Navigating the Digital Aliyah: Social Representations of Technology Among Argentine Immigrants in Israel
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.62174/psocial.11187Resumen
This paper analyzes how digital technologies mediate the migration experience of Argentine Jewish immigrants (olim) in Israel and the social representations they construct around these technologies. In a highly digitized society like Israel, technology is an omnipresent feature of daily life, yet its role in the acculturation process for newcomers is complex. Based on a qualitative study involving semi-structured interviews with ten Argentine olim, this research explores perceptions of social media and digital bureaucratic infrastructure. The findings indicate that digital technology is viewed as a double-edged sword; it is simultaneously a practical tool for efficient daily management and a significant barrier to integration. This duality fosters ambivalent social representations, where technology symbolizes both modern convenience and bureaucratic exclusion, largely due to linguistic barriers and system complexity. The study concludes that digital inclusion for immigrants requires more than mere access to technology. To ensure successful integration, institutional bodies must prioritize linguistically accessible digital infrastructure and provide robust support to help new immigrants develop the digital literacy needed for full participation in society.Referencias
Amit, K. (2024). Report 2 on digital spaces of migrants – Israel. MINTE Project, Ruppin Academic Center.
Berger, R. (2013). Now I see it, now I don’t: researcher’s position and reflexivity in qualitative research. Qualitative Research, 15(2), 219-234. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794112468475
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Cabello, R. (2017). La vida en los bordes. Reflexiones sobre el acceso a las tecnologías y la inclusión digital. Psicología, Conocimiento y Sociedad, 7(2), 252–278.
Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). 2025. Immigration to Israel in 2024. Retrieved October 20, 2025, from https://www.cbs.gov.il/he/mediarelease/Pages/2025/%D7%94%D7%A2%D7%9C%D7%99%D7%99%D7%94-%D7%9C%D7%99%D7%A9%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%9C-2024.aspx, published Sept. 15, 2025.
Cleveland, M., Iyer, R., & Babin, B. J. (2023). Social media usage, materialism and psychological well-being among immigrant consumers. Journal of Business Research, 155, 113419. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.113419
Dodgson, J. E. (2019). Reflexivity in Qualitative Research. Journal of Human Lactation, 35(2), 220–222. https://doi.org/10.1177/0890334419830990
Dwyer, S. C. , & Buckle, J. L. (2009). The Space Between: On Being an Insider-Outsider in Qualitative Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 8(1), 54-63. https://doi.org/10.1177/160940690900800105
Guest, G. , Bunce, A., & Johnson, L. (2006). How Many Interviews Are Enough?: An Experiment with Data Saturation and Variability. Field Methods, 18(1), 59-82. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822X05279903
Hennink, M. , & Kaiser, B. N. (2022). Sample sizes for saturation in qualitative research: A systematic review of empirical tests. Social Science & Medicine, 292, 114523. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.114523
Israel National Digital Agency (INDA). E-Government report. https://www.gov.il/en/pages/egov-report. Published 29/09/2022.
Lesser, J. (2016). “Jews and Judaism in Latin America” in The Cambridge history of religions in Latin America. eds. V. Garrard-Burnett, P. Freston and S. C. Dove (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press), 709–713
Malterud, K. , Siersma, V. D. , & Guassora, A. D. (2016). Sample Size in Qualitative Interview Studies: Guided by Information Power. Qualitative Health Research, 26(13), 1753–1760. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732315617444
Mora, M. (2002). La teoría de las representaciones sociales de Serge Moscovici. Athenea Digital, (2), 78–102.
OECD. (2025). Government at a Glance 2025: Israel. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/0efd0bcd-en
Sam, D. L., & Berry, J. W. (2010). Acculturation: When individuals and groups of different cultural backgrounds meet. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 5(4), 472–481.
Senor, D., & Singer, S. (2012). Start-up Nation: The story of Israel’s economic miracle. Madrid: Prevenlight.
Sokol, S. (2018, June 8). Social media groups are helping new immigrants navigate life in Israel. The Times of Israel. https://www.timesofisrael.com/social-media-groups-are-helping-new-immigrants-navigate-life-in-israel/
Surfshark Research. (2025). Digital Quality of Life Index. https://surfshark.com/research/dql
Triandafyllidou, A. (2025). Migration governance in a globalising and digitalising world. Comparative Migration Studies, 13(40).
Vasileiou, K. , Barnett, J. , Thorpe, S. , & Young, T. (2018). Characterising and justifying sample size sufficiency in interview-based studies: systematic analysis of qualitative health research over a 15-year period. BMC Med Res Methodol 18, 148. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12874-018-0594-7
World Bank. (2016). World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends. Washington, DC: World Bank. https://doi.org/10.1596/978-1-4648-0671-1
Publicado
Número
Sección
Licencia
Los/as autores/as conservan los derechos de autor, garantizan a la revista el derecho de ser la primera publicación del trabajo y aceptan que los artículos publicados por esta revista se encuentran disponibles bajo una Licencia Creative Commons Atribución No Comercial Compartir Igual 4.0 Internacional (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0): los/as interesados/as pueden compartir (copiar y redistribuir el material en cualquier medio o formato) y adaptar (remezclar, transformar y crear a partir del material otra obra), siempre que: a) se cite la autoría y la fuente original de su publicación (revista, editorial y URL de la obra); b) no se usen para fines comerciales; c) se mantengan los mismos términos de la licencia. Este tipo de licencias se basan en el principio de la libertad creativa con fines académicos, científicos y culturales.
