Abstract

The control function of reception centers hinders asylum seekers’ settlement to their host communities. Even though open accommodation centers compose the majority of the European reception system, few studies have comprehensively analyzed their controlling aspects from the asylum seeker perspective. In this article, we examine asylum seekers’ experiences of confinement in Finnish reception centers by using semi-structured and individual interviews (n = 28). We identified three “layers” of confinement in asylum seekers’ accounts: spatial, service-based, and communicative. Together, these permeable but overlapping and accumulative layers define asylum seekers’ experiences by hampering their efforts to participate in local communities and reducing their autonomy.

摘要

接待中心的控制功能阻碍了寻求庇护者在其所在社区的安置。尽管开放式住宿中心构成了欧洲接收系统的大部分，但很少有研究从寻求庇护者的角度全面分析其控制方面。在本文中，我们通过半结构化和个人访谈（n = 28）来研究寻求庇护者在芬兰接待中心的监禁经历。我们在寻求庇护者的账户中确定了三个“层级”限制：空间、基于服务和交流。这些可渗透但重叠和累积的层共同定义了寻求庇护者的经历，阻碍了他们参与当地社区的努力并降低了他们的自主权。