dc.contributor.author
Pfohman, Shannon
dc.date.accessioned
2018-06-07T17:13:10Z
dc.date.available
2014-02-28T08:11:51.859Z
dc.identifier.uri
https://refubium.fu-berlin.de/handle/fub188/3562
dc.identifier.uri
http://dx.doi.org/10.17169/refubium-7762
dc.description
Table of Contents Acknowledgments ii Terms and Abbreviations i 1\.
Introduction - A Human Rights Dilemma 6 1.1 Focus Group and Aims of the Study
12 1.2 Key Research Questions 13 1.3 Logic of the Comparison 14 1.4 Research
Design and Structure of the Study 16 2\. Methodological Access 18 2.1 Subjects
/ Sample 18 2.2 Procedure - Access to and Selection of Research Participants
20 2.3 Establishing Rapport and Trust 22 2.4 Acknowledging Own Positioning 23
2.5 Theoretical and Methodological Approach 26 3\. Historical, Sociopolitical
and Legal Access 33 3.1 Impacts of Bosnian War Leading to Mass Exodus 33 3.2
Options for Rebuilding One's Life as the Preferred Durable Solution 35 3.2.1
Germany's So-Called Durable Solution for the Bosnians 36 3.2.2 The US' Durable
Solution for the Bosnians and the Legal Framework 48 4\. Analysis of Results –
Factors of Influence 55 4.1 Exodus and Transit - Dislocation and Flight-
Related Factors 56 4.1.1 Preempting Evacuation and Displacement 57 4.1.2
Evacuation and Displacement 60 4.2 Expectations and Motivation (Push/Pull
Factors) 61 4.2.1 Extent of Agency in Migration Decision 62 4.3 Facilitating
Factors 69 4.3.1 Facilitating Factors in Chicago 70 4.3.2 Facilitating Factors
in Berlin 82 4.4 Obstacles 89 4.4.1 Institutional Obstacles 89 4.4.2 Socio-
Cultural Obstacles 156 4.4.3 Emotional Obstacles 176 4.5 Coping Strategies 180
4.5.1 Non-Rewarding (Avoidance-Oriented) Coping Strategies 183 4.5.2
Protective (Emotion-Oriented) Coping Strategies 189 4.5.3 Practical (Problem-
Oriented) Coping Strategies 206 4.6 Overall Assessment – A Choice of Four
Action Responses 221 4.6.1 General Well-Being – Dislocated in Time 221 4.6.2
Individual Goals 222 4.6.3 Distance to and Reconstructed Meanings of Homeland
226 4.6.4 Future Locations of Space 229 4.6.5 Identity Marked by Difference
231 4.6.6 Four Approaches of Response 232 4.7 Structures of Generalizations
236 4.7.1 Ideal Type: Traumatized Woman 236 4.7.2 Ideal Type: Youthful Star
237 4.7.3 Ideal Type: Male Marrying for Love 238 4.7.4 Ideal Type: Family and
Household Composition 240 4.7.5 Ideal Type: Integration Exhibited Through the
Agency of the Children 241 4.7.6 Ideal Type: Living for Grandchildren 243
4.7.7 Ideal Type: Vying for Sympathy 243 4.7.8 Final Assessment of Ideal Types
244 5\. Interwoven Causalities – Grounded Theory and Main Findings 246 5.1
Finding 1: Sociodemographic Characteristics as a Key Factor of Influence 247
5.1.1 Age-Related Aspects 247 5.1.2 Gender-Specific Characteristics 249 5.1.3
Family and Household Characteristics 252 5.1.4 Educational Background 255 5.2
Finding 2: Mental Health and Well-Being as Factors of Influence 256 5.2.1
Interpersonal Trauma Relived With Each New Stressful Situation 256 5.2.2
Emergence of the Bosnisches Syndrom 258 5.2.3 Need for Cognitive Closure (NCC)
260 5.2.4 Participation in Therapy 262 5.3 Finding 3: Institutional Variables
as a Key Factor of Influence 264 5.3.1 Country of Origin, Ethnicity and 'Race'
265 5.3.2 Resettlement and Predeparture Measures 267 5.3.3 Family
Reunification Schemes 269 5.3.4 Welfare State System and Economic Self-
Sufficiency 270 5.3.5 Labor Market Needs, Early Employment and Job Retention
as Variables 273 5.3.6 Distancing and Language Acquisition 279 5.3.7
Educational Access 286 5.3.8 Permanence of Legal Status, Naturalization
Options and Citizenship 288 5.3.9 Duration of Residence and Proportion of Life
in Country of Settlement 292 5.3.10 Modes of Refugee Incorporation 293 5.3.11
Nation-State Building Process of Receiving Country 297 6\. Conclusions 302 6.1
Symbolic Capital 302 6.1.1 Symbolic Capital in Chicago 304 6.1.2 Symbolic
