Descendants Of Migrants Research Articles

Attitudes toward Abortion for Medical and Non-medical Reasons among the Turkish Second Generation in Europe – The Role of the Family and Societal Contexts

This paper studies attitudes toward abortion among the second generation of Turkish migrants and their native counterparts in six western and northern European countries. We focus on Turkish migrants because they not only constitute one of the largest immigrant groups, but are also hypothesised to be culturally and demographically very distinctive from the native group. We used data from the project on “The Integration of the European Second Generation (TIES 2007-08)” from Austria, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland. The sample consisted of 4,761 respondents aged 18 to 35, 49.5 percent of whom were children of Turkish migrants born in Europe and 51.5 percent belonged to the respective non-migrant comparison groups. Unlike in other surveys, the question regarding attitudes toward abortion in the TIES questionnaire distinguished between “medical” and “non-medical” reasons for abortion, with the possible answers being “never”, “in specific cases” and “always”. We carried out multinomial logistic regression analyses and investigated three research questions: 1) Departing from assimilation theory, we examined whether the attitudes of migrant descendants differed from those of their non-migrant counterparts. Our results show that both groupings under study expressed a range of attitudes, and that abortion for medical reasons was more accepted than abortion for non-medical reasons. However, second-generation Turks were more likely than the natives to say that they would never accept abortion. 2) We investigated the extent to which the societal climate and the integration context of the respondents influenced their attitudes toward abortion, while assuming that we would find cross-country variation in these attitudes. Our results reveal that among natives, levels of acceptance of abortion are lowest in Germany and highest in Sweden and France. We found a similar country pattern for women and men of the second Turkish generation. 3) We explored the degree to which the respondents’ family contexts (childhood backgrounds as well as current socio-demographic variables) influenced their attitudes toward abortion. While these factors partially explained the variation within the Turkish second generation and within the native comparison group, the country differences remained significant. We conclude that attitudes toward abortion in the Turkish second generation are influenced by their family backgrounds, but also by their socialization experiences in European receiving countries. These findings suggest that cultural assimilation processes are occurring, but not to the point where the attitudes of migrant descendants have converged with the attitudes of natives in the respective destination country. * This article belongs to a special issue on migrant fertility.

Chinese in Africa: ‘Chineseness’ and the complexities of identities

ABSTRACTThis introduction presents background information to a special issue exploring the complexities of the Chinese identity and forms in which ‘Chineseness’ is expressed by Chinese migrants in Africa. Existing literature and media reports on the Chinese in Africa assumes that they are a homogenous group, this introductory article argues to the contrary. The Chinese diaspora in Africa range from descendants of migrants that settled in Africa in the seventeenth century to twenty-first century migrants. This historical and contemporary engagement between China and African countries is essential to understanding the diversity and hybridity of Chinese identity in Africa. This observation provides the basis for the six articles in this special issue. Based on ethnographic observation and in-depth interviews with the Chinese diaspora and locals in Zimbabwe, Ghana, Zambia and South Africa, the articles provide a compelling argument on why there is no single Chinese identity in Africa.

‘Totemless Aliens’: The Historical Antecedents of the Anti-Malawian Discourse in Zimbabwe, 1920s–1979

Due to their state of unbelonging, many immigrants across Africa have, in times of turmoil, been stereotyped or constructed as unpatriotic outsiders, with adverse consequences on their welfare in foreign spaces. Such has been the case of migrant descendants (aliens) in Zimbabwe, who were victimised during the country’s agrarian reform and electoral processes in the new millennium. While literature on the discrimination of immigrants in post-2000 Zimbabwe is rich, there is little work on its historical roots. Therefore, using life histories, archival data and secondary literature, this article seeks to provide historical insights into the emergence and evolution of hostility in Zimbabwe towards African immigrants from the north from the 1920s to 1979. It historicises the antecedents of the anti-migrant sentiments, focusing mainly on people of Malawian ancestry in Zimbabwe who, because of various historical configurations and dynamics, became associated with the unpatriotic tag. Central to this characterisation was the immigrants’ alleged collusion with settler ‘domestic’ regimes, capital and power; their hegemonic influence over urban space, trade unionism and proto-nationalism during a period when they demographically dominated the Rhodesian African labour force; and their alleged disruption of local gender dynamics. All this became part of an anti-Malawian discourse that could be drawn upon in independent Zimbabwe to legitimise their economic and political exclusion.

