International Journal of Science Annals, Vol. 2, No. 1-2, 2019 SOCIAL SCIENCES. Psychology BRIEF REPORT Phenomenological Perspective in Researching Immigrant ChildrenтАЩs Experience AuthorsтАЩ Contribution: Batuchina A.1 ABDF, Straksiene G.1 EFG A тАУ Study design; B тАУ Data collection; 1 Klaipeda University, Lithuania C тАУ Statistical analysis; D тАУ Data interpretation; E тАУ Manuscript preparation; F тАУ Literature search; Received: 29.10.2019; Accepted: 20.11.2019; Published: 30.11.2019 G тАУ Funds collection Abstract Background and Migration is a complicated and complex social phenomenon. Arriving in a new country, Aim of Study: immigrants find themselves in a strange, unfamiliar environment; simultaneously they may have left behind almost everything that they had in their home country. Such a life event changes the relationship between a person and their things: immigrants lose their connection with the things left behind, while new connections with the things of the host country have yet to be forged. This is a natural process of an adultтАЩs migration. But what is it like for a child? The aim of the study: to reflect the experiences of immigrant children and their changing relationship with things in phenomenological methodology approach. Material and Methods: The article is based on hermeneutic phenomenology, when children migrating is analysed as a phenomenon. In order to investigate such phenomena phenomenology as a research strategy is applied. Its data were collected using several methods. The main method was the unstructured phenomenological interview with children and adults who due to economic reasons left their home country and came to live in another while being children together with their parents (or one of them). Having changed the country, they had also to change schools. Results: Show the uniqueness of the children migration experience and reflects it in the phenomenological matter. Conclusions: Children migration experience is often underestimated from the position of grown-ups, while children view migration differently, as they see things, objects and space around them differently (they see, feel and imagine world in a totally unique manner). That is why children taken out of their usual and normal lifestyle, home space facing totally different world, with strange and unfamiliar things, facing the world of unpredictability, temporality and eternity, fantasy and dreams, where misunderstood, or unnoticed are left alone, even while being surrounded by people. Keywords: migration, phenomenology, children, qualitative research, things. Copyright: ┬й 2019 Batuchina A., Straksiene G. Published by Archives of International Journal of Science Annals DOI and UDC DOI 10.26697/ijsa.2019.1-2.04; UDC 159.9.018.7:314.151.3-053.2/5 Conflict of interests: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests Peer review: Double-blind review Source of support: Departmental sources Information about Batuchina Aleksandra (Corresponding Author) тАУ https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0012- the authors: 9421; aleksandra.ro@gmail.com; Doctor of Philosophy in Education, Lecturer, Center for Social Geography and Regional Studies; Klaipeda University; Klaipeda, Lithuania. Strak┼бien─Ч Giedre тАУ https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8533-0276; Doctor of Philosophy in Education, Senior Researcher, Social Change Study Centre; Klaipeda University; Klaipeda, Lithuania. 26 ╤Аrint ISSN: 2617-2682; DOI:10.26697/ijsa IJSA Introduction The aim of the study. To reflect the experiences of Why should child migration be analyzed immigrant children and their changing relationship with phenomenologically? There will be no surprise if I say things in phenomenological methodology approach. that migration itself is a very complicated life event for a person: you have to leave your country, your friends, Materials and Methods even your culture, everything you know, and then move For the current study, data were collected using several yourself and belongings to a place which is strange and methods. The main method was the unstructured alien. For grown-ups, such a move might be decided by phenomenological interview with 17 children and adults the promise of improved living conditions, economic who have or used to have the experience as a child of and social benefits. But for a child, such decisions are leaving their home country and coming to live in another often made without them, or without an understanding one together with their parents (or care-givers, however of such adult concerns. At the same time children in this research there were no such participants) legally experiences of migration, perhaps due to their status as and voluntarily. Changing of a country means that they dependents, may be underestimated, and thus they may had also to change schools. Various additional data on be left alone with it. GrynbergтАЩs (2012) dissertation, childrenтАЩs migrating were collected from the published Disjunctions and Contradictions: An Exploration of My material including autobiographies, publicly available Childhood Migration Experience through Visual Art, online sources, essays written specially for the current provides a powerful example of how some may the investigation, and phenomenological literature. The minimize the meaning of migration for a child. article presents only a small part of the research results; All around us is the tinkle of china and the reassuring they reflect the migrant childтАЩs experiences when facing murmur of people politely conversing. I turn around to new things in a new country and a school upon arrival at look at the man IтАЩve been seated next to at this a new country. The data were analyzed following van conference dinner. We acknowledge each other with a ManenтАЩs (2014) recommendations. The data collection smile, and anxiously wonder how to begin the focused on concrete lived experience descriptions of conversation. migrant children, referring to which the anecdotes were тАЬHello, my name is Jonathan.