ABSTRACT. Sweden is often described as one of the Scandinavian welfare states characterized by generous, non-tested benefits for gaining citizenship, a strong element of redistribution in the systems and high taxes, but it also has a “darker” side in its history of racism and eugenics, which has been downplayed during long time and Sweden has positioned itself as without any colonial history. This chapter draws on field data from one critical incident in a secondary school in which the issue of “race” and racism appeared. This incident is put in a historical and contemporary perspective in order to understand the reactions on the critical incident involving “race” in the research field and the silencing of the issue. We argue that analysis of racism is needed in order to understand the institutions and structures of the modern welfare state, not least in an era of migration and neoliberal restructuring.

ABSTRACT. Do the results of research on the relationship between crime and immigration status differ depending on the type of data examined? This question is posed and answered affirmatively in a paper based on a systematic review of ten Danish studies published between 2008 and 2017. The current review is motivated by the seemingly widespread perception that immigrants/descendants are at greater risk for committing crime than others even after adjusting for systematic differences between these groups. Using five criteria of relevance, a systematic search resulted in the identification of ten pertinent studies. The ten studies are reviewed in the current paper and form the basis of the conclusion that research results differ markedly depending on the type of data examined. This implies that public perceptions about crime and immigration status may rest on shaky ground. Five potential explanations are suggested to explain the inconsistencies found in the studies reviewed. Finally, five recommendations for future research are suggested in order move research forward.

ABSTRACT. [Abstract will come soon]

ABSTRACT. It is not random who migrates and where they ‘choose’ to go. Previous studies show that one of the central factors influencing the self-selection process is the presence of a diaspora. However and despite the merits of previous studies, we still know little about the more detailed mechanisms at play. To which extent does a highly educated and well-integrated diaspora lead to positively selected migrants? Moreover, does self-selection differ between the various country of origin and reasons for migration? The aim of the current paper is to contribute to the literature by answering these questions. More specifically, we use the case of Denmark to investigate whether the size and the quality of the diaspora (in terms of educational level and labour market outcomes) influence the migration self-selection process. This analysis is conducted using Danish register data, which enable us to obtain detailed information about ‘diaspora quality’ for each country of origin.

ABSTRACT. Previous research by evolutionary psychologists have found that that people who are disgust sensitive tend to support anti-immigrant policies. It is also well-established that disgust sensitivity relates positively to social distance – disgust fosters avoidance of out-group members. However, no one has examined whether disgust sensitivity influences welfare policy preferences. Accordingly, in this paper we examine whether disgust sensitivity shapes attitudes toward policies that only indirectly relates to race. In this manner, we also contribute to the so-called race coding literature. We hypothesize that the more people perceive a target group to be non-white the more disgust sensitivity reduces support for social assistance. The paper draws on new data from two recent US surveys (n > 3000) in which we measure public perceptions of whether welfare recipients tend to be white or non-white. Moreover, we experimentally manipulate race in photos of hypothetical welfare recipients to establish the causal impact of racialized perceptions of welfare recipients on the relationship between disgust and welfare preferences. We conclude by discussing the general implications of our findings. Most importantly, it appears that we are the first to identify disgust sensitivity as another driver of race coding.

ABSTRACT. Today, immigrants in general must satisfy the same criteria for being granted citizenship. But why should it be so? Why not have differentiate demands according to socio-economic background of immigrants? In public debates you often hear that immigrants who do not show the necessary will and effort to integrate do not deserve citizenship. Yet, different individuals who exercise the same amount of effort cannot necesarilly be expected to achieve the same results in terms of second-language acquisition, getting work or attaining knowledge about society. Some individuals are better disposed to integrate while the institutional structures of the receiving society might help some immigrant groups more than others. From the normative position of luck egalitarianism, we argue that it is reasonable to reward effort in relation to citizenship but that justice requires that we reward immigrants equally for the same effort. From this premise, the paper examines the normative desirability of uniform contra differentiated integration requirements.

