The Impact of Political Opportunities on Interorganizational Networks: A Comparison of Migrants' Organizational Fields

Abstract

This article analyzes patterns of collective action in the field of immigration by looking at relational dynamics in two different local political settings. Drawing on a relational approach to the study of collective action, the general assumption is that the specific political opportunity structure (POS) in the field of immigration shapes the logics of interaction of migrants' associations. To test this hypothesis, we compare migrants' organizational networks in two cities characterized by two different opportunity structures—Lyon and Zurich. We thus apply network analysis to examine the density, the structural patterns, and the distribution of ties amongst organizations in the two cities. Results suggest that specific opportunities in the two contexts, by providing differential institutional access to migrant associations and publicly recognizing different collective identities, partly shape the relational patterns in the field and thus the modes of coordination of collective action adopted by migrants' organizations.