The Researching Asylum in London [RAL] database can be explored by searching for or by browsing the research. Instructions for exploring using both these methods follows:
1) Searching
a) Basic search can be accessed from the homepage. Enter your search term/s in the space provided. The website will identify your search term/s in the title, author and summary content of the research included in the database. You may use Boolean operators [AND, OR, NOT] to make your search broader or more specific. To search for an exact phrase, put inverted commas around your search terms. On the search results page, research will be ordered according to the number of times the search term appears in the summary content and title. They can also be sorted alphabetically by author name, and by date ascending and descending. There is an option to search within your results, and an option to search again.
b) Advanced search can be accessed from the toolbar and the homepage. Any of the following information can be entered in the spaces provided: title, author, and date. The website will identify your search term/s in the database according to the fields specified.
2) Browsing – you may browse the website in several ways:
a) by Theme and Topic – the research has been categorised into seven themes and several topics within those themes. The themes are listed on the left hand side of the screen. Selecting a theme will display the topics above this theme. Topics can be selected for browsing research relevant to the topic. An A-Z list of topics can be accessed from the homepage, which can also be used for browsing.
b) by London borough – this can be accessed from the homepage. Scan the map to find research carried out in specific London boroughs. There is an option to enlarge the map, and to view an alphabetical list of London boroughs.
c) by Refugee Population – this can be accessed from the homepage. Research relating to specific refugee and asylum seeker groups in London has been organised by nationality and ethnicity into an alphabetical list, which can be used for browsing the research.
Summaries have been written by ICAR staff and interns. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that each summary is an accurate representation of the author's work should users have any suggestions for improvements then please e-mail: