Obstacles and Catalysts of Integrating Young North Korean Defectors in South Korea

This qualitative study addresses the deficit in current Korean government policy in integrating young North Korean defectors and demonstrates the catalysts and inhibitors of young North Koreans integrating to South Korean society. It does so through secondary source, narrative analysis and by examining young North Korean defectors’ responses in primary interviews in other studies on life in South Korea. The responses were coded by theme and organized into three categories of concern for young defectors based on their responses: culture and language, power, and income and housing. The results informed recommendations understood through Ager and Strang’s domains of integration and are based on current practices in aiding displaced people employed by states and intergovernmental actors. These recommendations were addressed to the Korean government. The goal of this research is to improve the lives of young North Korean people in South Korea by questioning current local integration approaches which do not incorporate Forced Migration thought in their implementation.