Social Remittances Research Articles

Suitcase Europeanization: the urban transformation of Northern Greece through the Gastarbeiter migration and return (1960-1981)

ABSTRACT The road to Europeanization for the Greek state and society was a bumpy one: it carried people on the move to Western Europe and back, together with hopes, dreams, money and ideas. This article shows that Greece’s quest for development alla Europeana passed through the Gastarbeiter migration and return. It was manifested in outspoken and subtle ways of transformation in social attitudes connected with urbanism and consumerism. Transnationalism and social remittances are my two interpretative schemes to approach horizontal Europeanization, termed here Suitcase Europeanization, emphasizing migration’s role in the transfer of practices and ideas about Europe before the country’s official accession to the European Economic Community. The primary sources used are contemporaneous social scientists’ works, Greek and foreign. Both scholars and policymakers showed a keen interest in the region’s mutation from a predominantly rural area to a laboratory of change and urban transformation, envisioning European standards.

Exploring social remittances: A comprehensive review and recommendations for future research

This paper combines a variety of academic perspectives on social remittances, analyzing several key studies in the field. Each article is critically reviewed for its primary findings, methods, and limitations, focusing on identifying both the distinct contributions and shared elements among them. The comparative analysis brings to light the various ways social remittances influence and are present in both sending and receiving communities across cultural, economic, political, and social aspects. The paper concludes with strategic recommendations for future research, promoting a multidisciplinary approach, integrating technological advancements, and recognizing the changing nature of global migration. This review aims to provide a detailed guide for future investigations in the area of social remittances, seeking to deepen our comprehension of their complex role in the context of global migration.

Polish Hip Hop at Home and Abroad

Taco Hemingway is one of Poland’s most popular rappers, becoming the first Polish artist to be streamed a billion times on Spotify. Often described as a fresh voice in the Polish hip hop scene, Hemingway also offers a new perspective due to his status as a return migrant, having lived in the United Kingdom. As such, this article positions Hemingway’s output in the context of migration studies and, specifically, the impact migration has on sending countries. Through Hemingway’s music, the article examines the various stages of migration, from experiences abroad to return and circular migration, while also appraising Hemingway’s work within the context of social remittances—the impact that return migrants have on stayers. It also posits that Hemingway’s oeuvre represents the failure of the “Grand Narrative” of Polish migration, as well as the dissatisfaction that return migrants can feel upon return, choosing ultimately to go back to the country to which they emigrated.

The intertwined role of social and financial remittances in new firms' creation

The paper investigates the role of financial and social remittances in promoting new business creation in migrants' home countries. By considering a panel of 143 countries during the period 2006–2018, we propose a way to operationalize the complex definition of social remittances and show that both financial and social remittances are positively correlated with the decision to create new firms, even though the effects of financial remittances crucially depend on the level of social remittances. This non-linear relationship points to the fact that countries with better institutions are likely to generate more intense flows of social remittances. However, they also allow for faster socio-economic integration of migrants and may weaken diasporas' interest and direct financial engagement in entrepreneurial projects in the country of origin. Results obtained on the entire sample are confirmed when looking at the two subsamples of developing and non-OECD countries, respectively.

Emigration, Social Remittances and Fiscal Policy Preferences: Experimental Evidence From Mexico

How does emigration affect tax preferences in migrant-sending countries? Experiencing public services in a high tax-capacity destination may reduce support for tax increases by throwing fiscal failure at home into stark relief (the socialization hypothesis). Alternatively, migrants’ exclusion from certain public services may increase desire to fund these services in migrant origin countries (the exclusion hypothesis). We test these competing hypotheses with an online survey experiment in Mexico and explore variation in US healthcare access on fiscal policy preferences of migrant households. Migrant households, especially those with returned migrant members, are more supportive of taxation when tax revenue is earmarked for healthcare, a service to which many Mexican immigrants in the US lack access. It is migrants’ exclusion from, rather than their socialization into, the fiscal contract in destination countries that influences fiscal policy preferences in their countries of origin.

