At Malmö Institute for Migration Studies (MIM), we are developing a recurring national survey that opens up new ways of looking at diversity, inclusion and exclusion in Sweden. This platform brings together research, articles and students’ visual interpretations.

Superdiversity captures today’s demographic complexity, where within‑group variation and intersecting social, legal and economic factors shape inequality and belonging. Understanding these dynamics requires data. Sweden’s population registers offer exceptional longitudinal coverage but cannot capture subjective identities or lived experiences of discrimination. The Diversity and Inclusion Survey fills this gap through voluntary self‑identification, enabling multidimensional analyses of inclusion and exclusion. In combination with register data, it supports more precise empirical work on superdiversity and the shifting contours of belonging in contemporary Sweden. Authors: Sayaka Osanami Törngren and Pieter Bevelander

Visualisation by Noel Grunander

This study examines relationships within families in Malmö where members maintain close social ties despite living in different countries – so-called transnational family relationships (TNF). The study provides one of the first quantitative insights into this phenomenon in Sweden. Despite limitations in the data, the results point to several important patterns. Almost half of all respondents state that they have family members abroad, which shows that transnational ties constitute a significant part of Malmö’s family landscape. Authors: Brigitte Suter, Cody Green and Paul Lafond

https://play.mau.se/media/t/0_3lewuxbu?enablejsapi=1

People face different health challenges, and research shows that experiences of the healthcare system vary with demographic diversity. These differences also shape levels of trust in society. Piloting the Diversity and Inclusion Survey in Malmö, a superdiverse city in Southern Sweden, allowed us to build on this work. The results show that unmet healthcare needs are linked not only to key demographic factors but also to whether people feel at home in the city. As seen elsewhere, people are more likely to seek help when they trust the healthcare system. Despite Malmö’s highly international population, people rely most on Swedish government websites, healthcare professionals, and friends and family for health information—far more than on foreign or Swedish media or the internet. This highlights the crucial role of public authorities in improving healthcare access in a diverse society. Authors: Michael Strange, Slobodan Zdravkovic and Elisabeth Mangrio

https://play.mau.se/media/t/0_n268ze8i?enablejsapi=1

Speaking multiple languages is part of many people’s everyday lives, shaping how they relate to the world and form emotional attachments to place—attachments that can also be affected by discrimination. While previous research has linked multilingualism to both belonging and discrimination, we know less about how these factors interact. Using data from the 2025 Diversity and Inclusion Survey, this paper examines the relationship between language proficiency, multilingual identity and linguistic racism, asking how these experiences influence place belonging among migrants and their children in superdiverse Malmö. The findings show that speaking Swedish at home strongly aligns with feeling at home in Sweden, while discrimination and lower language proficiency significantly weaken this sense of belonging. Authors: Carolin Schütze and Nahikari Irastorza

Visualisation by Ida Bennrup

This study examines electoral turnout in the superdiverse city of Malmö. It analyses how sociodemographic, sociopsychological and attitudinal factors—such as language proficiency, sense of belonging and trust—relate to participation in Swedish local elections. Turnout is higher among older voters, women, the highly educated and Swedish citizens. Among immigrants, it varies by region of birth and rises with years of residence. Differences also appear by religious identification, moderated by nativity. Voters show higher trust toward people of other backgrounds, while non‑voters report lower social distance, suggesting inconsistent patterns across measures. Voters also report stronger belonging to the city and higher language proficiency than non‑voters. Authors: Derek Hutcheson, Vanja Mosbach and Pieter Bevelander

Voting illustration by Idun Lindberg

Sweden’s reliance on country of birth as the primary measure of inequality reflects a universalist ideology but obscures important dynamics of exclusion that are better captured by considering race and religion alongside migration background. Using new diversity and equality data from Malmö, the study shows that country of birth best explains generational and structural aspects of integration, while race is the strongest predictor of discrimination and social recognition, and religion – particularly Muslim identity – adds an additional layer of symbolic exclusion. The findings demonstrate that migration background alone provides an incomplete picture of inequality, supporting the need for multidimensional, carefully designed equality data to better understand and address exclusion. Authors: Henrik Emilsson and Magdalena Ulceluşe

Illustration Oscar Franzén

About the visualisations

The visualisations for the articles are the result of a collaboration between students in the Visual Communication program and researchers at the research centre Malmö Institute of Migration Studies (MIM), both at Malmö University.

About the programme Visual Communication (in Swedish)

MIM and CIMR

Malmö University’s Research Centre for Migration Studies has an interdisciplinary focus and a strong international presence. Researchers at the centre and within its extensive network develop, investigate and share knowledge on international migration and ethnic diversity.

CIMR issues

The journal publishes a wide range of research- and practice-based articles on migration. It serves as a research platform for academics, practitioners, policymakers and the general public, and accepts articles written in both Swedish and English. Each issue contains a thematic section focusing on a specific area of research within migration and integration, as well as an open section featuring articles on issues of a more general nature.