Persistent ties, evolving networks: Accounting for changes and stability in migrant support networks

Abstract

AbstractOne of the salient themes, both in the social network analysis literature and its applications to migration research, is a shift to a more dynamic conceptualization of (migrant) social networks. To elaborate on the dynamic nature of migrant networks, I reconstructed and examined the support networks of 134 Filipino nurses, domestic workers, and care workers in New York and London in three migration phases (pre‐migration, initial adjustment, and current situation) through the factors that significantly shaped their stability or evolution at the micro‐ and macro‐levels. At the micro‐level, shifts in the respondents' networks were examined vis‐à‐vis biographical events and transitions. At the macro‐level, immigration policies and migration pathways were also discussed as shaping network dynamics. It was further observed that transnational ties re‐emerged as relevant connections after the initial adjustment phase while ties in intermediary countries and connections that are geographically mobile should be included in an expanded concept of transnational ties beyond the countries of origin and destination.