The world is currently facing the largest refugee crisis since World War II. At the same time, refugees have negative connotations, with the European publicâs propensity to help being on shaky ground. In this paper, we therefore investigate whether increasing public education of the refugee crisis by tackling the most prevalent barriers to support with targeted communication can positively influence a change in public attitudes and behaviours. In doing so, we seek to advise key stakeholders (governments, media and non-profitable organisations) on how to most effectively communicate to the European public about the refugee crisis, in order to increase positive perceptions and drive affirmative action.
The world is currently facing the largest refugee crisis since World War II. At the same time, refugees have negative connotations, with the European public's propensity to help being on shaky ground. In this paper, we, therefore, investigate whether increasing public education of the refugee crisis by tackling the most prevalent barriers to support with targeted communication can positively influence a change in public attitudes and behaviours. In doing so, we seek to advise key stakeholders (governments, media and non-profitable organizations) on how to most effectively communicate to the European public about the refugee crisis, in order to increase positive perceptions and drive affirmative action.
2015 was a decisive year in Europe. Hundreds of thousands of refugees arrived from war-torn Syria and beyond, walking their way through the Balkans into the EU. The largest mass migration in Europe since the 1940s brought significant changes to the continent's politics, media and public discourse. The Budapest-born financier George Soros's Open Society Foundation (OSF) sought insight into the shifting public sentiment on the refugee crisis in his own country. As the world's media descended on Budapest's Keleti Station, we worked with the OSF to form cogent strategies on Hungary's new 'illiberal' state. Insights from our human-based qualitative approach to social media informed important human rights policy, discovered unexpected threats, and promoted open society.
2015 was a decisive year in Europe. Hundreds of thousands of refugees arrived from war-torn Syria and beyond, walking their way through the Balkans into the EU. The largest mass migration in Europe since the 1940s brought significant changes to the continent's politics, media and public discourse. The Budapest-born financier George Soros's Open Society Foundation (OSF) sought insight into the shifting public sentiment on the refugee crisis in his own country. As the world's media descended on Budapest's Keleti Station, we worked with the OSF to form cogent strategies on Hungary's new 'illiberal' state. Insights from our human-based qualitative approach to social media informed important human rights policy, discovered unexpected threats, and promoted open society.
For reasons of clarity I limit the illustrations in this paper to culturally and linguistically different groups. The emphasis is on the comparison between the autocton Dutch and the Mediterranean group. Within the last population a distinction can be made between Islamic (Turks, Moroccans) and non-Islamic (Italians, Spaniards, Portuguese) minorities. In this paper the possibilities and pitfalls involved in surveying ethnic minorities will be illustrated.