Partnership formation in the context of refugee migration

• Department of Political and Social Sciences

In the framework of the SPS Departemental Seminar Series, this session features a talk by Professor Irena Kogan.

The increase in refugee migration in 2015/16 brought many young unmarried men from Syria and Afghanistan to Germany, who now face challenges in finding co-ethnic (marriage) partners. This study explores:

(1) Refugees’ partnership preferences.

(2) The partnership preferences of the German population, including those with a migration background.

(3) The resulting partnership patterns.

The study contributes to the demographic discussion by integrating a two-sided perspective both theoretically and empirically. The methodology employed allows for more precise comparisons by relying on the newly collected first wave of the PARFORM data, comprising approximately 3,400 male refugees from Syria and Afghanistan, and the 9th wave of the CILS4EU-DE data, which includes several identical instruments. First, the alignment of partners' preferences on education, religion and religiosity is assessed. By comparing preferences with actual partnership patterns, the role of preferences in partner selection between refugees and host societies is clarified. Second, the formation of refugee partnerships is modelled, incorporating the attitudes of the German population towards refugee partnerships. This approach broadens the concept of opportunity structures by accounting for a critical factor, the willingness of the resident population to consider refugees as partners.