Returns from the South: Effects of return migration of Ghanaian migrants from China on livelihoods and wealth inequalities in Ghana

AbstractThe sedentary bias that characterizes discourses on migrations from and within the Global South has failed to inform a consistent exploration of international migration from and among global southern countries as normal, desirable and impactful to migrants and their social networks at different spatial levels. Migration‐development nexus analyses are predominantly framed around Global South‐Global North migration episodes whereby cash and social remittances from the North to the South are expected to trigger development in poorer global southern origin countries. This approach neglects the possibility of similar outcomes accruing from south‐south migrations. Drawing on qualitative research methods among Ghanaian migrants to China, our paper addresses the question how does south‐south migration affect livelihoods and wealth inequality? We argue that blunt global categorizations such as “Global South” and “Global North” only serve to obfuscate what is a rather heterogenous bunch of countries, with divergent opportunities for migrants. We recommend that greater focus should be on the contextual factors at the origin and destination, the quality of return preparedness and the human capital of the migrants rather than an arbitrary clustering around a binary Global South‐Global North trajectory as though they are internally homogenous. We conclude that there is heterogeneity in the effects of south‐south migration on household livelihoods and wealth inequalities.

Permanent Imaginaries of Return and Fluid Realities: On Return Aspirations and Ambivalence among Nepali and Chinese Migrants in Australia

ABSTRACT Extending the line of analysis on migrants’ desires and aspirations to return, this article examines the meanings and emotions attached to the question of return in the context of two migrant groups from Nepal and China in Australia. While studies have delved into aspects of return associated with reintegration into the labour market, adjustment upon return, or social remittances, here we examine return as an embedded migration experience rather than actual physical return. We draw on the cultural understanding of family, mainly the notions of Luoyeguigeng and filial piety to examine the common imaginaries of return among both migrant groups and situate our analysis within the ‘fluidity of return’ framework to show how return is continually postponed or how return might not materialise. We argue that despite the permanent imaginaries of return, shaped by similar cultural ideas of family, return remains fluid in reality, complicated by multiple factors attached to home and host country, including the levels of opportunities afforded by the home countries as well as the opportunities for careers, family and partnership/relationships in Australia. The data presented here draws on two qualitative studies conducted among Nepali education migrants and Chinese professional women migrants in Australia.

Auto-Ethnography of Imagined Diasporic Lives Self-Reflexive Analysis of the Left Behind Perspective in a Migrant Family

ABSTRACT This paper discusses the imaginary about migrant kin destinations and the lives of the family members left behind. It reflects on the mechanisms of connection to places the subject has never been that knows through stories told by people whom themselves have never been but have experienced separation and loss as remaining behind in a family characterized by a history of emigration. Through self-reflexive auto-ethnography, this article focuses on the development of virtual ties to imagined places through the establishment of emotional geographies in the second generation left behind. The paper engages with the theorization of two stages in the lives of those who remain in the homeland: (In)-decision to stay, (Re)-solution to stay, which can result in Hesitation about staying in second generation left behind and eventually can lead to an Exit-action. Applying the concept of ‘familial habitus’, it demonstrates how in belonging to a family affected by displacement, stories about distant kin operate as living entities that form bonds with people, places, events with which the subject is unfamiliar. The social remittances provided through visits back can enhance the left behind exitus and emancipation opening for a potential liminoid experience of break with the limitations of patriarchal culture.

International labour migration and people’s views towards economic and political systems in transition countries

ABSTRACT During the 30 years of transition from communist regimes, the people’s views towards transition have varied from support to opposition. We empirically examine the influences of international labour migration on these views, using the survey data covering 28 transition countries in Europe and the former Soviet Union area and three points of time, 2006, 2010 and 2016, based on multivariate regression models. Our main findings are twofold. (I) Labour emigration to Western Europe increased people’s support for a market economy and democracy over a planned economy and authoritarian government, albeit a less robust result for democracy. This suggests the role of social remittances – migrants transmit their experiences and promote the support for transition among people remaining in the home countries. (II) However, immigrant inflows reduced these support, suggesting that the economic and cultural conflicts with immigrants made people sceptic towards liberal policies or nostalgic towards the communist era.

Disfrazados of San Juan Mixtepec, Oaxaca, Mexico

This article explores what work the disfrazados (jester characters) do to sustain and promote the construction of contemporary cultural identities and senses of belonging among the members of the Indigenous Mixtec community of San Juan Mixtepec, Oaxaca, Mexico. Disfrazados are poignant examples of what anthropologist Peggy Levitt termed “social remittances,” key elements for creating social and cultural capital in this transnational migratory community. The article extends theoretical discussions about Indigenous peoples in Mexico beyond traditional analyses of economic remittances by exploring their “non-monetary contributions to development,” specifically regarding the construction, maintenance, and practice of cultural identities and senses of belonging through performance.

