Transnational Spaces ‘From Above’ – The Role of Institutions in Promoting Highly Skilled Labour Migration from India to Sweden

Abstract

AbstractThe global network economy involves intensive interactions and flows between places. In this paper, we define a theoretical framework of labour migration in the global economy in which we propose the importance of transnational spaces ‘from above’ and how formal organisations develop networks for migration processes. This theoretical framework is employed on an empirical study that investigates the increasing flows of highly‐skilled labour migration from India to Sweden within the ICT‐sector. The paper illustrates how transformations and acting in formal institutions in the political and private sectors have a strong impact on the transnational migration of highly‐skilled labour. By integrating theories from migration studies, institutional theory and economic geography the theoretical framework has been able to conceptualise factors that are less visible in migration studies ‘from below’. Thereby this paper contributes to a more multi‐sided understanding of transnational migration processes.