Migration Theories Research Articles

Balances in the Migration Theories

Balances in the Migration Theories

THE IMPACT OF FINANCIAL INCLUSION OF MIGRANTS ON ECONOMIC GROWTH

Introduction. In the global economy, people migrate between regions or countries in searching better life. The migration is beneficial for both the country of origin and the host country. Economic benefits consist in sending money by migrants’ home through various remittance channels such as commercial banks, cash money market, electronic transfers. That is why the lack of access to regular financial services is a significant challenge to the economic independence of migrants and their self-sufficiency. As a result, international humanitarian organizations are increasingly promoting the financial integration of refugees, their empowerment, integration into the host economy, promoting self-sufficiency and financial inclusion. This actualizes the scientific research of economic growth and financial inclusion of migrants, because a passive response to the problem threatens the harmonious development of regions that are actively involved into migration processes. The purpose of the article is the research with focus to analyze the constituent elements of economic growth in the conditions of migration flows increasing and to outline directions for strengthening the financial inclusion of migrants. Results. The constituent elements of economic growth in the conditions of financial inclusion of migrants were considered. It was provided a taxonomic analysis of the theories of migration, its motivation and attraction factors. The Ukrainian economy was analyzed under of migration flows growing, estimated the pace of its recovery and reconstruction due to international aid and remittances from migrants. It was evaluated the financial integration and financial inclusion of migrants in terms of the availability of basic financial services. The factors affecting the financial inclusion of migrants and preventing the receipt of financial services were identified. It was outlined the directions for strengthening the financial inclusion of migrants. Prospects. The subject of further scientific research is the research of the level of digital financial inclusion of migrants, which can become an effective tool for overcoming socio-economic problems and stimulating economic development.

Migracije – kritike klasičnih teorija i feministički doprinosi / Migrations – Criticisms of Classical Theories and Feminist Contributions

The fast way of life, the intensive flow of information and the comprehensive connection of people and capital with the global market and modern technologies lead to the questioning of the traditional definitions of the concepts of space, place and time in the social sciences, which at the same time makes the classical theories of migration questionable. The issue of “methodological nationalism” has long been discussed and criticized in the literature, as well as Eurocentrism, the dominance of the economic perspective and gender imbalance, recognized as stumbling points in migration research. The main criticisms of classical theories of migration are presented in the paper, as well as new approaches that are born from the attempt to understand the changes brought about by modern society and to overcome the set stumbling points.

CYCLICAL MIGRATION IN ALASKA NATIVE ELDERS AND ITS IMPACT ON ELDERS’ IDENTITY AND LATER LIFE WELL-BEING

Abstract This paper outlines a unique culturally driven cyclical migration of Alaska Native Elders. This Indigenous cyclical migration is distinct from other previously described mobility observations in that Elders spend extended time in more than one community. We describe the cyclical migration of Alaska Native (AN) Elders and its influence on the Elders’ identity, health, and well-being. Employing a life course perspective and social theory of migration, inductive content analysis was employed to identify themes related to Elders’ cyclical migration between rural and urban communities and the impact on their identity, health, and well-being. Interviews with 125 AN Elders were conducted across five regions of Alaska: Bristol Bay, Interior, Norton Sound, Aleutian Pribilof Islands, and Southcentral. AN Elders traveled between rural and urban communities to access resources and connections critical to their identities, health, and well-being. Urban Elders maintained a connection to rural villages because they perceive them as healthier places to age based on access to traditional practices, land, and the community. Rural Elders spent extended time in urban settings to access health care services, be closer to family, and to benefit from the lower costs of living. This study builds upon existing migration theories by introducing a cyclical pattern uniquely driven by AN identity, culture, and traditional practices. Findings illustrate how AN communities can support Elders who experience cyclical migration patterns to ensure they age successfully in both locations. Future recommended research should explore cyclical migration patterns among other Indigenous populations with histories of migration.

