Dieu Hack-Polay
“Let us define ourselves”: forced migrants’ use of multiple identities as a tactic for social navigation
Hack-Polay, Dieu; Mahmoud, Ali B.; Kordowicz, Maria; Madziva, Roda; Kivunja, Charles
Authors
Ali B. Mahmoud
Maria Kordowicz
RODA MADZIVA Roda.Madziva@nottingham.ac.uk
Associate Professor
Charles Kivunja
Abstract
Background: The article examines how and why multiple identities are altered, used and discarded by forced migrants. Methods: The research is located in the constructivist paradigm. We used thematic analysis to analyse data gathered through interviews with nineteen forced migrants. Results: We found that, though individual migrants can make deliberate choices about which identities to be associated with, they are constrained in the process by external socio-economic factors that lead them to adopt identities that are perceived to be advantageous to navigate the new social system. Moreover, the construction of forced migrants’ identity includes significant contextuality, transactionality and situatedness. Conclusions: Our research contributes to the literature on migrant identity practice concerning the stigma associated with forced migrant status and the extent to which migrants appraise their reception in exile as undignified. Additionally, examining migrant identities allows the researchers to apprehend the diverse facets of identity as far as migrants are concerned. Future research may draw a larger sample to examine other impactful dimensions of identity fluctuation, e.g. gender, education, social media, the extent of prior trauma, etc.
Citation
Hack-Polay, D., Mahmoud, A. B., Kordowicz, M., Madziva, R., & Kivunja, C. (2021). “Let us define ourselves”: forced migrants’ use of multiple identities as a tactic for social navigation. BMC Psychology, 9(1), Article 125. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-021-00630-6
Journal Article Type | Article |
---|---|
Acceptance Date | Aug 16, 2021 |
Online Publication Date | Aug 25, 2021 |
Publication Date | Dec 1, 2021 |
Deposit Date | Sep 6, 2021 |
Publicly Available Date | Sep 6, 2021 |
Journal | BMC Psychology |
Electronic ISSN | 2050-7283 |
Publisher | Springer Verlag |
Peer Reviewed | Peer Reviewed |
Volume | 9 |
Issue | 1 |
Article Number | 125 |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-021-00630-6 |
Keywords | General Psychology; General Medicine |
Public URL | https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/6185190 |
Publisher URL | https://bmcpsychology.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40359-021-00630-6 |
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Publisher Licence URL
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
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