The dividing line of (im)mobility : Analysing the decision making process of status holders in Friesland

Keywords
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Issue Date
2012-09
Language
en
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
The (im)mobility of status holders in peripheral regions in the Netherlands is the main subject of this paper. The status holder is a former asylum seeker, who involuntarily had to leave his/her country, to find the Netherlands as the next destination to be accommodated. As soon as the asylum seeker has a legal status, (s)he get’s accommodated via the Dutch dispersal policy over the country. As a consequence a status holder can get placed in peripheral regions of the Netherlands. A specific approach is taken on the case of status holders in the province of Friesland, where it was expected that many of the status holders who got accommodated in this province, would leave the place already within one year. Friesland is an interesting case as this province can be considered as a rural province, covered with many small villages and, more important, having an own official language. The main question in this paper is concerned with the main determinants of the (im)mobility decision of status holders living in Friesland. Also, theories on the migrant trajectory are taken into account by considering the influence of the history and past of the status holder. By analyzing the decision making process of the status holder and therewith understanding the day-to-day realities of status holders, one can improve existing integration initiatives. This is desirable, as there is a general image of this group that they leave the accommodated place within one year. The analysis should give municipalities in peripheral regions some insights, with which they can cater to the status holders’ needs. Also, the analysis contributes to the theoretical debates on the nature of migrants’ determinants, as there is still limited theoretical understanding of the multi-level forces driving migration.
Description
Citation
Faculty
Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen