the Norwegian Immigration Act, Norwegian Education Act, etc.)
- contact with relevant institutions/ directorates/ departments for information (for example the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration, Norwegian Directorate for Children, Youth and Family Affairs, Ministry of Children, Equality and Social Inclusion, Ministry of Education and Research).
- conversations with a selection of professionals
Further information
About the project
The Norwegian component of the Nordic project is led by Lutin de Wal Pastor, at the Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, NKVTS and Ketil Eide, , at the Center of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, RBUP Øst og Sør. The Nordic survey was initiated by the Nordic Network for Research on Refugee Children, an interdisciplinary network of pediatricians, psychologists, anthropologists and social workers. All of the five Nordic countries are represented.
The network, Nordic Network for Research on Refugee Children, was founded by the Nordic school of Public health, NHV, in Gothenburg, Sweden. The initiators were Professor Anders Hjern, Professor Marita Eastwood and Pediatrician Dr. Henry Ascher.
The idea behind the network was to gather research and expertise concerning refugee children’s health, welfare and well-being in Nordic countries.
Nordic collaboration
This is the first time Nordic researchers are investigating and comparing the reception process of asylum seeking and refugee children in the Nordic countries. Immigration politics and refugee reception is a field of research with many aspects to be investigated. A comparative perspective on the reception process of refugee child in the Nordic countries may contribute to broader and deeper knowledge of this topic. .
The network has also started collaboration with Dr. Charles Watters, from the European Centre for the Study of Migration & Social Care, who has experience with similar comparative studies in Europa. Through this collaboration the network can expand its perspective from a Nordic one to a European one.