Sexuality and Migration – Focal Point Refugees. A qualitative study on the lives of refugees under the age of 18 in Germany

This study takes a look at a special target group about which little academically verified data exists to date: refugees who are minors. Between 2017 and 2018 80 qualitative one-on-one interviews were conducted with refugees between the ages of 14 and 17 who had come to Germany since 2015. The qualitative survey asks about and introduces conceptions, attitudes and stances, including with regard to sexuality and relationships. Particular attention was given to the conversation setting, where a sensitive cultural approach was chosen that significantly determined the choice of interviewer.

The interviews, which were designed to be sensitive to the respondents’ culture, generate a heterogeneous image of the living environments of adolescent refugees between the ages of 14 and 17 – there is no single typical living environment; instead, the attitudes and approaches vary within ethnic groups too.

The questions structured by subject area reveal the heterogeneity and different experiences within the responses. Nevertheless, it is possible to express a mindset typology, facilitating the understanding of the different living environments. The conditions that led to the study’s creation also led to the focus being on the qualitative analysis. This was in part due to the difficult selection process, to the still brief period of time in the country and to the situation of the respondents, which did not permit certain questions at the time of the interviews. Consequently, we cannot make any quantifying statements here, nor can the evaluation lead to the determination of social milieus such as the BZgA study by Wippermann, Möller-Slawinski & Scheffler (2010) did, for example.

However, the results can generate impulses to consider how the group of adolescent refugees between the ages of 14 and 17 can be addressed and reached by the BZgA.

Core statements can be extracted about the subjects that were asked about in the interviews. This creates a picture of the diverse and varying attitudes and approaches of the adolescent refugees.

Subject Area: “Everyday Life and Friendships”

School in particular plays a significant, structuring role in the respondents’ everyday lives. If the young people have arrived in the destination country with their own family, then this is a second structuring element in their lives. Among unaccompanied young people foster families and other forms of accommodation take on this role. Should the young people’s residence permit status still be unsettled, then this type of structure is lacking in their lives.

Friendships are important for everyone and they accompany everyday lives, but not all of the respondents have already found (good) friends. In almost all cases the friendship circles are with members of the same sex, but at the same time they are quite often multicultural.

Subject Area: “Leisure Time, Interests and Personal Taste”

Leisure time takes places outside of ‘educationally controlled’ spaces. Much has changed here compared to the country of origin because now that time is often spent ‘in green spaces’, frequently, however, alone.

Clubs and the like play almost no role. Sports and music are popular leisure activities, and boys in particular do a lot of sports in their free time. There is also interest in fashion, shopping, playing an instrument, in books, reading and visiting museums and the theatre, but these play almost no role. The interest in travelling and intercultural experiences is noteworthy.

Subject Area: “Faith and Religion”

Faith and religion are simply part of life for the adolescent refugees. Religious provides orientation when it comes to dealing with everyday life and it provides identity. Religious tolerance is a firm social norm and criticism of Islamism is vocal.

Subject Area: “Migration and Integration”

The young people experience their arrival in Germany very differently. Many are still burdened by their worry about relatives in conflict areas. The young people experience a high willingness by the recipient country to welcome and integrate them, but the majority have also experienced discrimination. Some have also perceived social hostility. They deal differently with these experiences, but usually in a pragmatic manner.

Acquiring the language, attending school and interacting with Germans all foster integration. The young people often feel they have a debt they need to pay with regards to integration. A lack of mastery of the language in particular leads to feelings of impotence and the same is true for taking on major family responsibility.

Looking towards the future, most are carefully optimistic. They view Germany as a country in which they can self-actualise. Remigration is unimaginable for most, but they do experience their roots as important to their identity.

Being in love and being in a ‘steady relationship’ do not initially come with a sexual component for most of the young people. For that reason moving in together before marriage is also not an option for most of the respondents. Parents provide the template for how relationships are practised, but they do not tend to be role models. There is a stricter sexual moral code for girls than for boys.

When it comes to marriage, the preferred life concept of the male respondents is a traditional division of labour, but there is scope for individual configuration. Among the female respondents this arrangement has little popularity, because many girls have career ambitions alongside a desire for family.

For many young people, sexuality is connected to feelings of shame. They evade or they express negative views when they are asked about connotations the taboo-laden subject of sexuality has. Dealing with this in Germany in particular ‘takes some getting used to’ for them. Few of them have had sexual experiences to date.

