A Digital Space for the Displaced

This study examines the increasing role played by information and communication technology (ICT) in facilitating transnational migration by focusing on the mass resettlement of Syrian refugees in Europe as a result of the ongoing conflict and displacement in Syria. Although considerable academic attention has been paid to how modern technology is used by migrants to navigate and overcome obstacles during their journey, less emphasis has been placed on the role of ICTs once they arrive at their destination. Specifically, this study seeks to identify the roles played by the mobile phone in contributing to a Syrian refugee’s material and emotional wellbeing in a popular destination country, the Netherlands. A total of ten in-depth qualitative interviews have been conducted with male Syrian refugees in various parts of the country. Through data analysis, the study outlines the role of the mobile phone in securing respondents’ access to practical opportunities and services, as well as its role in facilitating contact and support both from local networks and those back home. The findings indicate that refugees’ previous experiences with mobile technology, especially during their journey, have fostered strong bonds with the device that can shape its subsequent usage in the Netherlands. Yet even within the Dutch context, different usage patterns emerged between resettled refugees and those awaiting status approval, and also between those who actively embrace the multifunctionality of mobile technology and those who seek to limit mobile usage to communication. The mobile phone seems unique in its rapid ability to mobilize and canvas networks of support, but its role in generating such networks in the first place is also highly user dependent. Finally, this study asserts that the mobile phone plays an irreplaceable role in maintaining contact between refugees and their friends and families in Syria, to the extent that all such communication is mediated through the device. This dependency has redefined family practices and dynamics, and can also place a significant burden upon the Netherlands-based refugee. With the Syrian refugee crisis ongoing and Dutch society becoming increasingly digitally connected, the findings of this study provide valuable insights into a particular user group that faces the prospect of a growing reliance on mobile technology in the near future.