The social and cultural capital of refugee-background students: An Australian case for an 'asset view'

Ali Hayes and Laura B. Perry
Murdoch University, Australia

This study proposes a more nuanced understanding of the elements constituting refugees' cultural and social capital to help education providers and policymakers develop a non-deficit view of refugees. Such an understanding, informed by empirical research, ought to shape the type of support that is offered to this cohort to facilitate successful participation in higher education. This paper deploys the concepts of cultural and social capital, habitus and field as articulated within Bourdieu's theory of practice. The findings of this study favour an 'asset view' of refugees within the higher educational context. Using a qualitative research design, 20 participants who come from a refugee background were interviewed. It was found that cultural identity and embeddedness within community has a varied influence on the higher educational experience of people from a refugee background in Australia. Additionally, diverse learning environments and, even, generic support structures, help provide a positive higher educational experience for refugees. These findings complement current research suggesting that people who come from a refugee background possess a range of cultural and social capital which can be assets to their higher educational endeavours.
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Authors: Dr Ali Hayes (corresponding author) is a lecturer and fellow at the Indo-Pacific Research Centre [https://www.murdoch.edu.au/research/iprc], Murdoch University, in Perth, Western Australia. He teaches in the university's sociology and politics programs and takes a sociological approach to understanding issues in higher education and politics. Dr Hayes presented this research at WAIER Forum 2024 [Presentation abstract] ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-9921-196X Email: a.hayes@murdoch.edu.au Dr Laura Perry is Professor of Education at Murdoch University, in Perth, Western Australia. She conducts research about educational disadvantage and inequalities, and the systems, structures and policies that shape them. The aim of her research is to inform policy and practice for improving equity of educational opportunities, experiences and outcomes. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4252-2379 Email: l.perry@murdoch.edu.au Please cite as: Hayes, A. & Perry, L. B. (2024). The social and cultural capital of refugee-background students: An Australian case for an 'asset view'. Issues in Educational Research, 34(3), 1070-1088. http://www.iier.org.au/iier34/hayes.pdf