тАЭ written, in order to recreate the lived experiences of тАЬPleased to meet you, IтАЩm Carmella, I respond.тАЭ migrant children, but now in a тАЬtranscended formтАЭ (van I watch as his eyes register this information: тАЬThatтАЩs an Manen, 2014, p. 250). unusual name. Are you from an Italian background?тАЭ тАЬNo, actually Carmella is also an Israeli name, I was Results and Discussion born there.тАЭ Things and Migration A small frown now appears between his eyes as his gaze A person is closely related to the things that surround moves somewhat furtively over my hair, clothes and him or her. Merleau-Ponty (2004) shows that people are jewelry. honeyed together with things. Such bonding denotes the тАЬReally! I never would have picked you as a migrant, relationship between the object and us and reveals that you donтАЩt even have a hint of a foreign accent.тАЭ we are surrounded by things or forced to treat and see I smile, and think that he is too polite to add, тАЬand you them only in a certain way. A thing has a certain donтАЩt look like you come from anywhere else.тАЭ peculiarity to allure, to attract, or to stimulate interest of I decide to offer some more information: тАЬWell, I arrived those standing before it. The things of our world are not in Melbourne when I was eight years old.тАЭ simply neutral objects that are in front of us or that are тАЬOh,тАЭ he sighs, the furrows between his eyes softening, designed to fill our field of vision. Each of them тАЬthen you are not a real migrant, you were just a child.тАЭ symbolizes or imposes a certain way of being or doing, (Grynberg, 2012, p. 1). and provoking reactions that may be positive, negative, Jonathan discounts CarmellaтАЩs migrant experience as or otherwise. PeopleтАЩs tastes, lifestyle, attitudes, and the less than real, since she was but a child when she moved. world are reflected in the things that are chosen to So while the adult experience of migration may be surround him. recognized as an event of significance and thus worthy Our relationship with things is not distant: each thing of attention, the uniqueness of the same event for a child affects our bodies and the way we live (Merleau-Ponty, may be overlooked. Indeed, despite the abundance of 2004). As van den Berg (1972, p. 32) declares, тАЬwho research on migration, child migration has been given wants to become acquainted with man, should listen to little analysis from a pedagogical perspective. Where it the language spoken by the things in his experienceтАЭ. In has been investigated, some researchers have turned to other words, a person does not live on an empty planet, hermeneutic phenomenology to provide insight to this but is always around things, and these things show up often memorable event for a child. Topics have differently depending on who that person is, where he included: longing for home (Winning, 1990), speaking lives, what he likes and prefers. Heidegger also presents of home (Winning, 1991), physical self-awareness of a the idea of the significance of a thing in humanтАЩs life. child-migrant (Kirova & Emme, 2008), the childтАЩs According to Heidegger (1971), тАЬbeing human is perception of home when away from home (Dachyshyn, dwelling, that is, staying with and among thingsтАЭ 2013), the experience of studying in a foreign language (p. 157). The life of a human being is not possible (Lee, 2005), and what home is when we have left it without things. Following this idea, a human is always (Norris, 1990). surrounded by things that create his or her life or things are тАЬchosenтАЭ according to oneтАЩs life. 27 International Journal of Science Annals, Vol. 2, No. 1-2, 2019 In the context of migration, and especially in the context selecting and choosing memories from her home of child migration, things can have a particular country to take with her. And those memories are put in significance. The significance of things becomes a thing, which she is able to carry with her trough out especially relevant in the moments of departure from the her journey to the new country, the country, with no old native country and arrival at a new country. Things that friends, no relatives and no memories, she used to have. are important to a child may be left when they are Meanwhile, the things that are left behind and cannot be leaving the home country. Maybe the child had certain taken away may be still in connection with the child memories related to them or they might have also even after oneтАЩs departure. On the one hand, the things created his or her routine and daily life. They were used left behind become alienated; they are considered no by the child, had