A Socioeconomic Assessment on International Migration Theories

Göç, zamansal ve mekânsal boyutu bulunan dinamik bir olgudur. Göç, ilkel zamanda açlık, barınma, kuraklık, deprem ve sel gibi doğal afetlerin etkisiyle yaşadıkları coğrafyayı değiştirmek zorunda kalan insan topluluklarının sosyal, siyasi, kültürel, ekonomik ve demografik değişimlerini ortaya koymaktadır. Sürekli ve değişen bir yapıya sahip göç olgusu, çok boyutlu sosyal değişim ve dönüşüm sürecini yansıtmaktadır. Göç hareketlerini ön plana çıkaran unsur, göçün insanların umut, sevinç, acı ve beklentilerini yansıtmasından kaynaklanmadır. İçerisinde insan yaşamında dair unsurlar barındıran göçler, göç alanlar, göç edenler ve göçe tanıklık edenler gibi çok taraflı aktörler meydana getirebilmektedir. Toplumsal değişmenin temelini oluşturan bu göç hareketliliği süreci, bölgeler arasında kültürel ve sosyal değişim ve gelişimleri de beraberinde getirebilmektedir. Göç sadece belli bir zaman için bir ya da birden çok insan topluluğunun sadece coğrafi olarak yer değiştirmesi değil, beraberinde sosyal, kültürel, ekonomik bir çeşitliliği ve toplumsal değişimi de içerisinde barındıran bir dönüşüm sürecini yansıtmaktadır. Göç hareketliliğini bu denli önemli kılan, toplumsal yapıları, toplumsal yaşamı ve kurumların yapısında köklü değişikliklere yol açabilme potansiyeli olmuştur. Bu sebeple göçlerin hacimleri, mesafeleri, özellikleri değiştiğinde farklı göç tanımları ortaya çıkabilmektedir. Araştırma nitel özelliklere sahip olmakla beraber araştırmada literatür taramasına dayalı betimsel analiz modeli kullanılmıştır. Bu bakımdan göç ve göç teorileriyle ilgili yapılmış çalışmalar sistematik biçimde incelenerek bulgular, yorum ve değerlendirmeleri sentezlenerek sosyolojik çerçevede yorumlanmıştır. Araştırmada göç teorileri üzerine bir literatür taraması yapılarak göç hareketlerinin arkasındaki dinamiklerin neler olduğu tespit edilmeye çalışılmış, göç hareketlerine bütüncül ve makro düzeyde bir bakış açısı sunulmuştur. Araştırmada göç hareketleri tarihsel bir perspektifte makro, mezo ve mikro düzeyde incelenmiş, göç konusuna sosyal, ekonomik, tarihsel ve kültürel açıdan farklı bir pencereden yorum getirilmiştir. Mevcut çalışmanın literatüre düşünsel ve teorik olarak zenginlik katacağı düşünülmektedir.

‘Why did you return?’: North-South return migration and family ties in the case of Iran

This article offers insight into the motivations behind voluntary North-South return migration by examining returnees’ own understanding and perception of return. Adopting a bottom-up approach and drawing on semi-structured in-depth interviews with eleven Iranian returnees, this study asks: How do return migrants perceive and articulate what motivated and facilitated their decision to return from a prosperous country in the Global North to the challenging living conditions of their home country in the Global South? How do they explain the role of their stay-behind families in shaping their return migration trajectory? Informed by social network theory, this article showcases the agency of North-South return migrants as active social actors in the process, wherein their return is shaped by transnational relationships, particularly family ties, regardless of the context of return. Family ties act as a driving force of return migration not only when stay-behind families provide emotional and practical support to return migrants but also when migrants feel a sense of duty towards family members who have remained in the homeland and may need their care. This study contributes to scholarship on return migration by undertaking a critical examination of return migration theories grounded in economic models. In the study of voluntary return migration, scholars have focused significant attention on the economic push and pull factors informed by the rational choice theory. The economic models, however, do not fully explain the seemingly puzzling North-South return cases where migrants participate in return migration from a prosperous country to an economically adverse context of their homeland. This study highlights the role of family ties in return migration process and challenges the dichotomous success-failure narrative about return.

Return Migration and Disability by Life Course Stage of Return: Evidence Against the Salmon Bias.

Life course theory points to unique characteristics among older immigrants that may differentiate older age return migration from return at younger ages in terms of health. To investigate how the health of returnees may differ by age-at-return, this analysis compares disability between 3 groups of Mexican adults with a history of migration to the United States: those who return to Mexico before age 50, those who return at 50 and older, and those who remain in the United States at age 50 and older. Data from two nationally representative data sets, the U.S. Health and Retirement Study and the Mexican Health and Aging Study, are combined to create a data set representing Mexicans 50 and older with a history of migration to the United States. Adopting a life course perspective, activity of daily living (ADL) difficulty is compared by return status and age-at-return to account for differential selection into return by life stage. Mexican immigrants who remain in the United States past age 50 have a higher probability of at least 1 ADL compared to those who return to Mexico, regardless of life course timing of return. The immigrant disadvantage persists after adjusting for differences in demographic, childhood, and adult characteristics between groups. These findings are noteworthy because they stand in opposition to hypotheses based on life course and health-selective return migration theories and because they mean that Mexican immigrants remaining in the United States into midlife and older adulthood may be vulnerable to heightened prevalence of disability.

