Migrant Spouses Research Articles

Effects of migration on family structure.

This paper examines the situation and problems of migration on family structure, with emphasis on family reunification. The study is based on conditions and practices in Western Europe and Mediterranean countries relating to temporary labor migration. Most migrant workers have no intention of settling permanently and return to their country within a few years. The International Labour Office estimated in 1974 that at least 1/2 the migrant workers in Western Europe live without their families. Generally, migrants send for their families only when they are employed, earning adequate wages, and have adequate housing. Some reasons why migrants live apart from their families include 1) the receiving country discourages family immigration because it does not coincide with the economic necessities of migration policy and 2) some sending countries discourage it to ensure that the migrant worker returns to his own country. The main danger arising from family separation is that it frequently leads to the break up of the family. The leading European authorities recognize as a fundamental right the freedom of a migrant worker and his family to lead a normal family life in the receiving country. The author outlines the conditions for admission for residence and employment of migrant spouses and children for the Federal Republic of Germany, France, Belgium, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Austria, Luxembourg, and the United Kingdom. All countries require that the head be in regular employment for some time and be able to provide his family with suitable housing. Other problems concerning the arrival of migrant spouses and children include 1) acquiring employment and social information and counseling, 2) education of children, 3) obtaining vocational training and adaptation and 4) achieving entitlement to social security benefits. The effects of migration in the family context in sending countries include 1) providing activities for migrants to maintain cultural links with their countries of origin and 2) acquiring the nationality of the receiving countries. Countries should facilitate the admission to employment of migrant spouses and children, by maintaining provisions for the reuniting of families and imposing no limits on admission to residence; and 2) by overcome obstacles to admission to employment, by observing existing recommendations. In conclusion, governments should give family cohesion 1st priority, regardless of regulations.

The Effect of Social Networks on Marital Roles: A Test of the Bott Hypothesis in an Intergenerational Context

On the basis of an exploratory study of 20 young London couples, Bott (1957) proposed that the connectedness of social networks to which spouses belong influences the segregation of marital-role activities. However, empirical tests of this hypothesis have been inconclusive because of conceptual and methodological limitations. In the present study Bott's hypothesis was tested with a group of 100 Puerto Rican migrant spouse pairs and 100 pairs of their adult married children. The results failed to confirm Bott's hypothesis. Network characteristics appear to be influenced by the individual's sex; marital-role characteristics, by generational differences and by wife's education. Limitations of Bott's hypothesis are discussed and theoretical alternatives are proposed.