Indicators of integration policies - revisiting the concept

Summer School on Migration and Integration

České Budějovice, September 1-6, 2013

Michal VašečkaMasaryk University, Brno

MIPEX as a frame of reference MIPEX measures policies to integrate migrants in 28 EU

Member states and three non-EU countries. It uses over 148 policy indicators to create a rich, multi-dimensional picture of migrants' opportunities to participate in European societies.

MIPEX covers six policy areas which shape a migrant's journey to full citizenship: - Labor market access- Education

- Family reunion- Long-term residence- Political participation- Access to nationality- Anti-discrimination

MIPEX aims to improve migrant integration policies in Europe

Ratings of countries according to Breivik - level of multicultural indoctrination per country 100 – Least brainwashed with multiculturalist

propaganda 0 – Most brainwashed with multiculturalist propaganda Country Level of multiculti indoctrination: Slovakia 90 Slovenia 90 Czech Republic 80 Italy 70 Russia 70 Poland 70 Greece 60 Finland 60 Denmark 40 Portugal 40 US 30 Iceland 20 Spain 10 Luxembourg 10 Netherlands 10 Belgium 10 UK 10 France 10 Switzerland 10 Norway 8 Sweden 6 Germany 1

What IMPEX measures? The Migrant Integration Policy Index was first

published in 2004 as the European Civic Citizenship and Inclusion Index.

Integration Policies should be understood as pre-conditions and pre-requisites for the integration process. The Migrant Integration Policy Index measures integration policies that initiate, help, and allow processes of integration.

In order to measure depth, range, and quality of integration process itself it is vital to expand sets of indicators.

Unpleasant problem - Lack of data on ethnicity

Data are either unusable in general, or it is necessary to approach them and use them carefully. This is a common problem of both academic and public policy research.

The problem is, however, broader. Banal nationalism and methodological nationalistic approach in a research can be found also on the side of researchers:

1. Inacceptance of „multilayer“ identities. Cultural differences are perceived as objectively existing, analysis are deriving from premises of fundamental relevance of cultural differences;

2. Researchers very often accept and study only one identity;

3. Often the concept of race is not accepted as a social construct;

4. Researchers are not courageous enough to challenge policy makers.

LISI - Legal Indicators for Social Inclusion of New Minorities Generated by Immigration

Legal norms are according to LISI authors just a precondition of successful integration

LISI authors consider equal rights to be a key aspect of integration policies

LISI therefore focuses on 2 legal dimensions of integration - firstly equal rights and secondly minority, cultural, and religion rights

I3 project

I - Indicators of integration - basic

1. Language;

2. Integration within the Educational system;

3. Social integration;

4. Political integration;

5. Economic integration;

6. Residential integration.

II - Indicators of integration – intervening variables

Level of inequality within a country Level of social exclusion Index MAR (minorities in risk) – score of

polarization Level of state interventions Level of security within a country Working standards (ILO) Score of democracy (level of openness of

institutions) Score of liberties (political and civic rights)

III – Cultural indicators of integration? „It´s culture, stupid…!“

Social capital (bonding, bridging, linking)

Level of anomy

Level of cultural and social alienation from a society

Perception of poverty in a country

Satisfaction with a life

Ethnicization of concept of citizenship

Conclusion Countries with high score in integration

policies are increasingly ones with successful integration processes.

However, in order to measure and assess successes of integration process itself we should move beyond legal-political indicators that measure policies of particular countries. Otherwise we will have just in-depth going knowledge of pre-conditions for migrant incorporation.