“Sometimes we have to call the police because of fights (between residents). It doesn't happen very often. The problems are created by specific persons and other households do not cause any trouble. When there are more young men, usually there are more conflicts.”
A major constituent of the concept of home is the feeling of safety. Home is the secure and safe centre of an individual’s universe (Fozdar & Hartley, 2014). The psychosocial benefits of having a home can be adversely affected by external stresses which negatively impact the feelings of ‘safety, intimacy and control’(Phillimore & Goodson, 2008). In the case of the GU at Hofheim, the majority of the inhabitants feel safe living there.
4.4. Social Connections Social connections are further classified by scholars into social bonds, social bridges and social links. Firstly, social bonds in this context refer to not just the intra-ethnic relations, but also all connections between families and individuals living in the GU at Hofheim. Secondly, social bridges refer to the relations between the residents of the GU and the local population around them, who are predominantly native Germans. Finally, social links refer to how the residents of the GU interact with the governmental machinery and the social connections formed in the process.
The respondents while talking about social bonds within the GU expressed that people who speak the same languages are naturally able to communicate and form bonds with one another. Five respondents agreed on the relations being good in general between the residents of the GU. The young Russian woman recollected about her time at the GU; “I remember that there were groups who spoke the same languages, but also they would support and help each other...The Afghans were always helping me by fixing my bike. I was also always invited for tea and cake by everyone there.” The Afghan refugee adds to this when he says; “The people are very good. They are always up for helping out with something and everybody greets everyone else. There are several people from Afghanistan and I can easily interact with them because I speak the languages (spoken in Afghanistan).” The asylum seeker from Zimbabwe had a good impression of the other residents;
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