Metropolis Abstract 

Title: Facilitating integration of newcomers: a comparative study of settlement experiences of refugees in Italy and the Netherlands

Dr Maja Korac

Lisa Gilad Senior Research Officer

Refugee Studies Centre

University of Oxford 

The paper examines two contrasting . models. of reception and integration and their effects on the socio-economic situation of refugees from former Yugoslavia settled in Rome and Amsterdam. Within this framework, it specifically focuses on how these two different policy and broader country contexts influence the development of refugee strategies for integration. The point of departure in exploring refugee settlement experiences is grounded in a critique of a . top-down. approach to the concept of . integration. . The analysis aims to reaffirm a notion of . refugee. as a social actor, seeking ways to overcome structural and social barriers that hinder the process of settlement. The paper documents considerable difficulties in functional integration (via the labour market and education) of the studied population in both study sites. However, the nature of difficulties the refugees confront in seeking to establish a valuable social role in the receiving societies differ as well as the way how they perceive the receiving societies and their established communities, and how they assess their individual situations in exile and set their goals. The discussion indicates that personal satisfaction and assessment of integration success goes beyond simple, measurable, indicators such as individual occupational mobility, and includes indicators such as quality and strength of social links with the established community.