Is migration a unique field of study in social sciences? A response to Levy, Pisarevskaya, and Scholten

James F Hollifield

doi:10.1186/s40878-020-00192-3

Abstract

The emergence of a new research field or area of study in the social sciences always is fraught with controversy, fits and starts, theoretical, methodological, and even epistemological debates. Migration studies is no different, but some things are relatively unique about this ‘new’ field of study, while others are more conventional. The article on the ‘rise of migration studies’ by the CrossMigration team, Levy et al. (Comparative Migration Studies, 8 forthcoming), “Between Fragmentation and Institutionalization” under consideration here captures some of the controversies in migration studies, and poses some interesting questions about the direction of the field. Building on the ‘bibliometric analysis’ of journal articles by the cross-migration group, I ask what is unique about migration studies and what is conventional?

Highlights

The emergence of a new research field or area of study in the social sciences always is fraught with controversy, fits and starts, theoretical, methodological, and even epistemological debates
Migration has been a topic of inquiry in the social sciences for decades, and in the field of sociology, the focus on migration studies dates from the late nineteenth century
Social demographers develop theories of household behavior—a primary unit of analysis—and they delve into economic theory, looking at the structure and functioning of labor markets to understand how these affect the propensity for people to move

Summary

Introduction

The emergence of a new research field or area of study in the social sciences always is fraught with controversy, fits and starts, theoretical, methodological, and even epistemological debates. Economists still with a laser-like focus on the United States and sticking with conventional social science have been influential in the development of the field of migration studies, relying on rationalist and utilitarian theories of human behavior.

Results

Conclusion