Studies
This library hosts materials developed by Switchboard and by former Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR)-funded technical assistance (TA) providers (most in fiscal years 2016-2018, with selected earlier materials). This library links materials externally where: their formats were incompatible with internal hosting; they were developed by current ORR-funded TA providers; or they were developed by non-ORR funded authors who granted permission for the links.
Author Definitions
Free Full TextBuilding the New American Community: Newcomer integration and inclusion experiences in non-traditional gateway cities
Publication Year: 2004
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Community Initiatives
Relevant ORR Program(s): Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways, Refugee School Impact Program, Refugee Support Services
Direction of Evidence: Positive impact
Strength of Evidence: Suggestive
Type of Study: Suggestive evidence
The study examined how governments and civil society can co-operate to achieve positive integration outcomes. Coalitions to develop and experiment with integration strategies were formed in Lowell, Nashville and Portland. This three-year initiative focused on building relationships among organizations and institutions affiliated with the refugee/immigrant and receiving communities in order to capitalize on existing resources …
Free Full TextCan we make a difference? Prejudice towards asylum seekers in Australia and the effectiveness of antiprejudice interventions
Publication Year: 2015
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Anti-Prejudice Interventions
Relevant ORR Program(s): Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways, Refugee School Impact Program, Refugee Support Services
Direction of Evidence: Positive impact
Strength of Evidence: Suggestive
Type of Study: Literature synthesis
Over the past few decades, Australia has implemented increasingly restrictive measures to try and deter the arrival of asylum seekers. In our article, we review what is known in the literature about the antecedents of prejudice against asylum seekers. We outline 11 mechanisms, or variables, as being particularly important. We then draw out the practical …
Free Full TextBuilding welcome from the ground up: European small and rural communities engaging in refugee resettlement.
Publication Year: 2020
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Community Initiatives
Relevant ORR Program(s): Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways, Refugee School Impact Program, Refugee Support Services
Direction of Evidence: Positive impact
Strength of Evidence: Suggestive
Type of Study: Suggestive evidence
This study aims to deepen understanding of how refugee resettlement to small or rural localities is experienced by both refugees and receiving communities, drawing on interviews with local stakeholders and refugees in four EU countries (Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, and Sweden). These interviews pointed to a number of strategies and policy approaches that have emerged …
Free Full TextBystander anti-racism: A review of the literature
Publication Year: 2011
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Bystander Anti-Racism
Relevant ORR Program(s): Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways, Refugee School Impact Program, Refugee Support Services
Direction of Evidence: Positive impact
Strength of Evidence: Strong
Type of Study: Systematic review
This review of literature on anti-racist prosocial action points to the strong and largely untapped policy potential of bystander anti-racism. Bystander anti-racism is conceptualized as action taken by “ordinary” people in response to incidents of interpersonal or systemic racism. The utility of bystander anti-racism is also demonstrated, with evidence suggesting productive effects for targets and …
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Free Full TextValuing immigration: How frame elements contribute to effective communications
Publication Year: 2010
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Media Framing
Relevant ORR Program(s): Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways, Refugee School Impact Program, Refugee Support Services
Direction of Evidence: Inconclusive or mixed impact
Strength of Evidence: Moderate
Type of Study: Impact evaluation
Two experimental surveys were conducted to understand the effects of three types of value frames: (1) frames that specifically implicate racial and ethnic discrimination, structural racism or inequality in explaining why society ought to enact policy reforms; (2) frames that simply underscore the benefits that might accrue to racial and ethnic minority communities if policy …
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Free Full TextCan we really reduce ethnic prejudice outside the lab? A meta-analysis of direct and indirect contact interventions.
Publication Year: 2015
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Contact Interventions
Relevant ORR Program(s): Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways, Refugee School Impact Program, Refugee Support Services
Direction of Evidence: Positive impact
Strength of Evidence: Strong
Type of Study: Meta-analysis
The present meta-analysis tested the effectiveness of contact-based interventions for the reduction of ethnic prejudice. Up to now, a meta-analysis summarizing the results of real-world interventions that rest on the intergroup contact theory has been missing. We included evaluations of programs realizing direct (i.e., face-to-face) and/or indirect (i.e., extended or virtual) contact in realworld settings …
Free Full TextSocial-developmental perspective on intergroup attitudes towards immigrants and refugees in childhood and adolescence: A roadmap from theory to practice for an inclusive society
Publication Year: 2019
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Intergroup Contact
Relevant ORR Program(s): Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways, Refugee School Impact Program, Refugee Support Services
Direction of Evidence: Inconclusive or mixed impact
Strength of Evidence: Suggestive
Type of Study: Literature synthesis
The unprecedented rates of migration throughout the world have raised concerns about the social integration of immigrants and refugees due to possible experiences of prejudice, discrimination, and hostility from members of the host society. In this article, we review developmental and social theories and related research outlining children’s and adolescents’ intergroup attitudes towards immigrants and …
Free Full TextExplaining opposition to refugee resettlement: The role of NIMBYism and perceived threats
Publication Year: 2017
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Media Framing
Relevant ORR Program(s): Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways, Refugee School Impact Program, Refugee Support Services
Direction of Evidence: Inconclusive or mixed impact
Strength of Evidence: Moderate
Type of Study: Impact evaluation
One week after President Donald Trump signed a controversial executive order to reduce the influx of refugees to the United States, we conducted a survey experiment to understand American citizens attitudes toward refugee resettlement. Specifically, we evaluated whether citizens consider the geographic context of the resettlement program (that is, local versus national) and the degree …
Free Full TextEngaging employers in immigrant integration.
Publication Year: 2015
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Workplace interventions
Relevant ORR Program(s): Matching Grant, Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways
Direction of Evidence: Positive impact
Strength of Evidence: Suggestive
Type of Study: Literature review
This report addresses the following questions: 1. What do we know about employer engagement in immigrant integration? 2. What conceptual and theoretical strands can guide knowledge about employer engagement in immigrant integration? 3. What can employers do to foster immigrant integration? To answer those questions, the author reviewed the evidence from literature, and complemented this …
Free Full TextUnderstanding public attitudes towards refugees and migrants.
Publication Year: 2017
Outcome area(s): Inclusive Communities
Intervention(s): Varies
Relevant ORR Program(s): Preferred Communities, Public/Private Partnership Program, Refugee Career Pathways, Refugee School Impact Program, Refugee Support Services
Direction of Evidence: Inconclusive or mixed impact
Strength of Evidence: Suggestive
Type of Study: Literature review
This paper is intended as a primer on the drivers influencing public attitudes towards refugees and migrants, and what they mean for organisations working on refugee and migration issues. This paper canvasses this large literature base to draw out commonalities and highlight potential entry points. Findings show that engaging effectively with public attitudes towards refugees …
Understanding public attitudes towards refugees and migrants. Read More »