Refugees who came to Germany from Ukraine were often able to choose their place of residence themselves, whereas people from the Middle East were distributed throughout the country and were more likely to be initially placed in shared accommodation. The new research project UneTra (“Unequal trajectories: Spatial dynamics in refugees' multidimensional integration”) is looking into how such differences affect their integration.
“We are focusing on the so-called arrival districts - that is, the districts in which many refugees often find housing,” explains project manager Dr. Gisela Will from LIfBi. "These districts can make integration more difficult, for example due to high poverty rates or social segregation. At the same time, they offer migrant infrastructures such as associations, businesses or religious organizations that can facilitate the start."
The research team is analyzing the areas where refugees live in Germany and comparing the housing situation of Ukrainian refugees with that of previous refugee groups. An additional aim is to find out how the living environment influences the integration of refugees.
For this purpose, the researchers evaluate extensive data on places of residence, relocations and educational pathways and link these with information about the neighborhood, e.g. on the social structure or existing support services. Various dimensions of integration are considered, such as language, interethnic contacts, sense of belonging, education, labor market participation, health and subjective well-being.
“Our aim is to gain a better understanding of what promotes successful integration - and how policy-makers and cities can organize the accommodation of refugees more effectively,” says Prof. Dr. Marcel Helbig, also project manager at LIfBi.
UneTra is a joint project of the Social Science Research Center Berlin (WZB), the Leibniz Institute for Educational Trajectories (LIfBi) and the Institute for Labor Market and Employment Research (IAB). It is funded as part of the Leibniz Competition of the Leibniz Association and runs until the end of 2027. More information on the project: www.lifbi.de/UneTra