Refugees and ICTs: Identifying the key trends and gaps in peer-reviewed scholarship

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to identify existing literature in the field that encompasses one contemporary crisis and one prevailing developmental implement: refugees, and the use of ICT in the development arena. A total of 35 research studies were identified that address these two topics. In the process, several main themes that dominate the field are identified. These themes are the assessment of refugee status and position, education, empowerment and identity, health, and risk of ICT for refugees. Subsequently, a discussion of the missing areas in this research domain is presented. In the authors’ opinion, the missing themes that are urgently needed are ethics of ICT for refugees, longitudinal studies, gendering of ICT, comparative research, and entrepreneurial aspect of refugees. This missing research would help humanity to get a better understanding of this immense challenge and to design appropriate solutions that leverage ICT to alleviate the current refugee crisis.