Are They Building a “Second Ireland” in Poland? Political Remitting by Polish Migrants and Return Migrants from Ireland

Despite the significant body of literature on migrations after the 2004 and 2007 enlargements of the European Union, including on social remittances, a subcategory—political remittances—is only now starting to receive attention. This article, based on thirty-four interviews with Poles active in the transnational space between Poland and Ireland, supplemented by a survey of Poles in Ireland ( n = 503) and a press query, aims to investigate (broadly defined) political remittances. It explores the conditions in the country of origin and destination which facilitate or hinder political remittances, the areas of political remittances Polish migrants to or from Ireland transfer, and how these are transmitted. The remittances are found to concern three main areas: (1) the perception of minorities (ethnic, national, sexual); (2) the transparency of government and closeness of representatives to citizens; and (3) the cooperation between the authorities and other actors to achieve local economic development. The article argues that political remitting in the Polish-Irish transnational space can be treated as an example of much broader phenomena taking place between countries of the European Union, especially those linked by large migration waves. It demonstrates that, contrary to what much of the literature suggests, political remitting does not only take place between countries at very different stages of economic and political development.

Social remittances and interpersonal communication: Moldovans in Prague and Turin

The authors contribute to filling a gap that exists in the knowledge of personal communications and their interaction with social remittances. Moldovans in Prague, Czechia, and Turin, Italy, and communications with their families and peers in Moldova are studied using our own survey data (from 2017/2018 – N = 203 in Prague and N = 206 in Turin, factor analysis used). We argue that there is a close relationship between interpersonal communication topics (while themes linked to everyday activities dominate over serious broader structural and institutional domestic or “global issues”) and real social remittances. Particular communication topics have their typical bearers in relation to age, gender, and education. The geographical context matters. Prague attracted Moldovans who stay abroad for a shorter time and are less educated, less integrated, and more transnational than those in Turin. Hence, Prague Moldovans communicate more and also transfer more social remittances. However, the overall impact of these social remittances upon Moldova is small.

The impact of migration on food security in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia: The role of migration patterns and remittances

Food insecurity continues to be a major international concern aggravated by the economic crisis, pandemics, violent conflicts and war. In the past decade, scholars have highlighted the role of migration in household food security, yet the interrelationships between migration and food security have shown disconnections in the literature. This study is therefore intended to provide empirical evidence of the food security–migration nexus in the case of Ethiopia’s Tigray region. Mixed-methods approaches were used in the study, including semi-structured household and expert interviews and Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA). The study demonstrates that migration, through the flow of both financial and social remittance, has a positive impact on household food security. Based on the results, remittances contribute to household food security in a variety of ways, including facilitating the acquisition of consumable goods, diversifying sources of income, and funding the purchase of production-related inputs and health insurance, housing, and other household goals. Furthermore, the findings establish that migration is a reaction to a variety of circumstances, primarily prompted by economic factors, such as a desire to enhance one’s standard of life, high levels of poverty, high unemployment, low agricultural yields, and food crises. The study concludes that migration has dual implications for household food security: on the one hand, migration as a response strategy to food insecurity, and on the other hand, migration as a form of vulnerability to household food insecurity, demonstrating the reciprocal relationship between food security and migration.

Change starts from within: Migration and processes of social and cultural change. A Romanian case

Abstract This paper analyzes Romania’s dynamic migratory process with a focus on the return migration from Norway and the sociocultural changes that it might involve for Romanian migrants and their home societies. The focus on Norway as a case study can bring a valuable, accurate, and deep understanding of Romanian immigration. These indicate that Romanians faced many challenges in their migratory journey in Norway, but that for a source country like Romania, return migration could, in the long term, contribute to its social and cultural changes. This research resulted in three key findings. Firstly, through their migratory experience from Norway, Romanian returnees internalized social remittances, and changed their attitudes, behavior, values, and expectations before disseminating their knowledge in their family -and social environment. Secondly, the prevalence of social remittances might be dependent on the motivation of returnees to transfer their knowledge, ideas, and practices in the scope of contributing to social change. The prevalence of social remittances might also be dependent on the way the societies of origin receive the resources that returnees attempt to transmit and culturally diffuse. Thirdly, Romania, as an emigration society, has had a relaxed attitude towards change. However, repatriated Romanians maintain a confident outlook on the potential of their skills and know-how conferring them influence over certain cultural aspects in the spheres of work and social relationships.

