Survival, expectations, and employment: An inquiry of refugees and immigrants to the United States

In the United States, employment is the cornerstone of the refugee resettlement process because of its centrality in providing self-sufficiency. Job searching and navigating employment relationships are difficult for refugees, however, because it necessarily coincides with the adversity of integrating into a new culture. This exploratory inquiry draws upon two data sources-in-depth interviews with both refugees and employees of refugee assistance organizations and a survey of refugees-to provide insight into the lived experiences, narrative chronology, and the role of expectations and psychological contracts in the employment process. The data, viewed in light of social cognitive career theory, suggest a complex trajectory of expectations, adversity, turning points, and status changes as refugees attempt to “make it” in the United States. Additionally, we provide evidence that refugees develop unrealistically positive expectations about life in the United States, face significant underemployment, experience job dissatisfaction when underemployed, and, in some cases, consider abandoning their pursuit of the “American dream” when highly dissatisfied with their jobs.