lain nearby, were constantly available longer belonging to the person. However, such and therefore were taken for granted, such things could alienation occurs not immediately, or may not appear at be a favorite book from the library to read before bed, all. The left things still have an intimate connection that old sneakers to play on the wet grass, a tree house to hide does not disappear in one day or just after leaving the from the parents, even an old bench in the backyard, things: my former house, my bed, my wardrobe and my where the first cigarette was tried. All these things were desk. The thing is called тАЬMyтАЭ even if it no longer always nearby and always тАЬavailableтАЭ. When leaving officially belongs to me, but may belong to another the home country, things, their shape, volume, person now. From my own perspective, I spent my functionality, and even the human relationship with childhood and teenage years in an apartment uptown, them receive a different meaning. Things and everything and even though it is already 15 years since I have lived that is associated with them are again evaluated by the there, every time I have a chance to drive through that child; they are no longer taken for granted: the book is neighbourhood, I am trying to see how my old roomтАЩs left at the hometown library тАУ there is nothing to read window looks like, repeating in my head тАЬmy roomтАЭ. A before bed, old sneakers are thrown away тАУ you cannot similar connection between a thing and a child can be play on the wet grass with the new ones, the tree house seen in the following anecdote. Roma, a migrant girl is sold together with the house, where the bench is shared how much she misses her bed, thus, revealing placed. All these things are left at the home country, and how important this left thing was to her. only a few are taken with me and I need to decide which Most of all I miss my bed. I have a new bed in my new ones. country, but I canтАЩt sleep in it. I canтАЩt sleep deeply: when Leaving a country people ask themselves: will I need or you close your eyes and itтАЩs already morning. In my bed use this thing? What does it mean to me? Does it bring I always slept like this, I knew how to. Now I donтАЩt me important memories? In the reflections person (Roma). тАЬtouchesтАЭ each thing тАУ asking himself whether he or she Roma describes the connection between her, as a will be able to or should take it with him or her or not. human, and a bed, as a thing. While living in another And if one thing has material value (if its price is high тАУ country and using other things she remembers how it cannot be left; if it is convenient and necessary тАУ it will important the things are that were left in her homeland. be useful in a new country), others have emotional value In other words, the left thing no longer belongs to a child тАУ remind of the connection with people who are left in but the connection with it remains even after losing it. the homeland; such case is described in the anecdote Heidegger (1971) pointed out aptly that a person may provided below: appreciate home (the home world) more when he or she In one box I have two little glass angels and two walnuts, loses it: perhaps then he or she becomes fully aware of sprayed with silver paint. I received them from my aunt what home is and means in his or her life. A child who and cousin for Christmas, and I have been putting them has just lost or intends to lose things reflects on their at a visible spot. I really canтАЩt leave them, so I want to meaning, and in such a way discovers them anew and take them with me. I have a little sun drawn by my the thing is no longer taken for granted. stepfather. When I was a teenager, I came up with a All in all, upon arrival at another country, new things nickname for myself: тАЬLittle SunтАЭ. He and my mother may yet have a different meaning. New things may be always knew how to make fun of me and when it was inevitably тАЬdiscoveredтАЭ in a new country in the course my birthday, he drew a little sun on a small piece of of migration. They force us to reconsider our place in paper тАУ but itтАЩs me, really. He drew an upturned nose, the new space and to recall memories; they make us this dimple on the chin; he drew big thick eyebrows, nostalgic, fearful, or even remorseful. Things become protruding ears. ThatтАЩs me. I will never throw it away symbols that show the former life and future (Agne). opportunities and reflect the current emotional and Agne tells about some things, some bagatelles that she existential state. In this context, a question arises тАУ how has brought from her home country. For many, these a migrant child experiences things when he or she has things may appear with no value; but to her, who has left just arrived at the new country? not only her home country but also her friends and Things without Connection: Strangeness relatives; these things have meaning provided by Having left oneтАЩs native country, in a new country, the memories and relations with the left ones. Each thing has migrant child may face new things. These things have to its own story and is related to a certain event in her life replace the usual (old) things in their purpose and moment. A child sees in those things not a bunch of function. The first encounter with some new things may rubbish, she