ABSTRACT. In Scandinavia, as in other Western countries, the share of residents with an immigrant background has increased considerably in recent decades. A common response from politicians and public intellectuals is to encourage immigrants and descendants to identify more strongly with the host nation and to adopt its ‘national values’. The assumption, here, is that newcomers, particularly Muslims, cannot or will not partake in a national ‘we’, because their religion, values, or continuing attachment to distant homelands alienate them from their new countries and direct their allegiance, emotional belonging, and sense of obligation elsewhere. Using items from a large comparative survey of young adult descendants from Denmark, Norway and Sweden, we ask three sets of questions. First, are young adult immigrant descendants in fact significantly less likely than majorities to identify with the nation? Second, are propensities to identify – and do so less than majorities – related to national contexts? In particular, does a relatively exclusive context (Denmark) render identification less likely than a more open one (Norway and particularly Sweden)? Third, to what extent do religious commitment (religiosity as well as different religious backgrounds); attitudes towards gender equality and homosexuality; and homeland orientation affect national identification negatively? Specifically, do any of these factors inhibit identification more in a country like Denmark, where public debate fiercely emphasizes strong religiosity, traditional values, and transnational loyalties as obstacles to national belonging?

ABSTRACT. This article explores how immigration- and welfare-related political narratives are framed and communicated on Twitter platform by four political parties that dominate the political landscape in Denmark and Sweden. The study aims to uncover the peculiarities of online political narrativity, identify trends and developments, and assess twitting dynamics through quantitative and qualitative analysis. The article discusses the centrality of welfare, labour and immigration in the contemporary political debate, and identifies some country-specific differences. It emphasises that actualisation of immigration issues is driven primarily by the position of the party, rather than its political spectrum, whereas welfare discourse is the crust of the political landscape in these countries, therefore, all parties conveniently frame the welfare state, although their interpretation of it may differ.

ABSTRACT. This article explores the tension between, on the one hand, Danish integration politics aiming at integrating newcomers economically, socially and culturally, and sustaining a sense of citizenship, belonging and responsibility. On the other, immigration policies, aiming at protecting Danish national security interests and the country from potential enemies by controlling and regulating the influx of refugees (Gad 2011; Pedersen & Rytter 2011). At the level of policy and practical policy implementation targeting newly arrived refugees, this tension results in three interrelated paradoxes. One paradox is at the level of policy, between the mandatory three-year Municipal program focused on refugees’ integration via the Danish labor market and the restrictive immigration policies regarding residence permit, repatriation, family reunification and low allowances, which reflect an explicit political aim of deterring refugees from arriving to and settling in Denmark. A second paradox is at the level of policy implementation, within the design of the integration program, which focuses on refugees’ prompt labor market participation and economic self-sufficiency at the expense of the social aspects of becoming a citizen with a sense of belonging in Denmark; also an effect of the politics of deterrence. A third paradox is at the level of the lived experiences of the young refugees; between living in a hope for permanency and a reality of temporariness. We analyze these tensions and paradoxes from the perspective of practical integration efforts in 19 Danish municipalities among municipal- and Ngo local integration policy workers (LIPWs), who work with young refugees ages 18-25. In analyzing LIPWs accounts of their front line implementation of the municipal integration program, against the body of Danish integration and immigration policies and politics, we draw on Carol Bacchi’s (2009; Bacchi & Goodwin 2016; Browne et al 2018:7) poststructural policy analysis approach. This approach asks the analytical question to policies and policy work, ‘What is the problem represented to be?’ (WPR) and makes the case that policies do not address problems that exist. Rather, policies produce “problems” as particular sorts of problems, which consequently shapes practices and lives). Analytically, we address the integration policy ‘problematizations ‘ and their effects at the level of both politics, local integration work practice and young refugees lives; and in terms of what is left unproblematic or silenced by the policies’ problem representations.

ABSTRACT. In the majority of EU countries, refugees have higher unemployment rates, lower employment rates and are more often in precarious employment compared to native born. In this article, we examine the preferences of Danish employers towards recruitment of jobseekers with a refugee background and test how different ethnic backgrounds impact recruitment preferences. We use a factorial survey experiment (vignette experiment) with descriptions of fictitious job applicants to explore whether a ‘refugee penalty’ exists on the Danish labour market. By manipulating the country of origin of the job applicants, we further explore whether refugees from specific countries (Iraq/Ethiopia/Ukraine) are more disadvantaged in the recruitment process compared to refugees with no country of origin specified. Our main contribution to existing research is the identification of a “refugee penalty” and an additional ethnic penalty for Ethiopian jobseekers. We find that having a refugee background lowers the likelihood of being hired and that refugees with an Ethiopian background are less likely to be hired than a refugee with no country of origin specified (a further ethnic penalty).

