Local Migrant Integration

This study examines the case of a multilingual digital information platform designed to support migrant integration at the level of German districts and cities. Utilizing a dataset of 11.8 million website logs from 2018 to 2024, covering over 100 participating regions, the research investigates how local administrations prioritize information provision given their typically limited capacities - and to what extent this prioritization aligns with users' demands.

Descriptive findings reveal significant disparities in thematic focus and language offerings across districts. Additionally, multivariate logistic regressions are employed to map the probability of users' page views (demand) over 20 topics and levels of content provision (supply). Thus, topics providing immediate practical value, such as opening hours and mobility information, show high demand relative to supply. Topics representing the acquisition of key resources or knowledge - like language learning, housing, or legal issues - demonstrate both high demand and responsiveness to increased supply. This indicates that users are motivated to navigate even through detailed, deeply nested pages for these topics.

Furthermore, the research reveals varying information demand across language groups, likely reflecting their distinct integration contexts. Overall, the findings highlight the need for tailored, demographically informed content strategies that account for language-specific needs in supporting refugee integration locally. Multilingual and locally relevant information is in high demand by newcomers, but providing it effectively requires careful attention, especially given local administrations’ limited resources.

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