Citizen by choice? : the effect of context on political socialisation of Syrian refugees in Baden-Württemberg and Brandenburg

Abstract

The issue of multi-level governance in asylum policies received renewed attention following the Ukrainian refugee influx of 2022. This thesis offers a regional approach by analysing internal variations within Germany of refugee political integration policies and their effectiveness in socialising refugees. Using the Königstein key’s allocation of Syrian refugees following the 2015 refugee crisis, it systematically compares integration patterns in the states of Baden-Württemberg and Brandenburg The field of political socialisation is important for refugees fleeing authoritarian states, yet the process of socialisation is different between migrants and is highly dependent on context. Using an online survey (n = 584), I create a general predictive model (GEM) using geographic, demographic, and political variables before controlling for location and allocation. The paper finds significant variations in political socialisation scores between the two states and between allocated and self-matched refugees, reaching an explanatory power of r2 = 33%. The research finds that traditional demographic variables used in political socialisation research interacts differently with refugees in different locations and situations, hence the need to consider the design of allocation policies in relation to the professional or academic opportunities for refugees. By collecting data on refugee preferences and testing the effect of allocation and reallocation on their political socialisation, the study contributes to the literature on political socialisation with methodological reflections and lays ground for further studies about refugee preferences.