Capital in Berlin 309 6.2 Symbolic Violence – Being Made to Feel a Refugee or
Refugeeness 314 6.3 Concluding Remarks – Paradox of Modern Nation-States 320
Epilogue 326 Literary References 327 Personal Interviews with Experts in the
Field 353 Appendices 354 Appendix A: Statement of Voluntary Consent 354
Appendix B: Interview Guide with Bosnian Refugees (Chicago) 355 Appendix C:
Interviewleitfaden mit bosnischen Flüchtlingen (Berlin) 356 Appendix D:
Standardized Questionnaire in Chicago 357 Appendix E: Standardisierte
Fragebogen in Berlin 360 Appendix F: Upitnik 363 Appendix G: Interview
Questions for Experts in the Field 366 Appendix H: Socio-demographic
Characteristics 367 Table 1: Sample demographics 367 Appendix I: Travel Paths
368 Table 2: Routes of entry 368 Appendix J: Historical Contextualization of
Bosnian War 369 1\. Myths Surrounding the Wars of Yugoslav Succession 369 2\.
Contextualizing Historical, Economical, and Political Developments Prompting
the War 370 3\. The Interwar Kingdom from 1918 to 1941 370 4\. Communist
Yugoslavia from 1945 to 1991 371 5\. The Yugoslav State under Control of
Slobodan Milošević from 1992 to 2003 375 6\. The Role of the West (USA and
Western Europe) 379 Appendix K: Refugee and Immigration Reception Trends in
Germany since 1945 383 1\. First Wave: Resettlers, 1945-1955 383 2\. Second
Wave: Period of guest worker recruitment, 1955-1973 384 3\. Third Wave: Family
Members of Guest Workers, 1973 – 1981 386 Appendix L: Refugee and Immigration
Reception Trends in the US since 1945 392 1\. The US – an Immigrant Nation?
392 2\. First Migrant Waves Following WWII, 1945 to 1965 392 4\. Changes in
Numbers and Origins of Migrants after the 1965 Immigration Act 396 5\.
Evidence of Nativism and Inconsistent Treatment in the US 405 Appendix M:
Cultural Capital in Chicago 408 Table 3: Employment Developments of Chicago
Interlocutors 408 Appendix N: Cultural Capital in Berlin 409 Table 4:
Employment Developments of Berlin Interlocutors 409 Appendix O: Post-Migration
Adaptation Process in Berlin 410 Table 5: Overview of obstacles and coping
strategies 410 Appendix P: Post-Migration Adaptation Process in Chicago 414
Table 6: Overview of obstacles and coping strategies 414 Appendix Q:
Lebenslauf 417 Appendix R: Liste der Veröffentlichungen 418 Appendix S:
Deutsche Zusammenfassung der Ergebnisse 419 Certificate of Authenticity 422
dc.description.abstract
The overall aim of this study was to assess and compare the conditions of
refugee reception and incorporation in Berlin and Chicago based on the
adaptation and settlement experiences of a sample of refugees from Bosnia-
Herzegovina, who sought protection in the early 1990s as a result of the
Bosnian war. A comparison of these two cities is relevant since they signify
two of the largest metropolitan areas in each respective country that took in
Bosnians in need of protection following the war. An estimated 30,000 Bosnians
were received in Berlin, while nearly 40,000 Bosnian refugees resettled to
Chicago in the 1990s. The focus was to explore the different refugee reception
contexts in the two cities and to analyze the way in which the social and
institutional structures in the receiving society constrained and facilitated
the interlocutors, based on their own perceptions, in their ability to access
resources, adapt in the new contexts, and regain control over their lives. It
entails an overview of the facilitating factors and obstacles encountered, as
well as a synopsis of the coping strategies the sample applied to achieve
their goal to attain normalcy after the Bosnian war. Findings underscore the
significance of the institutional conditions as a major factor of influence,
but not necessarily the most important factor impacting the emotional well-
being and adaptation process of the Bosnian refugees.
