LibGuides: SOC 0315: International Migration: Case studies

Introduction: Find case studies for international migration

Here are a variety of sources (academic, governmental/"grey literature", news, etc.) to find case studies related to international migration.

Note a few groupings of region and source type to get you started (note this doesn't cover all populations and experiences explored in this course!)

Focus on the Middle East

The following resources were curated by Joukowsky Family Librarian for Middle East Studies, Maan Alsahoui, Ph.D.

Focus on Spain, France, Italy and Malta

The following resources have been shared by Curator for Iberian and Latin American Collections, Patricia Figueroa.

Asylum Information Database (AIDA)
A database managed by the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE), containing information on asylum procedures, reception conditions, detention and content of international protection across 23 countries.
UNHCR - Operational Data Portal - Mediterranean Situation
International Rescue Committee (IRC)
IRC helps people affected by humanitarian crises—including the climate crisis—to survive, recover and rebuild their lives.
ACNUR España / UNHCR Spain
In Spanish. The data portal provides open access to monthly reports on asylum applications in Spain as well as weekly and monthly reports on arrivals by sea and by land.
EpData - Requests for Asylum in Spain
In Spanish. Access to data from the Interior Ministry of Spain. EpData is a platform created by Europa Press to facilitate the use of public data by journalists and offers data analysis and visualisation tools.
Spain's Ministry of the Interior - Asylum Data Reports
In Spanish. Access to reports dating back to 2008.
National Statistics Institute (INE), Spain
Access to data from Spain's Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Some content in English.
Spanish Commission for Refugee Aid (CEAR)
In Spanish. The mission of CEAR (Comisión Española de Ayuda al Refugiado) is to defend and promote human rights and the integral development of refugees, stateless persons and migrants in need of international protection and/or at risk of social exclusion.
AIDA Reports - Spain
AIDA Reports- France
French National Institute of Statistics - "L'essentiel sur les immigrés et les étrangers" and Economic Studies (INSEE) -
INSEE is a Directorate-General of the Ministry for the Economy and Finance. INSEE's mission is to collect, analyse and disseminate information on the French economy and society across the entire French territory. This report is in French but other content is available in English.
French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (OFPRA)
OFPRA (Office français de protection des réfugiés et apatrides) is a government agency under the Ministry of the Interior. Content is in French.
Forum réfugiés Cosi
In French. Forum Réfugiés-Cosi is a non-profit association that works to welcome refugees, defend the right to asylum and promote the rule of law.
AIDA Reports - Italy
Association for Juridical Studies on Immigration (ASGI)
ASGI (Associazione per gli Studi Giuridici sull’Immigrazione) is an Italian association sharing emerging legislation on immigration by a group of lawyers, jurists and scholars. In Italian.
UNHCR - Lampedusa and Melilla
Immigration report created by the European United Left/Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL) and the European Parliamentary Group. PDF in English.
UNHCR - Malta
Portal to data on immigration to Malta.

News Sources

Access World News This link opens in a new window
Provides access to more than 7,000 local, regional, national, and international news sources, current
Access World News Research Collection is a full text news resource consisting over 7,000+ local, regional, national and international sources. Updated daily, it offers researchers and students primary source information on todays issues and events from newspapers, newswires, transcripts, video clips, web only, and blogs. Provides comprehensive news and information on different perspectives on a wide variety of topics, including economics, business, political science, environmental issues, health and welfare topics, social problems, consumer affairs, education, local government, international affairs and defense, laws, sports and much more. Offering a variety of perspectives from all over the world, the important news sources in this collection are ideal for comparing and contrasting views on both local and global issues. New home of the Providence Journal.

New York Times 1851 - 2012
New York Times 1980 - present
BBC World
The Guardian - International Edition
British daily newspaper considered a newspaper of record in the UK. The Guardian aligns with the Labour Party and the political left in general.
Le Monde
French daily newspaper of record aligning with liberal socialism (central-left).
Le Monde Diplomatique - English Edition
French monthly newspaper offering analysis and opinion on politics, culture, and current affairs. It aligns with the Alter-Globalization social movement.
El País
Spanish-language newspaper considered a newspaper of record in Spain. Its ideology has been defined by a leaning towards Europeanism, progressivism, and social liberalism. It offers an English Edition.
Corriere della Sera
Daily Italian newspaper of record aligning with liberal and centrist political ideology.

General Databases for Sociology and Policy

SocINDEX with Full Text This link opens in a new window
Provides access to 2,989 active indexed and abstracted journals and 2,860 active peer-reviewed indexed and abstracted journals, 1895-present.
1895-present; SocINDEX with Full Text is a comprehensive sociology research database. This product contains informative abstracts for more than 620 "core" coverage journals dating back to 1895. In addition, SocINDEX with Full Text provides data mined from more than 500 "priority" coverage journals as well as over 1,390 "selective" coverage journals. Includes extensive indexing for books, monographs, conference papers, and other sources. Searchable cited references are also provided. SocINDEX with Full Text offers coverage from all subdisciplines of sociology, including abortion, anthropology, criminology, criminal justice, cultural sociology, demography, economic development, ethnic & racial studies, gender studies, marriage & family, politics, religion, rural sociology, social psychology, social structure, social work, sociological theory, sociology of education, substance abuse, urban studies, violence, welfare, and many others.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
Provides access to more than 12 million academic journal articles, books, and primary sources in 75 disciplines.
Provides image and full text online access to back issues of selected scholarly journals in history, economics, political science, demography, mathematics and other fields of the humanities and social sciences. Consult the online tables of contents for holdings, as coverage varies for each title.

If you are experiencing printing problems from JSTOR while using a Macintosh computer, please download the most recent version of Adobe Reader. http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html.
If you need assistance, please contact the CIS Help Desk or eresources@brown.edu.
Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO) This link opens in a new window
Locate working papers, policy briefs, and current analysis and commentary, as well as scholarly journal articles, ebooks, and videos relevant for research in international politics and related fields, 1991-present.
1991-present; designed to be the most comprehensive source for theory and research in international affairs. Includes working papers from university research institutes, occasional papers series from NGOs, foundation-funded research projects, books, journals, policy briefs, and proceedings from conferences.
PAIS Index This link opens in a new window
Provides access to journal articles, books, government documents, statistical directories, grey literature, research reports, conference papers, web content, and more, 1914-present.
1914-present; includes periodicals, books, hearings, reports, gray literature, government publications, and Internet resources. Subjects include politics, public policy, government, international relations, law and ethics, human rights, economics, business, finance, and other social sciences.

Consider Primary Source Collections

Digital Archive of the Observatory of the Refugee and Migration Crisis in the Aegean
This archive aims to collect, process, document, digitalize and make publicly available various categories of documents connected with the refugee and migration crisis in the Aegean.
ArchiveGrid Example: Refugees and Mediterranean
Search archival collection descriptions here. Most collections will not be available online.
Migrants of the Mediterranean
Migrants of the Mediterranean uses Humanitarian Storytelling to present the experience of the individual migrant’s journey, from country of origin to Europe.

To find oral histories or personal narratives in BruKnow search for the following subjects:

Refugees Personal Narratives
Immigrants Personal Narrative
Exiles Personal Narratives

Library GIS and Mapping Support

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
by Frank Donnelly Last Updated Feb 24, 2025 1416 views this year
Brown GIS and Data Tutorials
by Frank Donnelly Last Updated Jan 15, 2025 2599 views this year