Protocol Paper: Conducting Life History Interviews to Explore the Journeys of People with Disability from Syrian and Iraqi Refugee Backgrounds Settling in Australia

This paper outlines a research protocol to be undertaken with people with disability from Syrian and Iraqi refugee backgrounds settling in Australia. Since 2012, the numbers of people with disability arriving from these countries has increased with limited understanding about the impact of their refugee journeys on their settlement. The aim of this small-scale exploratory study is to learn about the journeys made by people with disability from Syrian and Iraqi refugee backgrounds from their countries of origin, through transit countries, to Australia in order to understand the impact of these journeys on inclusion and participation in Australian society. This participatory action research study employs a bilingual co-researcher with disability from a Syrian background to conduct life history interviews with up to five participants. Participants will recount their journeys with a focus on the impact of their disability on this experience. The study design is informed by BenEzer and Zetter’s 2014 seminal paper on the importance of the refugee journey to settlement. This study has the potential to foreground the voices and experiences of people with disability from refugee backgrounds who are often absent, silenced or excluded in research and, in so doing, hopefully impact Australian refugee policy.