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Marieke Schöning
successively from open to axial coding and reassembled the data through selective cod-
ing to distil research findings connected to existing scholarship on active citizenship. The
interview data was analysed in terms of content rather than linguistic nuances. The latter
did not seem fruitful, bearing in mind that the interviews were conducted in a non-native
language. This insight also guided the stage of transcription. Obvious grammatical errors
as well as filler words and sounds were edited out with an eye towards the reader. This
by no means implies that respondents’ grasp of the English language was weak. They
were fluent and confident expressing when they struggled linguistically; the grammatical
imperfections would have attracted more attention than warranted when written out.
Anonymity was a vital aspect to some interviewees, due to the unstable political situation
and the far-reaching influence of the security apparatus. In several cases, they faced
personal difficulties with respect to their legal status in Lebanon; it was therefore impor-
tant to keep a low profile. All interviewees have received pseudonyms, borrowed from
the novels ‘Cinnamon’ by Samar Yazbek and ‘A hand full of stars’ by Rafik Schami. The
gender of all participants was maintained.
3. Empirical Findings
This section outlines the most relevant empirical findings about firstly why the respondents
engaged, secondly how these engagements represent a form of active citizenship, and
thirdly how the specific context challenges this political classification of the engagements.
3.1. Motivations to Engage
The motivations for young, educated Syrians in Beirut to engage in the aid sector for
refugees from Syria were indeed characterised by a duality of self-interest and altruism,
as the following quote illustrates:
Habib: “As young Syrians, we have two choices. The first one is to start working
with the Syrian refugees here in Lebanon; the second choice is to go out there and
to – I mean to Europe – and just continue our studies or maybe have better circum-
stances. As long as we are here, we cannot stay here and be silent. We should do
something and work for Syrian refugees here. And I think, most of us are motivated
enough to do so. We all have this ideal and that’s why we focus more on NGOs and
what they are doing for Syrian refugees.
Interviewer: So it is to help other Syrians?
H: Yeah.
I: But do you also have the feeling that you learn from the job?
H: Yeah, of course.
I: So it’s also a way of – in a difficult situation – educating yourself and learning on
a job?
H: [Mutters approvingly.] Yeah.”
