New Doctor at ICSJ: Victoria Nainová Studied the Role of Digital Media in the Integration of Immigrants

On Thursday, September 25, our PhD student Victoria Nainová successfully defended her dissertation titled “The Role of Digital Media in the Integration Process of Immigrants Living in Czechia and Germany.” This makes her the latest graduate of the doctoral program at ICSJ, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University.

Her research focused on the role of digital media in the integration processes of Russian-ethnic immigrants from Kazakhstan living in Czechia and Germany. More specifically, she examined how digital media facilitate access to information, the building and maintaining of social networks, and adaptation to the host country’s culture. The dissertation contributes to a better understanding of how migrant communities use digital platforms during their integration into a new society.

The study shows that social networks such as Instagram, Facebook, and Telegram serve both practical and emotional functions in the integration process. For instance, they act as a primary source of information that is otherwise limited or unavailable from official sources in the host country. Participants also use these platforms to learn about the host culture, although the majority of the content they consume remains in their native language.

Victoria Nainová has been involved with ICSJ for a long time not only as a student and researcher, but also as the coordinator of the Doctoral Studies Centre. We wish her much success in the next stage of her professional career.