Friendship, partnership and family

Normative ideas of young men and women with migration experience

Integration Department

Project head: Prof. Dr. Magdalena Nowicka

Project team members: Laura Juds ,  Dr. Katarzyna Wojnicka

There are only a few group-related studies in Germany on normative ideas of young people with a migration background regarding friendship, partnership and family. The project researched how young men and women with migration experience imagine their own friendships, partnership and family, whether these ideas differ from the wishes of their parents and families and how they depend on social images of femininity and masculinity. Based on the findings, target group-oriented measures and instruments can be developed. Furthermore, the study provides a data basis for better measuring the integration of young people in symbolic-cultural dimensions.

Results: The study has an explorative character and is based on focus group interviews and individual interviews with a total of 43 young women and men with a migration background. Additional data was collected in the context of an interactive artistic workshop. Among other things, the analyses provided information about traditional ideas of femininity and masculinity, independent of the young people's ethnic and religious self-attributions. Nevertheless, the young people show themselves to be very open to alternative life plans of women and men and accept the normative diversity of society.

Funding: Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (Institutional funding)