sees memories, faces of her friends, and she make a child feel confused or even uncomfortable. sees her old life in them: she is examining the things one However, the question is what does a child experience by one, and she is making decisions on each piece, like when acquainting with new things in a new country? In 28 ╤Аrint ISSN: 2617-2682; DOI:10.26697/ijsa IJSA the anecdote provided below a migrant girl describes her is its purpose, peculiarity. Even though a child sees usual surprise on the first day at school. She seems surprised things: a table, chairs, a desk, all the things which were by the seen things. in his or her home country, but the child does not see Everything is so strange, the doors of the rooms are with himself or herself in, among or using these things. The windows, so everyone could look at our class, the tables child does not understand his or her relation with the are round and they are standing in the middle of the thing. class, not facing the board. In my school we have desks A similar point is represented in SchutzтАЩs (1945) work for two. The teacher stands in front and turns to the тАЬThe StrangerтАЭ. The author states that the discovery that desks. When I went to my first English class I was things in the strangersтАЩ new surroundings look quite amused, in an English classroom there were three old different from what he or she expected them to be at posters of the Harry Potter movie, while in a French home is frequently the first shock to the strangerтАЩs class the poster from the book Les Miserables, the face confidence in the validity of his or her habitual тАЬthinking of a girl. In Spanish, there were posters of a cat Garfield as usualтАЭ (Schutz, 1945, p. 501). Interpreting this and a picture of a Buddha. When I saw all this IтАЩve lost SchutzтАЩs theme of тАЬthinking as usualтАЭ within the my voice, I could not speak. I was staring at this poster materialistic meaning, it can be seen that a migrant during the entire lecture. I was panicking (Darja). person finds himself or herself near things that he or she Darja tells how surprising she finds the arrangement of does not know, they seem strange, alien, not тАЬmy ownтАЭ: things in the school. Surrounded by new things she feels the usual perception of the world seems broken, and the unusual. Their arrangement and even their presence in a vision of the new world is yet vague and unclear. Such school classroom are not acceptable and strange to her. word perception might be similar for children. As What lies behind the strangeness of the things? How Langeveld (1984, p. 216) writes тАЬthe child lives in a does a child experience that strangeness of things? word which provides him or her with a ready-made Maybe a child sees strangeness as something unknown? structure of qualities that offers securityтАЭ. He also says Or something that might appear as unusual, since have (Langevel, 1984, p. 220): тАЬchildтАЩs recognition of the never been seen? LetтАЩs look at the etiological meanings world and her knowledge of the world are largely of the word strange. dependent on the help or influence of othersтАЭ. It means The English word strange (adj.) means тАЬfrom elsewhere, if a child raised in a world of things (in the contexts of foreign, unknown, and unfamiliarтАЭ. Clear relation can be migration, world means home country), which he or she seen with the term alien which has similar meanings тАУ knew (learning from his or her birth and in the following strange, foreign; an alien, stranger, foreigner. Another life), appears in a new ready-made world of things, but term that has a similar meaning is unusual, which is which he or she knows nothing of and has problems composed of a negative particle un and the verb use, and acquainting with it, especially without other people embraces such meanings as use, custom, practice, around, the child loses his or her security, the child employment, skill, and habit. If something is unusual, remains helpless. If a grown up person, due to his or her we cannot or we do not know how to use it at first. At longer and richer life experience, might foreknow what the same time, if something is strange it is usually not one or another thing has in it, a child needs help to mine, and as a result, when we talk about something restore his or her тАЬthinking as usualтАЭ state. Meanwhile, what is strange it is important to consider the meaning upon arrival in a new country, the childтАЩs тАЬthinking as of the word own (mine, our, yours), since what is not usualтАЭ is broken, since his or her perception of the world mine, what does not belong to me, might be someone still relies on his or her native country and the countryтАЩs elseтАЩs, strangerтАЩs. Analyzing the word own values, while the new world is somewhat unknown to etymologically, it is clear that it is associated with the him or her, therefore, seemingly unpredictable. words to possess, have; rule, be in command of; have In a collection of poems тАЬNo Return Address: A authority over. Of these synonyms it is seen that a thing Collection of PoemsтАЭ, Waters (2015) dwells on to which we are accustomed to is as if under our control, migration experiences. In тАЬNo return addressтАЭ, the we own it and use it. In other words, when we say, it is author is grateful for the memories of his former life, for mine (my house, my