Power and Resistance: exploring strategies of self-empowerment among Syrian asylum seekers in Sweden

This thesis explores the experiences of Syrian asylum seekers in Sweden, who are waiting for their decision or have recently received it. The empirical data have been collected through semi-structured interviews with ten women and men during a month-long fieldwork conducted in the autumn of 2016 in an asylum centre located in the south of Sweden. The research queries the regimes of power that shape the everyday realities of respondents, mainly the Swedish state, camp administration and wider Swedish society. Simultaneously, the study illustrates how individuals are active agents, navigating their interactions and resisting and negotiating the established power relations

Improving Tax Audit Efficiency Using Machine Learning: The Role of Taxpayer’s Network Data in Fraud Detection

Using the universe of Armenian business tax payers operating under a standard tax regime, we develop a fraud prediction model based on machine learning tools, with gradient boosting as the primary choice. Having to deal with broadly defined fraud and heterogeneous taxpayers, as well as a relatively small sample, we successfully derive important features from tax returns with a minimum of additional information. Among the important fraud predictors, we obtain historical fraud and audit, share of administrative costs, and external economic activity. We see two main contributions with generalizable practical implications for auditing authorities. First, by focusing on the lift score of the top decile, we demonstrate that even moderately accurate models can improve upon existing accuracy of rule-based approaches. Second, and more importantly, we demonstrate that the information contained in the supplier and buyer network of the taxpayer can be used whenever important predictors of fraud such as historical audits and fraud are not available. This is particularly important for situations with newly established companies, who would otherwise be under-rated in terms of fraud probability

‘I felt like a human being’ : An exploratory, multi‐method study of refugee involvement in the development of mental health intervention research

Background: Great advancements have been made in patient and public involvement (PPI), including the development of guidance on how to conduct, report and evaluate PPI. Despite these efforts, the evidence base remains relatively weak. A substantive methodological development is required. This is particularly important for vulnerable groups within society, for whom PPI can be challenging but has the potential to play a transformative role in shaping research. Objectives: To describe the group dynamic characteristics and immediate impact of PPI from the user representatives’ perspective in a case study of refugee involvement in the development of mental health intervention research. To pilot and methodologically appraise the Active Involvement of Users in Research Observation Schedule and Questionnaire. Design: The Active Involvement of Users in Research Observation Schedule and Questionnaire were administered together with a focus group discussion. Setting: ‘Refugee Advisors’ were involved in the development of a randomized con‐ trolled trial protocol evaluating a brief group intervention for refugee children expe‐ riencing symptoms of post‐traumatic stress in Sweden. Results: The multi‐method approach demonstrated good feasibility. There were clear examples of how the advisors influenced research development. The advisors described a perceived impact on the research, equality and acceptance, and knowledge gain. A sense of appreciation and empowerment was also interpreted. However, potential issues relating to the relevance of contributions and use of an interpreter were identified. Discussion and conclusion: The methodological approach piloted in this study offers a promising, rigorous way to evaluate PPI. The research tools require further refinement and validation

Evaluation of the teaching recovery techniques community-based intervention for accompanied refugee children experiencing post-traumatic stress symptoms (Accompanied refugeeS In Sweden Trial; ASsIST) : study protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial

Background Refugee children have often experienced traumas and are at significant risk of developing mental health problems, such as symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety, which can continue for years after resettlement. The Accompanied refugeeS In Sweden Trial (ASsIST) aims to evaluate a community-based intervention, called ‘Teaching Recovery Techniques’ (TRT), for accompanied refugee minors experiencing PTSD symptoms. Methods/design A cluster randomised controlled trial will be conducted in which participants will be randomly allocated to one of the two possible arms: the intervention arm (n=113) will be offered the TRT programme and the waitlist-control arm (n=113) will receive services as usual, followed by the TRT programme around 20 weeks later. Outcome data will be collected at three points: pre-intervention (T1), post-intervention (T2; c.8 weeks after randomisation) and follow-up (T3; c.20 weeks after randomisation). Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval was granted by the Regional Ethical Review Board in Uppsala (Ref. 2018/382) (24th February 2019). Results will be published in scientific journals. Trial registration details ISRCTN17754931. Prospectively registered on 4th June 2019

Evaluation of the Teaching Recovery Techniques community-based intervention for unaccompanied refugee youth experiencing post-traumatic stress symptoms (Swedish UnaccomPanied yOuth Refugee Trial; SUPpORT) : study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND: In 2015, 162,877 persons sought asylum in Sweden, 35,369 of whom were unaccompanied refugee minors (URMs). Refugee children, especially URMs, have often experienced traumas and are at significant risk of developing mental health problems, such as symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety, which can continue years after resettlement. The Swedish UnaccomPanied yOuth Refugee Trial (SUPpORT) aims to evaluate a community-based intervention, called Teaching Recovery Techniques (TRT), for refugee youth experiencing PTSD symptoms. METHODS/DESIGN: A randomised controlled trial will be conducted in which participants will be randomly allocated to one of two possible arms: the intervention arm (n = 109) will be offered the TRT programme, and the waitlist-control arm (n = 109) will receive services as usual, followed by the TRT programme around 20 weeks later. Outcome data will be collected at three points: pre-intervention (T1), post-intervention (T2; about 8 weeks after randomisation) and follow-up (T3; about 20 weeks after randomisation). DISCUSSION: This study will provide knowledge about the effect and efficiency of a group intervention for URMs reporting symptoms of PTSD in Sweden. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN, ISRCTN47820795. Prospectively registered on 20 December 2018.This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ </p