Lost & Found in Limerick: exploring the experiences of asylum seekers and refugees who have made Limerick their home.

Abstract

This research explores the experiences of asylum seekers and refugees who reside or have resided in the Irish system of Direct Provision through the lens of loss and grief. It is an exploration of the lived experience of these individuals who seek asylum in Ireland, a country where emigration historically is a more familiar story. This study navigates the phenomena of loss and grief and how these relate to the migratory journey for the asylum seeker in Ireland. There is scant published material about the varieties of loss that migrants experience from their lived perspective, therefore it is worthy of further exploration. This research aims to bridge a gap between migratory grief literature and the general topic of loss and grief within the social sciences, laying a possible foundation for future study in this area. A qualitative phenomenological approach was taken for this research in order to delve into participants’ personal memories and descriptions of their lives across their migratory journey. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten participants and themes have been identified from these conversations. A dynamic underpinning the research was the positioning of the researcher and how her bias was discovered and re-discovered, acknowledged and managed as the research was considered and eventually conducted. Because of the elusive and potentially vulnerable nature of these participants, recruitment for the study was done through purposive and snowball sampling. Thematic analysis was used to interpret and summarise the main themes associated with loss and grief, issues of identity and building resilience. Ethical considerations were carefully applied throughout the process. The participants who consented to involvement were living or had been recently living in a Direct Provision centre in the greater Limerick area. Resulting themes include the experience of ambiguous loss and disenfranchised grief along with a connection to Ulysses Syndrome as articulated in the literature on the global migrant studies. This research hopes to add to the academic and social discourse on Direct Provision, and to illustrate where there is a need for intervention and supports for the unique psychological needs of asylum seekers.