Adjustment Of Migrants Research Articles

School alumni associations in modern Australia as transcultural conduits of migrant identity: the Sri Lankan experience

ABSTRACT The literature illustrates that there has been relatively little specific research undertaken on the ways in which pre-migration school connections might have influenced the individual or group migration experience to Australia. Such influence is evident with migrants from Sri Lanka (Ceylon), a gap that the authors have identified in previous work. This paper attempts to bridge this research space by reporting on a pilot study into how Sri Lankan school alumni associations in Australia have influenced the migration experiences of individuals now living in Australia. Data for the study was generated via surveys and interviews with members of alumni organisations. Findings suggest that Sri Lankan school alumni associations can be important drivers and facilitators of both the act of migration and the process of migrant adjustment. They work as conduits enabling their members to remain connected to their ancestral roots in Sri Lanka whilst embedding themselves in modern Australian society.

Socio-economic Adjustment of Rural Migrants in an Urban Setting: A Study of Sampang Rai Migrants in Kathmandu, Nepal

This article explores the socio-economic adjustment of rural migrants in the cities of Kathmandu Valley. This study was conducted among Sampang Rai migrants and utilizes the network theory of migration. Information was gathered through questionnaire using KoBoToolbox, in-depth interviews, and observation in the study areas. Sampang Rais migrate to the Kathmandu Valley to get an education, find better work, experience city life, help their families, get medical treatment, and learn new skills. The already established and available networks facilitate the selection of migration destinations and socio-economic adjustment in Kathmandu Valley. Friends, families, earlier migrants, and institutions assisted migrants to adjust socially and economically in the destination areas by providing information, physical resources, material resources, and sociocultural support. Sampang Rai migrants also made efforts to diversify their livelihood, keep strong connections with friends and families, join religious communities, learn new skills, exchange labour and encourage one another while they go through the process of socio-economic adjustment.

Religion, Migration and the New African Diaspora

The new African diaspora has emerged from the recent migratory movements of Africans. This population is tasked with finding effective methods of adjusting to new environments. Through the psychoanalytic lens of object relations, this article explores the role of religion in shaping migration experiences of the new African diaspora. It considers the psychological processes that intersect with religion to influence migrant adjustment. First, drawing from object relations theory, the role of early relational experiences in shaping self-concept is conveyed. Second, ways are explored in which religious phenomena can support transitional processes within a migration context. Third, the object relations framework is used to review some of the psychological tasks involved in the migration experience (e.g., processing of attachment disruptions, expansion of cultural identity). It is theorized that a migrant’s relationship with the sacred represents a transitional phenomenon that contributes to positive adjustment via a post-migration experience. The article concludes with some practical considerations.

Acculturation and adjustment of migrants reporting trauma: The contextual effects of perceived ethnic density

Little is known about the relation between acculturation and socioecological contexts of migrants with a personal trauma history living in the community. This study represents an extension of our previous work and aimed to unpack the perceived neighborhood ethnic density (ED) effect and examine the moderating role of ED on the acculturation-adjustment relation in a community sample of migrants with trauma (N = 99) from developing countries residing in Montreal, Canada. ED was protective against general psychological distress but did not predict posttraumatic symptoms. The ED effect was mediated via degree of acculturation to the French-Canadian mainstream cultural context, rather than heritage acculturation, social support, or discrimination. Moreover, protective effects of French-Canadian mainstream acculturation for depressive symptoms and life satisfaction were found under high but not low ED conditions. Similarities and differences with our previous research as well as theoretical and prevention implications are discussed from a person-environment interaction perspective.

On international migration: A review essay

International migration continues to reshape our world, sometimes in predictable ways, but often with unanticipated consequences. The four books reviewed here provide new information and important insights regarding migration and migrant adjustment. They do so either by dealing with the policy dimension of this vast topic (Freeman and Mirilovic; Phillimore) or by delving deeply into the issue of immigrant integration (Scholten et al.; Waters and Gerstein Pineau). These editors took four different approaches to their task: (1) a compilation of already published works on the topic (Phillimore); (2) original pieces on topics or countries but following a predetermined framework (Scholten, et al.); (3) chapters designed to test theories against available empirical information (Freeman and Mirilovic); and (4) a comprehensive group-written “state of the art” for a single country (Waters and Gerstein Pineau). Together, the books provide an impressive array of scholarship from a variety of disciplinary perspectives on the links between migration and social policy and on immigrant integration.

