Asymetrie i klisze pojęciowe w analizach uchodźstwa w Polsce

Abstract

The paper analyzes publications on refugees in Poland. It presents the conceptual asymmetries and clichés that might hinder the realization of the postulate that the researchers should be the translators of the worldviews of both the refugees and the members of the host society. Three types of asymmetries are being discussed. The first one concerns the unequal regard to the trustworthy and motives of informants. Many authors treat the relations given by the refugees under study as statements on facts, while the relations of other categories of informants as declarations. By the same token, the explaining of the motives of actions in the case of refugees usually takes into account the broad cultural context, while in the case of other categories of research subjects this context is not embodied yet their actions are being evaluated. The second asymmetry pertains to the explanation of the failure of the adaptation processes, which is not matched by a similar one as far as success stories are concerned. Eventually, the third asymmetry consists of differentiated attitudes with regard to the nongovernmental organizations and the state agencies. It is often the case that non-governmental organizations are a priori positively evaluated, while state agencies negatively. The paper also considers another often encountered conceptual cliché which describes the centers for refugees as a total institution. The empirical material under analysis shows that these do not fit Erving Goffman’s definition of this phenomenon.