Newly arrived migrants meet street-level bureaucrats in Jordan, Sweden, and Turkey: Client perceptions of satisfaction–dissatisfaction and response strategies

Abstract

The article examines how newly arrived Syrian refugees experience and navigate their encounters with street-level bureaucrats (SLBs) in three urban settings: Adana, Turkey; Gothenburg, Sweden; and Irbid, Jordan. The encounters took place in the context of local government institutions responsible for assisting refugees upon their arrival in the host society. The broader question examined is how refugees respond when experiencing dissatisfaction with their encounters with SLBs in the receiving country. In our analysis, we draw upon the Exit, Voice, Loyalty, Neglect model suggesting different patterns of response to dissatisfaction with public services. We also deploy an additional, understudied response type, Gaming. The degree of satisfaction–dissatisfaction experienced by Syrian refugees and the kind of response strategies they resorted to as a consequence of that experience varied notably from country to country. Syrian refugees in Gothenburg and Adana felt more dissatisfied with and frustrated by their encounters with SLBs than their compatriots in Irbid. The responses of the refugees in Adana were mostly of the Exit and Neglect type. In Gothenburg, on the other hand, interviewees primarily resorted to Neglect and Voice responses, while in Irbid Gaming, Exit, and Loyalty were the most common response strategies opted for to express and act upon one’s dissatisfaction.

Bureaucratic Violence in the Residency Application Process: Findings from a Mixed Methods Cross-Sectional Survey of Migrant Women in Spain

“…Whilst participants did not disclose how they responded to their challenging interactions with street-level bureaucrats, other studies have suggested that migrants are likely to respond in one of five main ways: Exiting the situation, such as by trying to subvert formal systems or switch service provider; Voicing their concerns through complaints or speaking up; Remaining loyal to the street-level bureaucrat by continuing with the process without speaking up; Neglecting the situation by becoming indifferent; or Gaming the system by trying to exploit or manipulate the rules in their favour (Schierenbeck et al 2023). Whilst formal complaint procedures to raise concerns with civil servants in Spain exist, they are unlikely to be used in the context of immigration procedures given the precarious status of the applicants, the inherent power imbalance and the extent to which street-level bureaucrats acting in this field are 'protected from external examination' and 'empowered to interpret and apply legal texts and regulations without, in most cases, having to fear administrative appeals' (Alpes and Spire 2013).…”