A Good Match? Education, Labour Market Position, and British South Asian Transnational Marriage

This study applies exchange theory to transnational marriages between descendants of migrants to Europe, and partners from their (grand)parents’ country of origin. Such marriages could offer socioeconomic benefits for the European partner/family, if the opportunity of migration attracts a more highly educated spouse. The translation of educational capital into socioeconomic benefits, however, is mediated by the labour market position of migrant spouses. In this study we explore the relationships between transnational marriage, education, and employment, by comparing the characteristics of spouses in transnational couples with those in intranational couples. Analyses are based on UK Labour Force Survey data (2004-2014) for two groups in which transnational marriage is common — Pakistani-Muslims and Indian-Sikhs. We find that educational homogamy is the dominant pattern in both intranational and transnational couples, and that migrant spouses have a disadvantaged labour market position compared to non-migrant spouses with the same level of education — with variation across gender and ethnic groups. Our findings do not support a view of transnational marriage as socioeconomic exchange, but do suggest education plays a role in spousal choice in these marriages.

Women's mental health in the perinatal period according to migrant status: the French representative ELFE birth cohort.

Mental health problems in the perinatal period are common. We examined associations between different categories of migrant status and region of origin in relation to mental health during pregnancy and at 2 months post-partum. We analyzed data from the French nationally representative Etude Longitudinale Française depuis l'Enfance birth cohort (n = 17 988). Migrant status was divided into five categories: 'majority population', 'descendants with one migrant parent', 'descendants with two migrant parents', 'naturalized migrant' and 'non-naturalized migrant women'. Multivariate logistic regression models were implemented to examine associations between migrant status and mental health outcomes: persistent psychological difficulties during pregnancy as well as mother's depression and poor self-reported health at 2 months post-partum. After adjusting for covariates, migrant status was not associated with psychological difficulties during pregnancy. Descendants of migrants had comparable mental health to the majority population. Non-naturalized migrant women were more likely to experience depression (odd's ratio (OR)= 1.66, 95%confidence interval (CI): 1.27, 2.20) and poor self-reported health (OR = 1.45, 95%CI: 1.06, 1.98) during the post-partum period. The region of origin was associated with post-partum health independently of migrant status, such that women from Africa and Turkey were most likely to have depression or poor self-rated health. First, but not second, generation migrant women appear to have high levels of mental health difficulties during the post-partum period. Women from North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Turkey have higher levels of distress than those from other regions. In particular, non-naturalized migrant appear to be a vulnerable group; they may disproportionately face stressors that increase their risk for post-partum depressive symptoms.

Aux portes de la société française. Les personnes privées de logement issues de l’immigration

Alors qu’en dix ans la part des étrangers a fortement augmenté parmi les sans-domicile, les spécificités de cette population restent peu étudiées. Cet article propose d’analyser les trajectoires sociorésidentielles des personnes issues de l’immigration confrontées à la privation de logement personnel. En quoi diffèrent-elles de celles des sans-domicile nés en France ? Quelle place spécifique les immigrés occupent-ils dans le monde de l’hébergement et quelles sont les lignes de fracture au sein de cette population ? Les résultats de l’enquête Sans-Domicile menée par l’Insee et l’Ined en 2012 montrent que les migrants, les descendants d’immigrés et les personnes de la population dite « majoritaire » ont des profils distincts, et qu’en matière d’hébergement institutionnel, ils ne sont pas logés à la même enseigne. En raison de la présence de femmes et d’enfants, les migrants ne sont généralement pas laissés à la rue, mais ils sont souvent relégués dans les dispositifs d’urgence, moins favorables à l’insertion. Par ailleurs, ils disposent de ressources économiques, culturelles et relationnelles hétérogènes qui les conduisent à des prises en charge et à un recours au droit différenciés.

Childbearing among first- and second-generation Russians in Estonia against the background of the sending and host countries

Background: An expanding literature documents the childbearing patterns of migrants and their descendants in contemporary Europe. The existing evidence pertains mainly to the northern, western, and southern regions of the continent, while less is known about the fertility of migrants who have moved between the countries of Eastern Europe. Objective: The aim of this study is to examine the fertility patterns of first- and second-generation Russians in Estonia, relative to the sending and host populations. Methods: The study draws on the Estonian and Russian Generations and Gender Surveys. Proportional hazards models are estimated for the transitions to first, second, and third births. Results: Russian migrants in Estonia exhibit greater similarity to the sending population, with a lower propensity for having a second and third birth than the host population. This pattern extends to the descendants of migrants. However, mixed Estonian-Russian parentage, enrolment in Estonian-language schools, and residence among the host population are associated with the convergence of Russians’ childbearing behaviour with the host-country patterns. The findings support the cultural maintenance and adaptation perspectives; selectivity was found to be less important. Contribution: The study focuses on a previously under-researched context and underscores the importance of contextual factors in shaping migrants’ fertility patterns. It raises the possibility that, depending on the childbearing trends and levels among the sending and receiving populations, large-scale migration may reduce rather than increase aggregate fertility in the host country. With the advancement of the fertility transition in sending countries, this situation may become more common in Europe in the future.

