Mimon Mohamed Si Ali, Jamal Toutouh El Alamin, Sagrario Segado Sánchez-Cabezudo, Neil Gilbert
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
This article investigates social vulnerability, legal challenges, and migratory experiences of unaccompanied foreign minors entering Europe via Melilla, a Spanish city in northern Africa. A mixed-methods approach integrates statistical analysis and qualitative research, including natural language processing on 1274 records and 1200 in-depth interviews. The theoretical framework combines social vulnerability theory, the child-rights perspective, and migration decision-making models to clarify how structural (institutional and cultural) and individual (motivations and social networks) factors influence school attendance frequency and continuity, as well as integration in a border environment. Quantitative findings emphasize the key roles of socioeconomic status and educational modality (public vs. Quranic), revealing no significance for nationality. Qualitative evidence underscores linguistic barriers and discrimination, highlighting the necessity of enhanced psychosocial and cultural support. Given these results, the study calls for urgent reforms to child protection policies and border-control strategies, aligning measures with the principle of the child's best interests.
期刊介绍:
The International Journal of Social Welfare publishes original articles in English on social welfare and social work. Its interdisciplinary approach and comparative perspective promote examination of the most pressing social welfare issues of the day by researchers from the various branches of the applied social sciences. The journal seeks to disseminate knowledge and to encourage debate about these issues and their regional and global implications.