Zeitgeschichte als Orientierung?

Summary Firstly, the article presents in an overview the history of German expellees in the postworld- war II period. A distinction is made between their social and religious integration. The analyses follows the fundamental question to what extent the historical events also have significance for the current migration movements into Europe. Beside differences, there are parallels between the refugees at that time and today. For instance, one can positively refer to the importance of religious ties, the solidarity between compatriots of the identity-creating narratives and symbols in the region of arrival, which can provide a framework for the integration of the newcomers. On the other hand, this integration is hampered today as it was then, if it is presented as an asymmetric adjustment of migrants to a supposedly homogeneous society. This has the opposite effect and reinforces a counter-identity of refugees.

The role of food in the Polish migrant adjustment journey

In 2015, there were 916,000 Poles living in the UK, making them the largest group of non-UK nationals at 16.5 percent of the population. Though increasingly research has focused on the consequences of this migration for both migrants themselves and the receiving country, little research has looked at food habits. This paper will explore the role of food in the Polish migrant adjustment journey. A qualitative approach was adopted, involving semi-structured interviews with nine Polish migrants.In this study, Polish migrants described the move to a new culture as a time of stress and loneliness. Due to a lack of money, they were forced to eat local food, which exacerbated their unease, as they found it to be tasteless and unhealthy. As soon as their financial situation improved, they reverted to a Polish diet, relying on ingredients brought from home, from London, or more recently, purchased from local Polish shops. This gave them comfort, and all participants acknowledged the vital role of food in their adjustment to life in a new culture.

Understanding Social Capital in Migrant Women From Mainland China to Hong Kong

ABSTRACTThis study was based on data from a survey of social capital in a low-income community in Hong Kong. Based on the importance of social capital for successful social adjustment and integration of migrants, this study compared the presence and nature of social capital among female migrants and local people and identified the relationship between socioeconomic status and the characteristics of social capital among migrant women. This large-scale survey adopted a cross-sectional design using the Chinese version of the Social Capital Questionnaire developed by Onyx and Bullen. Stratified random sampling was applied using 981 housing apartments as the sample units. A subsample of 90 new migrant women from mainland China was used for the analysis. The results indicate that the migrants had developed less social capital with different characteristics compared with that of local people. Social services to develop trust and social capital among migrants is recommended, in addition to further research on the intersectionality of gender, migrants, and social capital.

Can Family Financial Resources Buy Friends?

This study examines empirically the relationship between the economic conditions back home and the friendship patterns of migrants at the new destination. The migrant adjustment process is not just associated with the individual socioeconomic status, but is also related to family economic conditions in their place of origin. Our study, based on data collected in 2010 on migrant workers in seven cities located in Pearl River Delta and Yangzi River Delta in China, confirms the relationship. Our findings indicate that rural migrants in China with higher income and better economic conditions back home are associated with more friends in the host society. We also find friendship patterns to be different between male and female migrant workers. In particular, family economic conditions back home are particularly important for males’ friendship pattern, but not for females. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Cross-cultural adjustment of skilled migrants in a multicultural and multilingual environment: an explorative study of foreign employees and their spouses in the Swiss context

Skilled migrants are essential to the global economy, and both employers and states depend on them to maintain their competitive advantage. This is particularly true for the Swiss economy, which attracts an impressive number of migrants to counteract the national shortage of skilled workers. The Swiss context is particularly interesting to study because of the strong presence of multinational companies and a situation where the difference between qualified migrants and assigned expatriates is increasingly ethereal. Our study focuses on the adjustment of a population of 152 foreign employees from Swiss-based multinational companies and the adjustment of 126 spouses. We studied different adjustment dimensions focusing on local language proficiency and relocation support practices. Despite the highly multicultural and multilingual Swiss context, our data analysis highlighted relatively low cross-cultural adjustment scores (especially interaction adjustment). We uncovered the degree to which relocation support practices are offered, used and perceived as necessary by foreign employees and showed which support practices could be used to improve the adjustment of migrants.

Meeting the expectations of your heritage culture: Links between attachment orientations, intragroup marginalization and psychological adjustment.