Subject Area: “Information Behaviour and Reference People for the Topic of Sexuality”

Many young people do not have anyone they can talk to about this subject and if they do, then they change who they talk to – they talk to one person about sexuality and to another about being in love and about feelings. Teachers as reference people receive almost no mention. The level of and desire for information prove to be very heterogeneous. If there is a need, the internet is the main port of call. There are no language preferences here.

Subject Area: “Sexuality and Relationships”

Family is the linchpin in the lives of the young people and starting a family is out of the question for them. Relationships are only thought of in heterosexual contexts, whereas around half of the young people surveyed could imagine a multicultural marriage. The desire for a large family is not very widespread. Instead, a relationship with two to three children is considered desirable. None of the young people wanted to marry someone they did not know and the influence of the family on the choice of partner is perceived less strongly than in the country of origin.

Subject Area: “Reaction to the BZgA Web Service Zanzu”

Many young adolescents think the BZgA’s web service Zanzu is interesting, especially with regard to the anonymous access to information about sexuality. The topics of ‘the body’ and ‘rights and laws’ are considered particularly important. Since it is a governmental website, many respondents expect legitimate, scientific information. Some, especially the male respondents, would like to use the web service more often in the future. The look and design of the site appeal to the adolescents – aspects here include the text to speech option and the ‘discreet’ visualisation of the topic, which triggers feelings of shame in the respondents. The expectations what topics they will find there and for whom the service is intended vary greatly. Many consider themselves part of the target audience, at least in the future.

The diverse individual statements about the different subject areas can be structured into four ideal types of profiles that share certain attitudes, approaches and orientations (mindsets).

Although all four of the mindset types presented occur, they vary greatly in size and there are fluid transitions (cf. figure 9). In the chosen survey group, the mindsets ‘Moving Up’ and ‘Blending In’ are numerically the biggest.

Mindset Moving Up

This mindset captures those individuals who like order and are focused on improving their position. These young people are rooted in tradition and care about security. Although they are striving for success and a career, they also do not want to violate the norms of the country of their origin or of their family. They have respect for the rule of law and make a strong distinction between the private sphere and the public realm.

Mindset Breaking Free

This group encompasses those with a cosmopolitan outlook striving towards emancipation. They are willing to change, happy to experiment and focused on self-actualisation. They long for breaking free intellectually and emotionally from traditional boundaries. Personal growth is more important to them than career. They are looking for the values and social roles that are right for them.

Mindset Holding On

This mindset refers to those who are unsure and are holding on to their traditions. These young people are rooted in their traditions and are centred around their in-group. They are often uncertain and have damaged self-esteem because of their experiences with discrimination. They have a pessimistic outlook on the future. They do not feel like they are part of the social majority; instead, they feel uprooted. The norms of the country of origin on the one hand and the youth culture in the arrival country on the other give them identification options. 

Mindset Blending In

This group encompasses those who are willing to fit in and who are concerned about security. These young people care about stability and are willing to adapt. They strive for a ‘normal life’. They exhibit a willingness to adapt to German norms without giving up their fundamental convictions. They hold classically conservative values (family, hard work), combined with an adaptive pragmatism and they pursue moderate social goals.

 

With the BZgA’s legal mandate in mind – providing information about sexuality education in a suitable format – the young people were also asked about the BZgA’s web service Zanzu. The majority of the adolescent refugees had not yet encountered the BZgA web service Zanzu. It turned out that this could be a suitable tool for delivering information about sexuality education, sexuality, contraception and family planning for this group – especially these topics are not discussed in the home or when the individuals in question have no other access to legitimate information.

The adolescent young people felt their questions about the subject of sexuality education with trusted information and an inviting design were represented, fulfilling their wishes in this area. This service also suits the attitude held by the majority of this group, which is to be very reserved about the subject of sexuality. A website suits the desire for being able to acquire information anonymously well. Nevertheless, there were some suggestions for improvements, such as the desire for further languages or for the service to be structured differently in terms of its content.

School and lessons as a source of information for sexuality education provide an access route – however, this option very much does not lead to any exchange or more in-depth knowledge. Instead, it is more of a ‘one-way street’ from the teaching staff to the adolescents.

In the respondents’ statements there are a number of different starting points in order to impart sexuality education suitably to the target group, e.g. raising more awareness about the web service, didactic materials in school, and the option of establishing contacts via personal conversations.