Local Belonging and 'Geographies of Emotions' - Immigrant Children's Experience of Their Neighborhoods in Paris and Berlin

Childhood, 2 (17), p.181-195, 2010

24 Pages Posted: 24 Oct 2009 Last revised: 20 Sep 2017

See all articles by Olga N. Nikitina-Den Besten

Olga N. Nikitina-Den Besten

University of Northampton - Centre for Children and Youth

Date Written: October 23, 2009

Abstract

This article argues that a sense of local belonging and emotional attitudes to one's neighborhood are inherently interconnected. It explores immigrant children’s emotional experience of their neighborhoods in Paris and Berlin through subjective maps drawn by the children. The article discusses most salient themes that came through as a result of the study: new immigrants' focus on the local culture reinforced by their studies in special 'adaptation classes,' childhood in disadvantaged Parisian suburbs, children's access to after-class activities in segregated Berlin, and children's representations of faraway 'homeland'.

Keywords: migrant children, visual methods, children’s drawings, activity theory, segregation, belonging, childhood studies

Suggested Citation

Nikitina-Den Besten, Olga N., Local Belonging and 'Geographies of Emotions' - Immigrant Children's Experience of Their Neighborhoods in Paris and Berlin (October 23, 2009). Childhood, 2 (17), p.181-195, 2010, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1493140

Olga N. Nikitina-Den Besten (Contact Author)

University of Northampton - Centre for Children and Youth ( email )

United Kingdom

HOME PAGE: http://www.linkedin.com/in/olgadenbesten

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