Rebuilding Social Capital in Refugees and Asylum Seekers

Abstract

Displacement caused by war, conflict and persecution affects refugees and asylum seekers in more ways than we can imagine. This article investigates refugees and asylum seekers’ experiences associated with displacement and the effects it has on their social capital. We present findings from a qualitative study that involved a mix of 24 participants, including refugees, asylum seekers, community workers and activists. Cultural probes and semi-structured interviews were adopted in this study. We discuss our findings in four themes: displacement related stressors, acceptance in the host community, access to social resources and technology use by refugees. We discuss examples from our study and offer practical, theoretical and technological design implications that can foster social capital for refugees and asylum seekers.