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Health and hostile hospitality: Understanding asylum applicants’ narratives of life and health in the UK

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  • Tomkow, Louise

Abstract

This paper explores how middle aged and older asylum applicants in the UK speak about health in relation to migratory experiences. It proposes biocredibility as a novel theoretical concept, through which the narratives of those migrating to the UK to seek asylum can be analysed. The UK government's hostile environments policies, which aim to make life uncomfortable for irregular migrants in the UK in order to drive down migration, have been criticised on legal, material and moral grounds. This paper adds to this critique. Narrative analysis of semi-structured interviews shows that the majority of the asylum applicants interviewed felt their health was poor and told of the difficulties of life in the UK. Stories of homelessness, poverty and exclusion dominated, underpinned by the erosion of their perceived trustworthiness and credibility through encounters with the Home Office. Particular personal experiences of social, political and economic strife in exile were narrated closely against stories of illness.

Suggested Citation

  • Tomkow, Louise, 2020. "Health and hostile hospitality: Understanding asylum applicants’ narratives of life and health in the UK," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 265(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:265:y:2020:i:c:s0277953620307280
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2020.113509
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Kenneth Carswell & Pennie Blackburn & Chris Barker, 2011. "The Relationship Between Trauma, Post-Migration Problems and the Psychological Well-Being of Refugees and Asylum Seekers," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 57(2), pages 107-119, March.
    2. Heurtin-Roberts, Suzanne, 1993. "'High-pertension'--The uses of a chronic folk illness for personal adaptation," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 285-294, August.
    3. Riessman, Catherine Kohler, 1990. "Strategic uses of narrative in the presentation of self and illness: A research note," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 30(11), pages 1195-1200, January.
    4. Laura Smith-Khan & Mary Crock, 2019. "‘The Highest Attainable Standard’: The Right to Health for Refugees with Disabilities," Societies, MDPI, vol. 9(2), pages 1-22, April.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jiang, Yi Dragon & Straub, Caroline & Klyver, Kim & Mauer, René, 2021. "Unfolding refugee entrepreneurs' opportunity-production process — Patterns and embeddedness," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 36(5).

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