Zeitschrift für Flüchtlingsforschung, The German Journal for Refugee Studies (Z’Flucht) is a new peer-reviewed journal which publishes academic works from diverse disciplines on questions related to forced migration and refugee studies. The journal is published twice a year by Nomos publishing house in association with the German Refugee Research Network (Netzwerk Flüchtlingsforschung) and is edited by Marcel Berlinghoff, J. Olaf Kleist, Ulrike Krause and Jochen Oltmer. Z’Flucht provides a forum for exchange in the field of forced migration and refugee studies through empirical studies, theoretical reflections and methodological discussions. By means of international, regional or national studies, scholar may tackle questions related to the conditions, forms and consequences of forced migration and displacement, protection of refugees and efforts towards durable solutions, such as (re)integration or resettlement. Moreover, refugees’ activities and strategies utilized to contend with their experiences may be analysed. The journal includes all categories of people who have been forcibly displaced or who have fled from their homes due to violence and examines related debates, discourses, practices and concepts. As such topics can be explored from diverse perspectives, the journal places special emphasis on interdisciplinary discussions and comprises various disciplines, including law, sociology, history, politics, philosophy, ethnology, psychology, geography and economics, linguistics and literary studies. As displacement and forced migration not only represent a growing field of research but also a broad political and practical area, this journal aims to promote the exchange between academia and practice. Z’Flucht publishes works in three categories: academic articles, forum articles and literature reviews. Academic articles present research findings on specific questions related to forced migration and refugees which are methodically and theoretically reflected, and consider and further the current state of research in this field. These articles undergo a double-blind peer review and are limited to 80,000 characters (including spaces). Forum articles can include shorter (field) research reports, address theoretical, methodological, conceptual and ethical questions of research or relate to current discussions in forced migration and refugee studies. Manuscripts from practitioners are welcome. The editors of the journal review all forum articles, which are limited to 35,000 characters (including spaces). Literature reviews can relate to individual or a number of new publications from the last two years which discuss aspects of forced migration and refugee studies. In view of the journal’s interdisciplinary focus, publications which cover several fields are preferred. Individual reviews are limited to 6,000 characters (including spaces), while multiple books reviews should be no longer than 20,000 characters (including spaces). The journal predominantly publishes works written in German, but studies written in English and French may be considered.
This special issue focuses on the relationship between vulnerability and agency in the context of forced migration. In this introduction, we firstly outline the praxeological and application-oriented perspective, and we situate the key terms —...
What does it mean – theoretically, methodologically and ethically – to focus on forced migrants’ agency and care? In this paper, we consider these different dimensions of centering the agency and care of forced migrants and of moving beyond...
In the context of an increasingly restrictive migration regime, questions of participation and agency for individuals with precarious legal status have become particularly urgent. This article examines how different actors relationally enable,...
Refugee camps are regulated, vulnerability-producing spaces shaped by power asymmetries and institutional control. Based on long-term ethnographic fieldwork in German shelters, this article examines how institutional mistrust, structural...
In recent years, the question of the agency of refugees has become a prevalent topic in forced migration research. However, I identify two gaps in theory and empirical research that I aim to address in this article. Firstly, although empirical...
A few hours after the fall of the Assad regime in Syria on December 8, 2024, a debate dominated in many European countries: Syrians now had no reason or right to stay in the country, should return to rebuild their country and repatriation and...
This contribution introduces the concept of un-returnability into migration and refugee studies. Drawing on ethnographic research with long-term tolerated residents (persons who are under temporary suspension of deportation) in Germany, it examines...