A Study on the Determination of Family Structure and Economic Status of Families Immigrated from Syria to Turkey due to the War

Abstract

This research was planned and conducted to determine the family structure and economic status of families who migrated from Syria due to the war. The data of this descriptive study were collected as a result of face-to-face interviews with 200 women aged 18 and over, who were married or experienced marriage, among Syrian immigrant women in Ankara, Turkey, selected by Stratified Random Sampling Method. The questionnaire form used in the research was applied to women in the family because of the high probability of answering the questions on the subject. There are questions examining the demographic characteristics of women such as age and education level; questions about family structure of immigrant families examining family type, marital status, age at first marriage, number of children, and questions examining women's working status, spouse's working status, those who bring regular income to the family, perceived income level, comparing their income with their income in Syria, income sources of the family, the expenditure group that receives the highest share of family income, tools and equipment owned at home, and the situation of saving, the economic situation of immigrant families in the questionnaire form. It was determined that the education level of the women included in the study was very low (73.0% in primary school and less), and 43.5% of them lived in an extended family type. Among women (13 people) working in any job outside, 53.8% of them work in different daily/ intermittent jobs and among women living with their spouses (121 people), 36.3% of their spouses work in full-time jobs. It was revealed that among the income sources of the family, the most (94.5%) social aids (in-kind and cash benefits from the state, foundations, municipalities, and associations) were included, and the spending group that received the highest share from the family income (94.3%) spends on housing (house rent, heating, electricity and water bills), the most (94.0%) cooker among the appliances owned at home, and almost all of them (96.0%) could not save. As a result of the findings obtained in the research, valid suggestions were made.