Challenges of integration regarding unaccompanied refugee minors living in residential care homes : Examined from a staff perspective

This study aimed to examine what kind of challenges regarding integration the staff of residential care homes for unaccompanied refugee minors identify and what possibilities they have to handle these. Four qualitative interviews with staff in residential care homes for unaccompanied refugee minors were conducted. The result was analyzed by using the system theoretical perspective of Luhmann on the concepts of inclusion and exclusion in the context of social work. Another tool for analyzation was the different concepts of integration described by Esser and Elwert, called assimilation and intern integration. The respondents described that the residential care homes concepts of integration contributed to increase the chance of inclusion for the adolescents within the majority population and minority population. The daily routines of the residential care home were described to be the tools to include adolescents. This was according to the staff done by educating the adolescents about the Swedish society. The education that were described reflected the awareness of the transmigrant and their floating identity.Keywords: Integration, inclusion, exclusion, assimilation.Syfte med denna studie var att undersöka vilka integrationsutmaningar personalen på HVB-hem identifierar med avseende på ensamkommande flyktingbarn och vilka möjligheter de anser sig ha att hantera dessa. Studien utgår ifrån fyra kvalitativa intervjuer som genomfördes med HVB-personal på tre olika boenden för ensamkommande flyktingbarn. Resultatet analyserades med hjälp av Luhmanns systemteoretiska perspektiv på begreppen inkludering och exkludering i kontexten för socialt arbete. Ett annat analysverktyg var Esser och Elwerts olika integrationskoncept, kallade assimilation och intern integration. Studiens resultat visar att HVB-hemmens integrationskoncept varierade vilket påverkade ungdomarnas chanser till inkludering inom majoritetsbefolkningen och minoritetsbefolkningen. HVB-hemspersonalens arbete med att inkludera ungdomarna tydliggjordes genom de dagliga rutinerna på arbetsplatsen. Inkluderingen skedde enligt intervjupersonerna genom att personalen informerade ungdomarna om det svenska samhället. Informationen som beskrevs reflekterade personalens medvetenhet om transmigrantens situation och dess flytande identitet