ABSTRACT. Migration into Denmark has shown a steady increase during the last 10 years. According to Statistics Denmark the immigration into Denmark in 2016 was 94,365 persons of which 24 pct. were Danish citizens. The immigration in 2016 was 16,482 persons above the average for the latest 10 years. The emigration from Denmark in 2016 was 61,078 persons providing a net migration into Denmark at 33,287 persons. Compared with a little birth surplus at 8,790 in 2016 the net emigration is responsible for a little increase in the total Danish population.

The current research has only focused on immigration, which varies substantially between municipalities and within municipalities, where immigrants are being concentrated in specific areas leading to various challenges like unemployment, health problems, lower educational level etc. We have analysed the immigration into various subdistricts within three municipalities: Aalborg, representing a larger city in the periphery of Denmark; Frederiksberg, representing a wealthy enclave in greater Copenhagen; and Køge, representing a medium sized town about 40 km from Copenhagen.

Using the national Danish Central Person Register, you can track the movement of people from address to address. For foreign immigrants from country to a specific Danish address. The three municipalities are subdivided into up to 500 subdistricts providing rather high spatial resolution without violating the rules regarding sensitive information about individuals. The analysis period was from 2003 – 2019. Thus, the time period covered the optimistic period in the beginning of the century, the financial and economic crisis from 2008 – 2013, and the slow recovery afterwards. This provided, very good opportunities for comparing the migration situation among the three municipalities, and for detecting spatial and temporal trends and patterns at district level, which were afterwards analysed by applying various spatial statistics like G statistics and Moran’s I to identify significant clustering.

References: Hansen, H. S. (2018). Meeting the Migration Challenges at Local Governance Level by Small Scale Population Projections 31 Aug 2018, Electronic Government and the Information Systems Perspective - 7th International Conference, EGOVIS 2018, Proceedings: 7th International Conference, EGOVIS 2018 Regensburg, Germany, September 3-5, 2018 Proceedings. Kö, A. & Francesconi, E. (eds.). Springer, Vol. 11032. p. 258-269 12 p. (Lecture Notes in Computer Science Vol. 11032 LNCS)

ABSTRACT. While migration is typically studied from an international perspective, focusing on the movement of large groups between countries, the decision to migrate is actually taken at the individual or household level. Leaving aside forced migration, many factors (and combinations thereof) can lead to the consideration of moving internally or abroad, including economic factors, inter-personal relationships (e.g., marriage, community), security, and personal freedom, among others. These factors may play a role both at the person's (or family's) origin, and at the destinations under consideration.

The goal of this research is to gain a better understanding of the individual circumstances of 1206 households in Duhok Governate in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region that have been surveyed in detailed interviews in 2011. An analysis of the reasons given for migration by those of the 606 rural and 600 urban households with migration events has already been conducted by Eklund and Pilesjö (2012). However, the collection of interviews contains a rich body of information that has not been systematically analyzed yet, including information on income, expenses, farming activity, household size, car ownership and socio-demographic data. This presentation will attempt to shed some light on the differences between households with and without migration events with respect to these attributes. A random forest classification (Liaw and Wiener, 2002) will be applied to the interview data to analyze whether the information provided in the structured interviews can be used to predict which households are likely to have internal or international migration events, and if so, which (combination) of the attributes is most relevant for the classification.

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt to use a machine learning method in the context of surveys related to migration. The presentation will therefore also touch upon the potentials and challenges of applying machine learning techniques in this field.

References

Eklund, Lina, and Petter Pilesjo. "Migration Patterns in Duhok Governorate, Iraq, 2000-2010." The Open Geography Journal 5.1 (2012): 48–58.

Liaw, Andy, and Matthew Wiener. "Classification and regression by randomForest." R news 2.3 (2002): 18-22.

ABSTRACT. In recent years the relatively liberal family reunification policy of Sweden has undergone a notable shift toward a more restrictive approach. Since the Swedish government introduced housing and labor requirements in 2016 and in some cases the removal of the right to reunite altogether, families’ outlook for reunification and time in separation ahschanged significantly. When family reunification is conditioned by the integration trajectory of the immigrated person in Sweden (the sponsor), pressure also augments from the family abroad. This three-way dynamic between state, family and individual affects the well-being of both families abroad and sponsors in Sweden, as failure to fulfill the requirements leaves them in an indefinite state of waiting while separated. This PhD project aims to explore the mental health implications and experiences of relational waitinghood among refugees and their family members awaiting reunification in/to Sweden. It does so by using Public Health as an entryway, understanding health as a result of social determinants from macro to micro levels such as policies, housing conditions and family relations. Using a mixed-method approach, the first module of the project analyzes survey data on newly-arrived refugees in Scania and their self-reported health connected to family absence. The second module consists of interviews with families waiting in Turkey and Sweden. Here, waitinghood is explored as a determinant of health for newly-arrived refugees and their families. The second module also explores the inherently contradictory role of the sponsor as both an intermediary, a navigator and a challenger of migration policy and its implications on the well-being of those in waiting. The project aims to contribute to the field of migration and health while also adding to the growing theoretical body of literature on temporal aspects of migration trajectories.

