Unprotected: Emotional Needs in Social Representation of Protection Related to Migrant Women in Italy.

The social representation of migrant women and their narratives is strongly influenced by the knowledge and experience of experts, shaping the perceptions, opinions, and images that society creates about them. The emotions of migrant women are often manipulated, and their subjectivities distorted, limiting their ability to express themselves. Their emotional needs, such as social and familial support, overcoming emotional trauma, and the need for belonging and protection in the new social context, play a crucial role in shaping how they are perceived and represented. Satisfying these needs promotes well-being and fosters social cohesion. On the one hand, dominant social prejudices shape the emotions of migrant women, contributing to their discrimination. On the other hand, their emotional needs, stemming from intersectional oppression, are often ignored in the dominant narrative.

This paper is composed of two parts: the first includes an archival analysis of intersectional and interdisciplinary literature that offers critical insights to understand how emotions are deeply connected to processes of otherness, influenced by race, religion gender, socioeconomic status, and sexual orientation to explore the main sociocultural dynamics related to female migration in Italy. The second part is based on empirical research that involves semi-structured interviews, focus groups and vox populi with migrant women. The objectives are: 1) to examine how factors such as race, gender, socioeconomic status, religion, nationality, and sexual orientation shape their emotional experiences, impacting democratic processes and political participation, 2) to analyze how emotional dynamics contribute to the formation of social representations of protection, with a focus on identifying the specific emotional needs of these women, and 3) to investigate how protective policies, both in Italy and EU level, respond to these needs and what impact they have on the active participation of migrant women and their sense of belonging in the host society.