Much More Than Just Money: Investigating Remittances Across Time and Place in the Eritrean Context

Remittances have played crucial and shifting roles in Eritrea and its diaspora. They were fundamental to the achievement of national independence and are a resource with which the current government strengthens its power. Households have been reliant on remittances for survival, while for migrants they have been crucial to reinforce their sense of national belonging. Drawing from fieldwork, this article analyses remittances as a powerful tool to assess the ongoing (dis)connection between segments of the Eritrean diaspora and their homeland. The article firstly addresses financial remittances and shows how (in)formal flows play differing functions in relation to the government, communities, and families. Aft er highlighting how social remittances are contributing to current transformations within Eritrean society, it reflects on the potential role remittances may play in the future of the country.

On the formation of content for 'political remittances': an analysis of Polish and Romanian migrants comparative evaluations of 'here' and 'there'

ABSTRACT Migration may affect migrants’ ideas as they become exposed to different contexts over time. But how does such exposure and opportunities for comparative evaluation of origin and settlement contexts, translate into content for potential political remittances? To answer this question, we analyse 80 interviews with Polish and Romanian migrants living in Barcelona (Spain) and Oslo (Norway). Starting from the established ‘social remittances’, literature, our contribution is to unpack the process of their formation by focusing on what happens at the content-creation stage. We do so through analysis of migrants’ comparative evaluation of their ‘origin’ and ‘settlement’ contexts in regard to three explicitly political issues: corruption, public institutions and democracy. We analyse how exposure to, and comparative evaluation of, different contexts inform migrants’ views, and find non-linearity and inconsistency between migrant groups’ and in individuals’ own patterns of views. This underscores the salience of, first, recognising how the change that migration prompts in migrants’ outlooks may or may not be stronger than preceding political preferences, anchored in ongoing processes of (re)socialisation; and second, of better understanding how migration impacts migrants’ outlooks, by considering the specifics of exposure and comparative evaluation, whether or not ultimately articulated in forms traceable as ‘political remittances’.

Opportunities of Countries of Origin to Attract and Use (Re)migrants’ Social Remittances: The Case of Lithuania

The article analyses the possibilities of countries of origin to attract and use (re)migrants’ social remittances – ideas, values, skills, behaviours and practices. Examining the case of Lithuania, the ecosystem of attracting and using social remittances in the country of origin is revealed: the interest of the country of origin, the network of actors, the measures/ incentives to attract and the readiness/obstacles to use (re)migrants’ social remittances. Not only the role of public authorities is highlighted, but also the work of municipalities and non-governmental organisations in attracting and using social remittances from (re)migrants.

Short Take: Sampling from Transnational Social Fields

Thanks to the latest developments in network-oriented sampling, it is now possible to measure “transnational social fields,” or emergent social structures that connect places or regions in different countries. These structures are instrumental in explaining sociocultural phenomena like the emergence of ethnic or demographic enclaves, social and economic remittances, and ethnic identifications. Nevertheless, they have only been mentioned metaphorically so far.

Transborder Citizenship and Activism: Political Engagement and Resistance in the Somali Environment

ABSTRACT This article explores Somali transborder/transnational activism through the role of two individual actors, drawing upon their life histories and a selection of initiatives they have been involved in over time. The Somali-populated Horn of Africa provides a highly complex environment for the production of identities, based on its ethno-linguistic heritage, clan affiliations, Islam and their variable state-like affiliations in what is a highly politically fragmented context. These complex and multiple forms of identity incorporate diasporic and non-diasporic actors, all of which complicates notions of citizenship. This article draws upon social and cultural notions of citizenship (rather than legal-bureacratic) to argue that the agency expressed by the two protagonists is usefully understood as a form of evolving transborder citizenship. Furthermore, the article utilizes the concept of ‘social remittances’ to suggest that the quality of behaviour expressed by our transborder citizens is a form of ‘civicness’, reflective of an engagement with and resistance to the volatile and exclusionary politics of conflict affected contexts. Utilizing life histories enables us to explore how individuals and the networks of which they are part, pursue different strategies, to varying effects, over time and in multiple settings.

The Geopolitical Ethnic Networks for De-bordering: North Korean Defectors in Los Angeles and London

The transnational ethnic networks developed by North Korean defectors are factors in the (de-)bordering of North Korea. Ethnographic fieldwork in two destinations—London and Los Angeles—demonstrates, first, that through their practices of financial and social remittances, the defectors have proved that North Korea’s border control is porous, and second, that the defectors have developed global and regional networks to challenge North Korean sovereignty. In the interaction between the defectors’ daily lives and the geopolitical environment, these geopolitical ethnic networks play important roles. This contribution to the debate on borders and defectors encourages us to shift our attention from nation-states’ laws and policies on border-crossers to the agency of the border-crossers themselves.