ABSTRACT. The article investigates public attitudes towards migrants’ access to social benefits and services in Western- European destination countries. The overall thesis is that the public is more restrictive when it comes to access to social benefits and more lenient when it comes to social services. Using original survey data collected in Denmark, Germany, and the UK in 2019, the article describes attitudes towards granting social rights to Eastern European workers respectively for three cash benefits and three in-kind services. Across the three countries, representing respectively a social democratic, conservative and liberal welfare regime , the article finds that the public has a preference for easier access for in-kind services than for cash benefits. The article finds the same pattern for cash and in-kind services covering the same social risk. Finally, the article finds that welfare chauvinism attitudes are particularly restrictive when it comes to transferring cash benefits to children living outside the state.

ABSTRACT. How do children of immigrants in Scandinavia remember the inclusiveness of their schools? We know surprisingly little about this. What we do know is that the Scandinavian countries differ quite a lot in terms of how the school’s role in integrating children of immigrant is perceived by political parties and governments – and that this is visible in different national school policies. Denmark has taken a more assimilationist approach while Sweden has taken a more civic-multiculturalist approach – with Norway in between. Still, schools and teachers have a relatively large degree of autonomy in terms of how and what they teach. On this backdrop, this paper examines how young adult immigrant descendants remember the cultural inclusiveness of their former schools. Is in fact the case that Swedish young adults with an immigrant background also perceive their former schools as more inclusive and accepting of their cultural differences compared to similar young adults in Denmark and Norway? The analysis is based on a 2018 survey among young adult immigrant descendants in Denmark, Sweden and Norway, which, besides a majority control group, include respondents with parents born in Iraq, Somalia, Pakistan, Poland, Turkey and Vietnam.

ABSTRACT. A shift from welfare to workfare took place in the Nordic countries from the early 1990s to the 2000s. In recent years, the workfare regime has started to spread to the field of labour market integration of immigrants. This paper sets out to analyse the recent reforms of migrant labour market integration policy in Denmark and the potential consequences of the reforms for the integration of immigrants into the labour market. By analysing changes to the Danish migrant labour market integration policy and the accompanying policy discourse from 2014 to 2018, the paper shows how the concept of workfare has made its entry in Danish migrant integration policy. Resulting from a framing of non-western immigrants as a burden to the Danish welfare state, the current Danish labour market integration policy is based on the idea of ‘work first’. While first evaluations of the recent reforms show that a greater share of immigrants has entered into the workforce or into education, the long-term consequences of the current workfare approach for migrant labour market integration seems less promising in addition to being counteractive in some regards.

ABSTRACT. This paper investigates the nexus between anti-trafficking, labour and migration policy intentions and practices, paying special attention to the identification process of victims of human trafficking among labour migrants. It takes a starting point in the legitimacy of the state as the main source of governance and territorial regulation. In order to understand how the process of victimisation of human trafficking takes place, the objective of this paper is to explore how the collaboration of the different groups of authorities is established through different logics, mandates and interests. On the one hand, the image of the victim of human trafficking as the ‘deserving’ migrant who is innocently exploited, unjustly abused and sometimes did not even migrate intentionally, highlights the role of the state as ‘the (white) saviour’. On the other hand, in an age of ‘crimmigration’, migrants without residence and labour permits become synonymous with criminals, due to the state’s border control. The aim of the paper is to demonstrate how the rights of the labour migrants is eclipsed by the discourse of human trafficking. Finally, the paper investigates the consequences of this political development.

ABSTRACT. This article exploits the introduction of a sectoral minimum wage in the Ger-man construction industry and the National Minimum Wage (NMW) in the UK to examine the impact of minimum wage reform on the immigrant wage gap in two sectors with a large population of foreign-born workers and varying wage setting environments. Our results suggest that minimum wage reform may help reduce the wage position of the most vulnerable migrant workers in liberal market economies where wage setting arrangements are largely decentralised. However, this impact appears to be confined at the bottom end of the wage distribution with no apparent spill-over effects higher in the wage distribution.