Do insecurely attached individuals perceive greater rejection from their heritage culture? Few studies have examined the antecedents and outcomes of this perceived rejection – termed intragroup marginalization – in spite of its implications for the adjustment of cultural migrants to the mainstream culture. This study investigated whether anxious and avoidant attachment orientations among cultural migrants were associated with greater intragroup marginalization and, in turn, with lower subjective well-being and flourishing and higher acculturative stress. Anxious attachment was associated with heightened intragroup marginalization from friends and, in turn, with increased acculturative stress; anxious attachment was also associated with increased intragroup marginalization from family. Avoidant attachment was linked with increased intragroup marginalization from family and, in turn, with decreased subjective well-being.

Transformative Homes

ABSTRACTIn the era of global workflows and massive migrations, it has been suggested that the notion of home is breaking free from its material aspects to become a set of exportable routines and practices. On the other hand, it is argued that the materiality of spaces and objects can support migrants' well-being in the new destination. Drawing on the ethnography of a Moroccan household in Rome, Italy, we illustrate how actions pertinent to the material home can favor identity development and the exercise of agency. First, we discuss squatting as a collective action of appropriation and transformation, which led to the identification with a transnational, intercultural category of migrant. Second, we illustrate the activities of furnishing as the locus of syncretic and reflexive processes, in which elements of the host country and themes from the migratory experience are mixed and reinterpreted in novel ways. Our analysis supports the view that the materiality of the home and the actions it affords play a major role in the socio-psychological adjustment of migrants and—on a wider scale—in processes of cultural dynamism and renovation.

Employment and Life Satisfaction among Female Marriage Migrants in South Korea

Using the 2009 national survey for marriage migrants, this paper examines the factors which influence the labor market participation and life satisfaction of female marriage migrants in South Korea. Comparisons are made among marriage migrants by ethnicity or source country and vis-à-vis local Korean women. The results indicate that the ability to engage in employment is hindered by lack of fluency in the Korean language and a demanding care regime for children and/or parent(s)-in-law. The socioeconomic adjustment of marriage migrants vary by ethnicity. Findings indicate that it is not employment per se, but the quality of work that contributes to life satisfaction. Having no children, a good spousal relationship, social networks and wealth also influence life satisfaction.

An Exploration of Flexibility/Rigidity as Relational Quality of African Migrants in South Africa as New Cultural and Social Environment

This article attempts to draw attention to the interpersonal interactions of African migrants and to how the relational quality, namely, flexibility/rigidity, could potentially facilitate or limit their acculturation in South Africa. The study on which the article is based is part of a larger international research project on the commonalities and differences in the way that intergenerational relations, citizenship and belonging play out in three countries: The United Kingdom, France and South Africa. Ten families and 24 individual participants (men and women in the age range 18–59) from different African countries who had migrated to South Africa were selected through purposive sampling. The data were obtained through in-depth personal interviews that were thematically analysed using a secondary data analysis approach. Although more relational qualities would provide a comprehensive description of migrants' interpersonal styles, the relational quality of flexibility/rigidity of migrants who participated in this research, ranged on a continuum from being too flexible to being too close and some were in between. Migrants who were flexible could associate themselves with the new cultural and social environment and expand their behavioural repertoire. The migrants in the study, who were too flexible and too close, experienced discomfort. The study findings can be used as baseline for further research to support the adjustment of migrants in South Africa.

Human displacement, occupational disruptions, and reintegration: a case study

Displacement places individuals in unfamiliar contexts, disrupts their occupational lives in deep ways, and consequently impacts their health and wellbeing. Displaced persons have to essentially reconstruct their lives in unfamiliar sociocultural contexts that are dramatically different from their home countries. New ways of performing familiar occupations have to be re-learnt, while negotiating their place in the new context. Occupational therapists can facilitate the adjustment and integration of migrants. They can help them re-establish daily occupational routines and habits; educate them on cultural norms, expectations, and behaviors in the new context; and empower them with skills and know-how to navigate systems. Enabling participation enhances the wellbeing and self-efficacy of migrants, and promotes integration.

Transportation and Migrant Adjustment in Georgia

Access to transportation is critical for functioning in modern American society, and minorities disproportionately lack access to transportation. Latinos in Georgia—most of whom are newcomers to this country—are considerably less likely than non-Latino whites to drive alone to and from work because they do not live in households with a car available for personal use. We propose that this factor, along with limited access to alternative modes of transportation, impedes the ability of Georgia’s newest Latino residents to adjust to their new environment. In this study, we examine the impact of limited transportation options on the adjustment experience of recent Latino migrants to Georgia. We document how lack of personal transportation lends itself to a number of social problems including inability to obtain different work or to take advantage of opportunities for advancement. For Latinos who are both recent migrants to Georgia and recent immigrants to the United States, lack of transportation creates an adjustment “bottleneck,” whereby various paths to adaptation are simultaneously impeded. We argue that improving access to driver’s licenses, pedestrian infrastructure, and, in some places, public transportation should be a policy priority for states adjusting to recent influxes of Latino migrants.