pen, my school), we mean some the world before emigration, which he had, which was certain personal relation with this object: this is a house known to him, and which was predictable: I grew up in, or this is the pen I bought today, or this is тАЬBob, I am grateful for your a school I went to; the purpose, use, function, and Three letter name. occupied place of these thingтАУ all are familiar to us. ItтАЩs another reminder of home Whereas things which we are not accustomed to are Of a world predictable strange, foreign, unknown, and with no connection, Of a life I hadтАЭ. since we have nothing in common with these things. The former world is presented as predictable, and its In migration terms strange and own actualize and their things are known, they remind of home where a person meanings become especially prevalent. Everything what can feel like in a homeland. Meanwhile, the world of is associated with the homeland is familiar, while new migration is unpredictable: unknown things do not allow things of the immigration country become strange. Upon predicting what will happen, and therefore, things may arrival in a new country, the old thinking тАУ usual things force the person to be always prepared or even fearful. and the awareness of their purpose, location and the need For children, when seeing unusual things that do not to use them тАУ distorts; a child does not know what to do meet the perception of their world, they cannot predict with things (how to behave with them) in a new world, and foresee what their life will be in a new country, in a what place in this world a certain thing occupies, what new school. The vision for the future, which is based on 29 International Journal of Science Annals, Vol. 2, No. 1-2, 2019 conventional thinking of the native country, does not being, his or her seen environment and surrounding match the seen things and their position, their need or things. function in the new country, and restoration of such In terms of things, as van Manen (2014, p. 306тАУ307) vision requires effort and even help of the others. writes, тАЬmateriality may guide our reflection to ask how Things without Connection: Temporality things are experienced. The things are our world in its New things however, do not immediately become oneтАЩs material thing like reality.тАЭ Thus, things are a world that own. As it is described above, new things are strange, reflects our vision and point of view we might say our can be intimidating because of their unpredictability or inner state. To the contrary, a relation with the things may force to imagine a different life, which will be in a may depend on our point of views and experiences. new country, and/or force to be aware of where he or she Gabriele felt that the house she and her family stayed in is, as describe in the following anecdote: was not inhabited, there were none of the girlтАЩs things, Our new house is an old building with several floors. no scent of a family, and no common home intimacy. The flooring on the second floor is unstable, squeaking. She felt that she would not live in this house for the We go to the toilet or shower on the second floor in whole time, even though that was the first plan. In his groups so it isnтАЩt so scary because we have someone to essay on the тАЬHotel RoomтАЭ, van Lennep (1987) hold hands. All children slept in one room, the small describes how much intimate relations are in one or children slept in one bed, the older on the floor. The another personтАЩs home. Things, walls, the whole house house seemed so dark, like those haunted houses in is filled with the scent, feelings, emotions that reflect the movies. We canтАЩt get used to it. It seemed to me like a life of a person living there. Van Lennep (1987) writes: ghost (Gabriele). We always enter someoneтАЩs living room for the first Gabriele was 11 years old when her family and she time with a certain hesitation or embarrassment, that is moved to another country. She describes her memories into the room he тАЬinhabits,тАЭ not because this room is an about the first family house in the new country; the expression of himself, but because this dwelling refers memories of that house are very vague, as if through a to a much more intimate relation than any expression by mist. Her recollection is of an old, unstable structure: it him could ever be (p. 210). seems that the house could have collapsed at any time. Like to a guest, to another person who gets into a new The family lived there for more than 2 years, quite a long place, this place, even if it is called oneтАЩs own (mine), time to get used to this place and get familiar with it. But has so тАЬlittleтАЭ in itself (p. 212) of what can be called for Gabriele, this new house never became a home, for oneтАЩs own (my) room. No human being belongs here: it all that time the girl had imagined it as a temporal shelter does not have his or her scent, nor chosen things. This тАУ a place where she is just sleeping over for a few nights relation with the house shows the girlтАЩs relation with her before some permanent place is going to be found. But migration. She sees herself as a temporal guest in the what is really behind that temporality? By the term new world of the new country. She does not recognize temporality I mean state of being for the short or long herself in this