The Perceptions of Afghan Male Special Immigrant Visa Recipients and Their Wives Regarding their Integration into the United States Society

This thesis presents a look at the perceptions of male Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) recipients and their wives who resettled in Sacramento, California between 2014 and 2019 regarding their integration into U.S. society. These Special Immigrants worked as translators or in other roles with the U.S. military and U.S. organizations in Afghanistan. They had sufficient education and English language skills to enable them to do this get these roles, and they came to the U.S. with English language skills and familiarity with American culture. In contrast, the SIV recipients’ wives come to the U.S. from a highly patriarchal society, typically with less education and no or very basic English language skills, and without the benefit of having worked with individuals from the U.S. The key argument in this thesis is that the challenges that the Afghan SIV recipients and their wives face after they arrive in the United States are the reason for their slow integration into American society. In addition, I argue that the challenges experienced have a greater impact on the wives, slowing their integration into U.S. society even more than their husbands. Recognizing the differential impact of the challenges faced is important in designing appropriate resettlement and integration programs and services for the men and for the women.