INDICATORS OF BONE METABOLISM IN GIRLS-DESCENDANTS OF THE FIRST GENERATION OF MIGRANTS LIVING IN THE KHMAO-YUGRA

The study examined the content of bone metabolism in the blood serum of 15 girls with the usual level of physical activity, the descendants of migrants of the first generation of markers living in the territory of KhMAO-Yugra (age 18-24). We detected two signs indicating the change of the regulatory systems of the bone metabolism in girls surveyed, which were shown as: reducing the concentration of the active form of vitamin D, and increase the concentration of osteolysis markers - C-terminal telopeptide and parathyrin serum. From these data we can conclude that the marked changes in bone metabolism and its regulatory systems linked to the climatic conditions of the subjects live.

Acculturation and health-related quality of life: results from the German National Cohort migrant feasibility study

We assessed the association between acculturation and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among persons with a Turkish migrant background in Germany. 1226 adults of Turkish origin were recruited in four German cities. Acculturation was assessed using the Frankfurt Acculturation Scale resulting in four groups (integration, assimilation, separation and marginalization). Short Form-8 physical and mental components were used to assess the HRQoL. Associations were analysed with linear regression models. Of the respondents, 20% were classified as integrated, 29% assimilated, 29% separated and 19% as marginalized. Separation was associated with poorer physical and mental health (linear regression coefficient (RC) = -2.3, 95% CI -3.9 to -0.8 and RC = -2.4, 95% CI -4.4 to -0.5, respectively; reference: integration). Marginalization was associated with poorer mental health in descendants of migrants (RC = -6.4, 95% CI -12.0 to -0.8; reference: integration). Separation and marginalization are associated with a poorer HRQoL. Policies should support the integration of migrants, and health promotion interventions should target separated and marginalized migrants to improve their HRQoL.

How to reach the top? Fields, forms of capital, and strategies in accessing leadership positions in France among descendants of migrants from Turkey

ABSTRACTThis article explores the experiences of highly educated descendants of migrants from Turkey when achieving leading positions in the corporate business, education, and law sectors in France. It illustrates the forms of capital and strategies that are considered significant for accessing leadership positions in these sectors, and how experiences vary across different fields. Our research illuminates the various strategies pursued by descendants of migrants from Turkey in their pathways to attaining leadership positions, and suggests how similar forms of capital work in distinct ways across different sectors.

Self-made lawyers? Pathways of socially mobile descendants of migrants from Turkey in Europe

ABSTRACTThis study is based on narratives of successful lawyers in Europe who are descendants of migrants from Turkey. I will discuss the main mechanisms whereby social actors have a significant impact on the professional pathways of these upwardly mobile professionals. The findings provide two insights. The relevance of significant others found in literature on educational mobility of descendants of migrants can be extended to professional pathways. Some respondents became acquainted with the middle-class culture of the majority group through peers and school during their youth. This was instrumental in adjusting to the specific white-collar professional environments of corporate law firms. Others who grew up and attended schools in disadvantaged neighbourhoods had more difficulties adjusting. However, they became accustomed to middle- and upper-class norms and behaviour at university or on the job by observing and learning along the way.

International opportunities on the way up: alternative career paths of descendants of migrants from Turkey in the field of professional business services

ABSTRACTThis qualitative study examines the career paths of descendants of labour migrants from Turkey in the field of professional business services. Through in-depth interviews with upwardly mobile professionals in leading positions, the article presents evidence from four countries (France, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden). Respondents reflect on their professional career as a process constituted through personal interactions while displaying their perceptions of restrictive national conditions that affect their professional success in this field. There seem to be three discernible “ideal type” alternative career paths for newcomers. First, the corporate career path consists of building a widely recognized “international” profile. The second alternative is a “niche” path that emerges by making use of one’s individual background in order to climb up the corporate ladder. Finally, there is a path of self-employment for individuals who have experienced blocked opportunities and therefore want to become “independent” of corporate hierarchies.