world, since there is no relation with this period of time and this period has a certain moment of country. A new house, new things in this house are the ending, while something that lasts forever or always symbols of her being new in this country. does not have an ending, speaking without any Meanwhile, van Lennep (1987) writes that even a tourist philosophical reasoning. coming to a new city and living in a hotel room after a From the theoretical point of view migration can be long day spent in the city comes back to the room to rest defined as three types: short-term, long-term and and calls it тАЬmy roomтАЭ. As the author writes, the circular immigration (Europos Migracijos Tinklas, pronoun тАЬmyтАЭ in the expression тАЬmy roomтАЭ does not 2010). The short-term immigration is defined as the express my possession of it, but precisely a relation migration with a particular motive or purpose (work, between me and the room. On the very first moment a study, family reunion, etc.), after which people return to person enters a new room, he or she begins тАЬthe process the country of origin or move further to another country of inhabiting the roomтАЭ (p. 212). And after some time in (Europos Migracijos Tinklas, 2010). Meanwhile, long- the course of inhabiting тАЬthe relation of intimacy has term (permanent) migration is migration with the goal to been created between this room and meтАЭ (p. 212). Van stay permanently in the target country. Circular Lennep (1987) writes about experiences of grown-up migration in general can be understood as a cycle of people who, after a certain period of time in a new place, migration which is comprised of a migrant personтАЩs assume control over things, they become dependent on departure from his or her country of origin, stay for some him or her, and in this way become more and more тАЬhisтАЭ time in another country, return to his or her country of or тАЬhersтАЭ. And maybe with time such тАЬdependencyтАЭ origin and repeated departure to a foreign country replaces a sense of temporality, and an immigrant (Europos Migracijos Tinklas, 2010). Long-term and becomes more and more integrated into the new life. circular migrations are different from short-term The Imagined Value of Things migration in the length of the period of departure. New things may bring the opposite feelings, create the However, from the phenomenological point of view, illusion of a better life, and a vision for the future that each migration, regardless of its purpose and the planned soon may appear to be incorrect. Such a situation is time of departure, especially at the beginning of described in an anecdote from GrynbergтАЩs (2012) migration stage, might be seen as temporal, in other dissertation: words, a person might feel that this period of migration My father and uncle were waiting for us at Essendon might end one day and he or she will go back home. airport. My uncle drove us to the flat my father had Such temporality lies within the feelings of the human rented for us. It was on the ground floor located in a 30 ╤Аrint ISSN: 2617-2682; DOI:10.26697/ijsa IJSA large building which faced St Kilda Road, a wide, leafy The first stop after our flight was in Stockholm and it boulevard leading into the central business district of took about one hour. My younger brother as usual had Melbourne. The block of flats consisted of three floors to visit one place. He does this everywhere he sees the and had a number of exterior art decor features, such as toilet sign. I watched him and directed him to the right faceted forms of decoration around its entrances and door with my eyes. However, just after 20 seconds, he rounded corners on the upper storey verandas. It ran out of the toilet as if he was scolded. He began to represented a stark contrast to the rectangular unadorned mumble nervously: тАЬThere are so many things hanging building which had been my home in Israel. When I around, I donтАЩt know how to use themтАЭ. I stood up and I entered the flat for the first time my interest centred went with him. I was used to Soviet toilets, so thereтАЩs no around a black telephone which sat on a little ledge in surprise to me. the hallway. Although the telephone was not connected, At first I thought that we went through the wrong door, I was overwhelmed by the idea that we were in and instead got into the plumbing museum of the possession of such an instrument which, until then, I had twenty-first century. How? The walls were not drawn? rarely seen in a private home. Its presence signified to On the floor there were no litter lying around? Seats me that Australia was a place of untold possible luxury. were attached to the toilets, and next to them. Oh, my The reality of our life in Melbourne, however, proved to God! тАУ Toilet paper. Shock therapy began there, where be somewhat different (Grynberg, 2012, pp. 24-25). we had least expected it. (Michail) Children tend to imagine. Our imagination allows our Michail has lived his entire childhood and a great part of mind to create a new image in the head. Imagination adolescence in the country which is radically different helps us to create, work, think, even feel, smell and taste from the country to which he has emigrated. The boy things without these things being in front of us. There and his family moved to the United States from the will