Special issue call for papers: (Re-)constructing Credibility in Refugee Status Determination
MOBILE Center of Excellence for Global Mobility Law at the University of Copenhagen invites submissions for papers for a special issue on the role of credibility assessments in refugee status determination. Contributors will meet for a workshop in Copenhagen on October 23-24th, 2025.
About the call
Asylum adjudication is characterised by evidentiary struggles, where it is rarely possible to independently verify claimants’ testimony. This places a great emphasis on the ability of asylum-seekers to convince authorities of the veracity of their claim. This process, by which the individual testimony is received and weighed by the decision-maker, is commonly referred to as credibility assessment, and has in several studies been showed to be inherently prone to flawed assumptions, bias, stereotyping, and discrimination.
Whilst the notion of credibility remains an accepted, if much criticised, element in the legal discourse on evaluative criteria for asylum, there remains no clear consensus on what exactly a credibility assessment entails and how it should be carried out in a transparent and uniform manner. Against this backdrop, this workshop aims to bring together scholars working on different aspects and practices of credibility in the asylum process.
The workshop is intended to bring together a diverse group of scholars across disciplines, jurisdictions and career stages to collectively examine and discuss the issue of credibility assessment in asylum, creating a space for constructive and critical dialogue. We are particular interested in contributions examining how credibility is approached from different disciplines and jurisdictions, comparative perspectives on current practice, as well as reflections on how insights from other fields can be integrated into the asylum domain. As such, the overall goal is to engage an otherwise fragmented body of scholarship and address both new and recalcitrant challenges relating to credibility in asylum procedures.
Core themes for submissions include, but are not limited to:
- Current state practices in assessing credibility and how these are aligning with international standards, guidelines, and/or domain knowledge from other disciplines, such as psychology, criminology and evidence law
- The role and interaction between credibility and new technologies in RSD, including the growing use of AI tools and digital and forensic evidence
- Ways to improve current interview practices
- Issues arising from credibility assessment in asylum claims concerning special or vulnerable groups
The workshop is intended to result in a compilation of papers to be published as a special issue in a peer-reviewed journal.
Submissions
We invite contributions from scholars in fields such as law, psychology, criminology, sociology anthropology, and data science. The criteria for selection are originality, quality of research, and fit with the theme of the workshop. Empirical and/or interdisciplinary perspectives are particularly welcomed. Interested participants should provide an abstract (500 words) and a brief biography to the organisers by 1st of July, 2025. To submit an abstract please write to assj@jur.ku.dk and maya.ellen.hertz@jur.ku.dk with the subject 'Submission (Re-)constructing Credibility Workshop’.
Selected participants will be notified in the beginning of August 2025 and be required to submit an initial daft paper of 4,000-8,000 words to serve as the basis for discussion by 2nd of October. Participants are expected to read each other's drafts prior to the workshop and provide feedback. More time is allocated for feedback on drafts submitted by junior scholars. Participants will then be asked to develop their drafts into full-length articles based on the feedback given at the workshop and continuous dialogue with the editors and submit these by spring 2026.
Travel costs, accommodation, lunch and a workshop dinner are covered for paper presenters.
Organisers
Asta S. Stage Jarlner, PhD fellow at MOBILE working with machine learning and computational approaches to understanding and potentially bettering credibility assessment procedures in RSD.
Maya Ellen Hertz, PhD fellow at MOBILE working at the intersection of refugee law, critical data studies, and decision-making, and whose project investigates the role of evidence in refugee status determination.
Thomas Gammeltoft-Hansen, professor of migration and mobility law, director of MOBILE and the Nordic Asylum Law & Data Lab.