Asylum Narratives
On the Role of Language and Communication in the Asylum Process
Details
- Funder: Riksbankens jubileumsfond, The Foundation for Baltic and East European Studies
Description
How does the asylum narrative emerge through interpreter-mediated interaction during the Swedish Migration Agency's asylum interviews, and how is it transformed when rendered in written form and retold at different stages of the asylum process?
These questions are explored in the linguistic research project Co-construction and Recontextualization of Asylum Narratives. The overall aim is to develop a deeper understanding of the role of language and communication in the asylum process.
Background
When a person applies for asylum in Sweden, the Swedish Migration Agency must determine whether the applicant is entitled to a residence permit and, if so, on what grounds. Therefore, the Agency conducts one or more interviews with the asylum seeker, formally known as asylum interviews.
These interviews are attended by the applicant, a case officer from the Swedish Migration Agency, and an interpreter. Previously, applicants were also entitled to a state-funded legal representative during the asylum interview, but since 12 July 2026 access to state-funded legal assistance during the asylum process has become considerably more restricted.
The narrative that emerges during the asylum interview subsequently forms an important basis for the asylum decision, together with any additional evidence. Although people often refer to “the asylum seeker's story,” the narrative is in fact co-constructed in the interview situation by all participants. The case officer takes down the spoken narrative in a written document and the narrative then “travels” through the asylum process. It reappears in subsequent meetings and documents and is necessarily adapted to different contexts and media.
Data Collection
Between 2018 and 2021, we followed five asylum seekers through selected stages of the Swedish asylum process. We observed and audio-recorded eight asylum interviews, collected texts produced in connection with the interviews and later stages of the asylum process, and conducted our own research interviews with the participants.
Project Status
The project was based at Södertörn University with funding from the Baltic Sea Foundation between 2018 and 2022. For an overall summary of the findings, see the project’s scientific final report submitted to the Baltic Sea Foundation.
Read the Baltic Sea Foundation report (pdf)
Analysis and article writing are still ongoing, and research findings continue to be presented in various contexts. Among other activities, we have run training seminars for judges in migration courts and for staff at the Swedish Migration Agency.
During 2026, Hanna Sofia Rehnberg continues research within the project with funding from the Swedish Foundation for Humanities and Social Sciences as part of an RJ Sabbatical. Both Uppsala University and Södertörn University are now host institutions for the project.
Publications
Research Articles
Repair in an interpreter-mediated asylum interview – an interactional perspective (pdf) pdf, 225 kB.
This article examines a specific interpreter-mediated asylum interview (Swedish-Russian) by identifying and categorizing all instances of repair initiation. The article describes how these categories are distributed across participants' contributions and demonstrates, through examples from the transcribed interview, how different repair initiations function in context.
Asylum interviews often require applicants to provide detailed information about geographical locations they have lived in or visited, and such information may be important when assessing the credibility of their narrative. This article explores how meanings of place are constructed and negotiated in an interpreted asylum interview.
Some thoughts on repair in interpreter-mediated asylum interviews
This article examines the conversational mechanism of repair through prototypical examples of repair initiations identified in three interpreter-mediated asylum interviews. It demonstrates that certain fundamental functions of repair initiations that are common in monolingual conversations tend to be disrupted in interpreted interaction, partly because of the distinctive turn-taking structure characteristic of interpreter-mediated communication.
Positioning of applicants in asylum interviews: Case officers as recontextualizing agents
At the beginning of an asylum interview, the case officer informs the applicant about the interview procedure and the rights and obligations of the different parties. At the same time, both the applicant and the case officer position themselves and each other in relation to one another. Although the factual information communicated remains the same, this positioning can vary considerably. This article presents a contrastive analysis of transcripts from two asylum interviews.
Asylintervjun som genre – berättande, dilemman och symbolik (pdf)
(The asylum interview as a genre – narrative, dilemmas and symbolic meaning)
During the asylum interview, the asylum narrative is shaped and ultimately serves as the basis for the decision made by the Swedish Migration Agency, whether granting a residence permit or ordering removal. However, the form of storytelling that occurs in this setting is highly distinctive. This Swedish-language Article article discusses narrative practices in asylum interviews against the backdrop of philosophical and essayistic literature, as well as research on rituals.
Managing a discourse of reporting – the complex composing of an asylum narrative
Previous studies of interpreting in the asylum process have primarily focused on the risks associated with using untrained or unqualified interpreters. However, interpreting is such a complex practice that problems may arise even when interpreters are highly professional. This article examines, at a micro level, how a three-and-a-half-minute interview sequence interpreted between Russian and Swedish is transformed into a single sentence in the Swedish interview record.
Asylum interviews contain a substantial amount of metacommunication. Participants may discuss how the interview is to be conducted or attempt to resolve linguistic misunderstandings. At the same time, participants position both themselves and one another, attributing shifting roles and identities in the process. This article investigates how participants position themselves and one another in the course of metacommunication during asylum interviews.
Från tolkad interaktion till enspråkig text – om en asylberättelse framväxt
(From interpreted interaction to monolingual text – on the emergence of an asylum narrative)
This Swedish-language article takes as its starting point an incomprehensible sentence found in an asylum interview record, a sentence that the asylum seeker and his legal counsel wished to have removed. Through detailed analysis of the interaction captured in our audio recordings, we uncover the linguistic and pragmatic circumstances that led to its inclusion in the official record.
Negotiating access with public authorities in research on asylum (pdf)
Research is often regarded as a cornerstone of a democratic and open society. However, conducting research on a sensitive topic such as asylum interviews presents many challenges, particularly with respect to data collection. Drawing on our own experiences, this article discusses transparency, research ethics, and the relationship between public authorities and external researchers.
Popular Science Publications and Reports
Hanna Sofia Rehnberg discusses the role of words in the asylum process in the 2026 yearbook of the Swedish Foundation for Humanities and Social Sciences, which is devoted to the theme of bureaucracy.
The interpreting function in the asylum process
In the research overview Tolkfunktionen i asylprocessen (The interpreting function in the asylum Process), commissioned by the Delegation for Migration Studies (Delmi), we synthesize findings from national and international research on interpreting in asylum procedures.
Tolkfunktionen i asylprocessen
(The interpreting function in the asylum process)
In Tolkfunktionen i asylprocessen, a Swedish-language research overview commissioned by the Delegation for Migration Studies (Delmi), we synthesize findings from national and international research on interpreting in asylum procedures.
Two Swedish-language Articles on Interpreting in the Asylum Process
Interpreting in the asylum process is a contested issue. The following Swedish-language articles, published in Artikel 14, give voice to people with personal experience of asylum interviews, particularly asylum seekers and interpreters:
Asylintervjuer borde alltid spelas in (pdf)
(Asylum interviews should always be recorded)
Stor skillnad i tolkars kompetens vid asylintervjuer (pdf)
(Consdiderable differences in interpreters’ competence in asylum interviews)