be nothing surprising if I say that imagination is an Soviet Union who had just collapsed. The new space that important ability of our mind. Also, children use their Michail saw unexpectedly stunned him by its imagination differently from grown-ups: they imagine, distinctiveness, because it was very different from the dream even create fantasies in their head more often. As space in his native country. Welsh (2013, p. 18) writes: тАЬin dreaming children do not Michail leaves one country and comes to another, while assume that the dream in contrast to waking reality is not each country is not only a political structure with real. They haven't yet learned to assume that their geographical boundaries and its own history and intimate experiences are "unreal" whereas the extended traditions, but also a distinctive world, with a specific matter is тАЬrealтАЭ. As a result, children create views in space, peculiar rules, and a way of life, and also specific their head they start to believe in. Consequently, things, things. These new things are the signs of the new world, which were previously not seen very often and are the showing that transition was made. A child without symbols of prosperity in the home country, in a childтАЩs knowing these new signs is comparing with what he mind move him or her into a richer world. Children, in knew from the world he used to live in. The values he comparison to grown-ups, have not yet learned to had through his short life are vanishing, replaced by the distinguish between a hidden meaning, direct meaning. new cultural specifics. What is seen in the MichailтАЩs Children are straight forward. If he or she sees a phone lived experience that a child starts to question why the or other things, which he or she believes is a symbol of surrounding which he expected to be absolutely wealth, it means for a child that he or she is rich, even if inconspicuous brought amazement and the reality is proving different. The phone symbolises misunderstandings in his own head the same time. He future life, which is better, richer and, perhaps, happier. thought that a toilet without toilet paper, with painted in As Merleau-Ponty (2005, p. 413) suggests, тАЬThe graffiti walls, and broken taps are normal and an perception of other people and the intersubjective world ordinary thing, whereas an opposite situation, when is problematic only for adults. The child lives in a world toilets are clean and not broken, is a unique and even which he unhesitatingly believes accessible to all around unreal. The things he saw blew up his old thinking, and himтАж he subjects neither his thoughts, in which he understandings, and living standards he had, turned over believes as they present themselves, to any sort of his understanding of what is normal and abnormal, what criticism. He has no knowledge of points of view. For is good and what is bad, forcing him to remember that him men are empty heads turned towards one single, he is really migrating. self-evident world where everything takes place, even dreams, which are, he thinks, in his room, and even Conclusions thinking, since it is not distinct from words.тАЭ Upon The child moving from one country to another leaves his arrival at a new country and seeing new things, migrant or her familiar world, and finds him or herself in a children can create images of a better life in the future. strange new world. The boundaries between these This is especially true if the things and their тАЬvalueтАЭ are worlds are only partially drawn by the state border. very different from the life in the home country. Thus, Evidence of a different world lies in each new thing migration as the end of problems, hardships or other encountered, as a result every new thing is not taken for challenges of the old life (associated with the finances granted anymore. Thus, a child starts to question every received) is associated with тАЬdifferentтАЭ things. new thing he or she sees, as he or she starts to question However things might bring not only projections of a every meaning this thing brings. Those things become better life, but also force a child to get lost in his or her that new world the child has entered. Someone might own mind: say: тАЬbut this is the same for adults. Adults also question everything that they donтАЩt knowтАЭ. But we should not 31 International Journal of Science Annals, Vol. 2, No. 1-2, 2019 forget how dependent children are and how complicated Merleau-Ponty, M. (2005). Phenomenology of and unknown the new world appears to them. Same time perception. New York, NY: Routledge. children migration experience is often underestimated Norris, C. (1990) Stories of paradise what is home when from the position of grown-ups, while children view we have left it. 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The World of Perception. hp/pandp/article/view/15157/11978 Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. Cite this article as: Batuchina, A., & Straksiene, G. (2019). Phenomenological Perspective in Researching Immigrant ChildrenтАЩs Experience. International Journal of Science Annals, 2(1-2), 26тАУ32. doi:10.26697/ijsa.2019.1-2.04 The electronic version of this article is the complete one and can be found online at: http://ijsa.culturehealth.org/en/archive This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en). 32