Write a project outline of 2 to 3 pages plus references containing the research question, the methodological approach and a short state of research.
Alison Haywood
14 March 2016
Master Thesis Proposal
University of Hamburg
Introduction: the European refugee crisis
Europe is currently experiencing the biggest wave of migration in its history to date. Hundreds of thousands of migrants are entering the European Union at unprecedented rates, many of whom are refugees coming from unstable lands in the Middle East and Africa seeking asylum. The wave peaked in 2015, with over one million migrants and refugees entering Europe in that year alone (BBC 2015).
Germany is by far the biggest destination land. One million migrants entered Germany in 2015, and more than 476,000 new asylum applications were submitted in Germany that year as well (BBC 2015).
With this immigration come many challenges for the new host countries, not the least of which is integrating the migrants into their new host country. New media technology may be able to help facilitate this process. A wide variety of language learning software for desktop computers and mobile devices is already available, and app and web developers have begun creating new media directed specifically at refugees to help with acquiring language, navigating bureaucracy, and facilitating contact between refugees and people trying to help them (O’Brien, 2015; Techfugees Australia, 2016; Peters 2016; AppsforRefugees.com).
Objectives and research question
But are these apps actually reaching their intended audience? That is the one of the questions this research project will attempt to find out.
Clearly refugees and migrants in Europe are a major target audience for certain media developers. In order to find out how to best connect media producers with their intended audiences, we must first be familiar with the audiences’ current media use patterns, which is what this research project attempts to shed light on.
This project will consist of exploratory qualitative research on media use by unaccompanied refugee children in Germany. The research will explore the question: How do unaccompanied underage recent migrants in Hamburg, Germany use media? Sub-questions include: What media does the target population have access to? Of the media they can access, which platforms do they use most often, and why?
Finding out what types of media the target audience utilizes can help media developers and content producers interested in refugees deliver their products to their intended audience.
For Methodology and References, see the file attached: Haywood_Thesis Proposal
Alison Mundus 