The upcoming new elite among children of immigrants: a cross-country and cross-sector comparison

ABSTRACTThe European-born children of immigrants, often referred to as the second generation, play an important role in the academic debate about integration and assimilation. The successful second generation, defined in terms of possessing a higher education diploma and or professional position, receives increasing attention. In this special issue, we will look at the most successful group: the upcoming “elite” among the descendants of migrants from Turkey, based on data gathered in the ELITES, Pathways to Success project. In this research project we deliberately selected on the dependent variable: being professionally successful in managerial jobs in the corporate business sector, the corporate law sector and the education sector.

The influence of sports on indicators of mineral bone density among women descendants of migrants of KHMAO-Yugra

The study shows that women descendants of migrants in the first generation, born and residing on the territory of KHMAO-Yugra, not engaged in physical culture and sports, according to densitometry mineral density of bone tissue shows signs of loss of bone mass, not observed in the residents of middle latitudes and the girls engaged in physical culture and sports, living in the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous district-Yugra. Preliminary data confirm the assumption that training in physical culture and sport contribute to the prevention of loss of bone mass in women living in the territory of KHMAO-Yugra.

What an ethnic lens can conceal: the emergence of a shared racialised identity position among young descendants of migrants in Sweden

ABSTRACTThe article problematises the use of the ethnic lens in research on the young descendants of migrants. It discusses methodological and theoretical insights derived from an interview study on young people from the same neighbourhood in Stockholm, Sweden – the majority of whom had parents with varying ethnic identifications. Because the study did not use any one particular ethnic group as an entry point, it illuminates processes of racialisation that exceed ethnic boundaries and the development of a racialised identity position shared by descendants with different ethnic ties. It thereby contributes to an expanding field of European studies that ethnographically illustrate racialisation of the migrant descendants in different European contexts, and their diverse answers to racialisation. Compared to US experiences, this specific European mode of racialisation limits the range of identity positions offered to a higher extent and furthermore positions a wider span of people as non-white. By focusing on the relationship between how people are represented and how they perceive themselves the article further questions the transnational perspective as an alternative means for circumventing the ethnic lens. The incorporation of a transnational perspective in this research was namely perceived by the participants as ascriptions of ethnic otherness.

ZANU (PF)'s Manipulation of the ‘Alien’ Vote in Zimbabwean Elections: 1980–2013

This article historicises how the post-colonial Zimbabwean government has maintained and consolidated its power through, among other tactics, the systematic manipulation of the ‘alien’ vote. The ‘aliens’ are residents in Zimbabwe who are either of foreign origin themselves or whose parents are originally from Malawi, Zambia and Mozambique. Basing its findings on oral interviews, the paper engages power and coercion as analytical concepts to understand how non-indigenous communities are affected by state power through the reconfiguration of their citizenship/belonging and relentless violence during elections. It argues that since the 1980s migrant descendants have been used and abused by the hegemonic socio-political hierarchy for its electoral benefit. Migrants, who came into what was then Southern Rhodesia during the colonial labour migration system (1890s to 1970s), like other autochthonous Zimbabweans, were allowed to vote between 1980 and 1996. Yet all this changed in the post-2000 period, when the ZANU (PF) government complicated citizenship laws and initiated the land reform exercise to, among other aims, strip ‘aliens’ of their right to suffrage in subsequent elections. This on and off relationship has been dictated by the politics of power, patronage and coercion under which migrant descendants have constituted a critical swing vote which ZANU (PF) has either embraced for its benefit or marginalised it in the face of formidable opposition politics. This disenfranchisement has invariably affected the livelihoods of these foreign descendants through violence, intimidation and denial of socioeconomic leverage.

Union formation and dissolution among immigrants and their descendants in the United Kingdom

