Moving into a technology land

Abstract

While a growing body of literature in HCI is focusing on the initial needs of the refugees soon after their migration, most challenges associated with the long-term process of their integration with the host communities using technology have still remained understudied. This work builds on a 3 year-long fieldwork with the refugees in Canada, extended observations, and interviews with 26 participants (19 refugees, 4 refugee sponsors, and 3 refugee workers) to illustrate how refugees encounter various challenges in accessing necessary services in Canada through its computerized infrastructures. This paper documents the intricacies and nuances of this problem extended over their struggles in obtaining information, getting social support, learning new technologies, securing their digital activities, and the gender dynamics associated with these activities. Our analysis generates several design implications to address these issues. Moreover, we discuss the challenges' entanglement with some of the broader concerns in HCI regarding infrastructure, inclusion, and mobility.

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