Ethnicity's Shadows: Race, Religion, and Nationality as Alternative Identities among Recent United States Arrivals

In recent decades, ethnicity has received increasing academic attention—and popular acceptance—as a core aspect of identity and one that is particularly relevant to immigrants. But is this notion of ethnicity salient to the immigrants themselves? This article provides a set of quantitative snapshots of the way new arrivals to the United States identify themselves and their children. The data—a set of annual surveys of recent refugee arrivals—suggest that in response to specific questions about “ethnicity,” newcomers often provide what from American perspectives are not “ethnic” responses. In particular, race and religion are frequently offered as ethnic identity. Furthermore, nationality can also override ethnicity. Parents, for example, sometimes categorize recent United States-born children as ethnically “American” even though the rest of the family retains its previous non-United States identity. Such identity choices reveal much about the starting point of migrant adjustment. They are also invaluable for the broader analysis of the logic, history, contingencies, and internal tensions of United States—and Euro-American—notions of ethnicity.

Inside, outside, upside down, backward, forward, round and round: a case for ethnographic studies in migration

This article calls attention to the potential of ethnographic studies in furthering our understanding of migration and circulation systems. The dominant conceptualization of migration and migrant adjustment as a one-way journey is inadequate, as many individuals and groups forge connections and social fields across expanses of space and time. There has been insufficient attention directed toward understanding migrations as cultural events rich in meaning for individuals, families, social groups, communities and nations. Three recent ethnographic studies of disparate migrant groups in North America are presented as exemplars. A careful reading and interpretation of each brings to light key ideas in migration and culture, culminating in four overarching themes that serve as prolegomena for a research agenda in migration and postmodernity: dislodgement from place, entrainment in migrant cultures, the ambivalence of migration, and identity construction and change.

Chinese migrants' mental health and adjustment to life in New Zealand.

The purpose of this study was to identify and assess the relative importance of predictors of the self-rated adjustment and psychiatric morbidity of recent Chinese migrants. Chinese migrants (n = 271) living in Auckland and aged 15 years or older completed a postal questionnaire that included the Chinese Health Questionnaire (CHQ). The majority of respondents came from Hong Kong and Taiwan. Most respondents did not report major adjustment problems. The psychiatric morbidity rate was 19%. Major predictors of experiencing problems included rejection by locals, being aged 26-35 years or over 45 years and low English proficiency. Major predictors of poor adjustment included unemployment, low English proficiency, lack of university education, younger age, shorter residency, expectations not met and regrets about coming to New Zealand. Predictors of minor mental disorder included regretting coming, female gender and younger age. For migrants resident 2 years or less, unemployment and underemployment were additional risk factors. Mothers with absent husbands and young people with absent parents also had elevated rates of mental disorder. Although the overall prevalence of mental disorder for this sample of recent migrants appears to be similar to that of the general population, significant risk factors were identified. The findings extend knowledge of the adjustment and the mental health of migrants and provide potential focal points for primary and secondary prevention interventions.

Global migration and the selective reimagining of religions

Abstract It is a commonplace in discussions of immigrant religion to speak of how religion aids in the adjustment of migrants to a new culture and society; how it serves as a dimension of continuity in the process of integration. This article examines theoretical foundations for reconsidering this perspective in the context of globalization in general and global migration in particular. In a global society, it is far less useful to think of migrants as leaving one society to join another, especially insofar as this optic tends to assume a) that the new “host” culture remains comparatively unaffected while the immigrants culture faces the dilemma of assimilation versus ethnic preservation; and b) that the culture of origin simply loses a few members without much effect by the migrants back onto their cultures of origin. By contrast, the article argues that the consequences of migration are to help (re)define religions in all areas where they are represented; and thus to make distinctions between “core” and “diaspora” far less salient. Instead, different areas where religious traditions are represented are better seen as centres for creating different options for the authentic construction of the same religion; options that are very often in communication with each other.