(ProQuest: ... denotes formulae omitted.)1. IntroductionEuropean countries are witnessing increases in immigration streams and the ethnic heterogeneity of their populations (Castles and Miller 2009). A large body of literature has examined various aspects of immigrants' lives in Europe, including their employment and education (Adsera and Chiswick 2007; Kogan 2007; Rebhun 2010; Rendall et al. 2010), health and mortality (Sole-Auro and Crimmins 2008; Wengler 2011; Hannemann 2012), residential and housing patterns (Musterd 2005; Arbaci 2008), legal status and citizenship (Seifert 1997; Baubock 2003; Howard 2005), and linguistic, cultural, and religious diversity (Foner and Alba 2008; Gungor, Fleischmann, and Phalet 2011). The recent literature has also exhibited an increasing interest in the study of family dynamics and patterns among immigrants and their descendants. One stream of research examines the formation and dissolution of exogamous marriages in Europe, with the aim of deepening our understanding of the factors that influence the spread and stability of mixed marriages and their role in immigrant integration (Coleman 1994; Gonzalez-Ferrer 2006; Kalmijn and Tubergen 2006; Dribe and Lundh 2012; Milewski and Kulu 2014). Another stream investigates fertility dynamics among immigrants and their descendants (Andersson 2004; Toulemon 2004; Milewski 2007; Kulu and Milewski 2007; Coleman and Dubuc 2010; Goldscheider, Goldscheider, and Bernhardt 2011).The aim of the current paper is to investigate the union formation and dissolution of immigrants and their descendants in the UK and to compare their patterns to those of the 'native' British population.3 We extend the previous literature in the following ways. First, we study various partnership transitions among immigrants and their descendants, including formation and dissolution of cohabitations and marriages. Further, we study the formation and dissolution of both the first and second unions. We thus move beyond the 'one-life-event-at-a-time' approach, which is dominant in the literature on migrant families. We believe that the study of several partnership events over the life course provides us with much richer information about the opportunities and constraints that migrants face than does an analysis of only one (or of the first) marriage of the migrants.Second, we examine family trajectories among the descendants of migrants, whose share has significantly increased in the last decades in the UK and other European countries (Sobotka and Toulemon 2008). Research has shown that the fate of the 'second generation' is not as rosy as we may wish. Their educational qualifications often remain below those of the majority population, and their labour market performance is often poor (Fassmann 1997; Alba 2005; Meurs, Pailhe, and Simon 2006; Aparicio 2007; Brinbaum and Cebolla-Boado 2007; Van Niekerk 2007; Kristen, Reimer, and Kogan 2008; Aeberhardt et al. 2010; Fibbi, Lerch, and Wanner 2007). The current study provides information on the demographic behaviour of important population subgroups in the UK and will improve our understanding of how various factors shape the fate of the 'second generation' in the European context. This information will be valuable for the development of future integration policies.Third, to our knowledge, this is the first study on union formation among immigrants and ethnic minorities in the UK that explicitly compares their partnership trajectories to those of the native population from the longitudinal and life course perspectives. Although the dynamics of mixed marriages and fertility of ethnic minorities in Britain have been examined (Coleman 1994; Coleman and Dubuc 2010; Feng et al. 2012; Hampshire, Blell, and Simpson 2012), the topics of union formation and dissolution, and particularly the rise of cohabitation, have not been covered in the recent literature (for earlier cross-sectional research, see Berrington 1994; 1996). …

French Muslims and the Middle East

Recent jihadist attacks have raised important questions concerning the relationship between the Muslim population in France and the politics of the Middle East. This article highlights the importance of perceptual frames informed by the legacy of colonialism in shaping the experiences of Muslims in France, most of whom are migrants or descendants of migrants from former French colonies in North and West Africa. Discontent over social exclusion in France has fueled identification with the cause of the Palestinians, stimulating an upsurge in anti-Semitism since the beginning of the second Intifada, and more recently the emergence of an extremist fringe that has thrown in its lot with Middle East-based jihadist groups.

Transnational practices and local lives. Quran courses via Skype in Norwegian-Pakistani families

With the emergence of an adult generation of descendants of migrants who are entering the labour market, marrying and having children, questions of transnationalism are made current in new ways. This article engages in the discussion of transnationalism and ‘the second generation’ by taking the everyday life of families as a starting point for discussing the role and meaning of what can be defined as transnational practices. The practice in question is the use of online Quran courses among families of Pakistani background in Norway. Employing Levitt and Glick Schiller’s distinction between ways of being and ways of belonging in transnational social fields, this article discusses how to understand this practice and its transnational dimensions.

Tamil merchant in ancient Mesopotamia.

Recent analyses of ancient Mesopotamian mitochondrial genomes have suggested a genetic link between the Indian subcontinent and Mesopotamian civilization. There is no consensus on the origin of the ancient Mesopotamians. They may be descendants of migrants, who founded regional Mesopotamian groups like that of Terqa or they may be merchants who were involved in trans Mesopotamia trade. To identify the Indian source population showing linkage to the ancient Mesopotamians, we screened a total of 15,751 mitochondrial DNAs (11,432 from the literature and 4,319 from this study) representing all major populations of India. Our results although suggest that south India (Tamil Nadu) and northeast India served as the source of the ancient Mesopotamian mtDNA gene pool, mtDNA of these ancient Mesopotamians probably contributed by Tamil merchants who were involved in the Indo-Roman trade.