de
dc.description.abstract
Ziel dieser Studie ist in erster Linie, die Anpassungsmöglichkeiten, Erfolgs-
und Exklusionsmodalitäten einer Stichprobe von Kriegsflüchtlingen aus Bosnien-
Herzegowina, die Schutz in den frühen neunziger Jahren in Berlin und Chicago
gesucht haben, zu erfassen und diese anschließend miteinander zu vergleichen.
Ein Vergleich dieser beiden Städte ist relevant, da sie den Großteil von
Bosniern und Bosnierinnen im Schutz vor dem Krieg aufnahmen. In den 1990er
Jahren nahm Berlin ungefähr dreißigtausend bosnische Flüchtlinge auf, während
fast Vierzigtausend Bosnier und Bosnierinnen nach Chicago migrierten. Der
Schwerpunkt dieser Studie lag darin, die Aufnahmebedingungen in beiden Städten
zu erforschen. Es wurde untersucht, in welcher Weise die sozialen und
institutionellen Strukturen der Aufnahmegesellschaften die Gesprächspartner
und Gesprächspartnerinnen in ihren Fähigkeiten einschränkten oder
unterstützten, sie auf Ressourcen/Hilfsquellen zugriffen, sich ihrer neuen
Umgebungen und Rahmenbedingungen anpassten und Kontrolle über ihr Leben
zurückgewannen. Die Studie beinhaltet einen Überblick der Faktoren, die ihre
Anpassung erleichterten und behinderten, sowie eine vergleichende Übersicht
der Bewältigungs- und Handlungsstrategien der Untersuchungsgruppe(n), um sich
nach dem Bosnien-Krieg eine Alltagsnormalität zu erschaffen. Die Ergebnisse
der Studie unterstreichen die besondere Rolle der institutionellen
Rahmenbedingungen als entscheidende Einflussfaktoren auf das emotionale Wohl
und den Eingliederungs- und Integrationsprozess der bosnischen Flüchtlinge.
de
dc.rights.uri
http://www.fu-berlin.de/sites/refubium/rechtliches/Nutzungsbedingungen
dc.subject
Refugee resettlement
dc.subject
durable solutions
dc.subject
symbolic capital
dc.subject.ddc
300 Sozialwissenschaften
dc.title
A Comparison of the Situation of Bosnian Refugees in Berlin and Chicago
dc.contributor.contact
pfohman@online.de
dc.contributor.firstReferee
Dr. Wolf-Dieter Narr
dc.contributor.furtherReferee
Dr. Birgit Rommelspacher
dc.date.accepted
2012-06-06
dc.identifier.urn
urn:nbn:de:kobv:188-fudissthesis000000096196-9
dc.title.subtitle
Perceptions of the facilitating factors and obstacles affecting their
adaptation process
dc.title.translated
Ein Vergleich der Situationen der bosnischen Flüchtlinge in Berlin und Chicago
de
dc.title.translatedsubtitle
Die Wahrnehmungen der Faktoren, die die Flüchtlingsaufnahme erleichtern und
behindern
en
refubium.affiliation
Politik- und Sozialwissenschaften
de
refubium.mycore.fudocsId
FUDISS_thesis_000000096196
refubium.mycore.derivateId
FUDISS_derivate_000000014833
dcterms.accessRights.dnb
free
dcterms.accessRights.openaire
open access