‘I am still waiting for my papers but ʾinna Allāha maʿa al-ṣābirīn’: on religious temporality and agency in female marriage migrants’ precarious migration experiences

ABSTRACT Building on postcolonial, feminist and gendered migration theories and the ‘turn to mobility’ this article aims to explore the agency of so-called low-skilled Moroccan female marriage migrants in Flanders (Belgium). More precisely, it aims to study how religious temporality plays a role and how it shapes their experiences in a specific context of migration and precariousness. It questions how these women invoke a religious temporality in confronting the uncertainties and difficulties of which motherhood and a precarious residency status are the most challenging and stigmatising. Firstly, focussing on two ethnographic vignettes this article empirically analyses their nonlinear, risky and often undocumented trajectories laying bare a politico-discursive temporality in marriage migration, motherhood and belonging. Secondly, it analyses how exactly these women tend to challenge this bureaucratic temporality. The analyses show that through their active engagement with sabr (patience) and tawakkul (reliance on God) these women become agents.

Applying Some Modern Migration Theories in the World to Migrant Management in Vietnam

The study of migration in the world has only just begun in the period of capitalist development in the West with many different theories. Modern migration theories have been studied and applied in the process of developing migration management policies of many countries around the world. Like other countries, migration in Vietnam is a regular socio-economic phenomenon, a component associated with the development process. Under the impact of globalization, differences in living standards, income differences, employment opportunities, and access to social services are more clearly expressed, and become the main causes of current domestic and foreign migration flows. Migration management in Vietnam today is an important issue of concern to the Party and State in building and developing the country. The article researches and analyzes a number of typical migration theories in the world, in which focuses on clarifying two basic theories, the "Dual Sector" theory of Arthur Lewis and the "Expected Income Model" of Harris-Todaro are two migration theories that explain very specifically the causes of labor migration from rural to urban areas and from one country to another. On that basis, the article analyzes the perspectives and orientations in applying these theories to migration management in Vietnam.

Emigration From Post-Communist Central Europe After 1989 Interpreted Within the Aspirations/Capabilities Framework

In the period of post-communist transition, Central Europe witnessed complex and multifaceted mobility processes; permanent outmigration, of an ethnic or labour-related nature, coexisted with temporary, seasonal, or cross-border movements and an increasing influx of foreigners. To study these complex processes, we have chosen to apply a holistic and comprehensive approach, rather than limit conceptual considerations to one theory of migration determinants. We focus on eleven post-communist countries that joined the European Union (EU-11) and on the period extending from around 1989, covering the EU’s eastward enlargement, to the present. The aim of this study is twofold: first, we propose a general conceptual framework, based on the aspirations/capabilities approach, to present the main determinants of emigration from this part of the European continent. Second, in relation to each determinant, we formulate research questions postulated by selected theories of international migration and present the evidence, based on existing empirical studies, that addresses these questions. The paper contributes to the literature by providing a broad interpretation of post-transition mobility and pointing to commonly overlooked explanatory factors. We highlight the importance of economic factors that have enhanced and directed the outward migration from the EU-11 to selected EU member states and selected economic sectors; in particular, as regards capabilities, these factors include the lifting of labour market restrictions, high demand in the secondary sector of labour markets, and the roles of migration networks and the migration industry. Emphasis is also placed on aspirational factors, such as labour market failures and the substantial aspirational gap resulting from improvements in high educational attainment in the countries of origin. The aspirations/capabilities approach serves well as a general framework of migration determinants, but its explanatory power is enhanced by reference to other, more specific theories of migration. We show that a combination of the complementary approaches provides a more refined and in-depth picture of migration from the region.
 * This article belongs to a special issue on “Demographic Developments in Eastern and Western Europe Before and After the Transformation of Socialist Countries”.

Testing classic theories of migration in the lab

We test different classic migration theories by using incentivized laboratory experiments to investigate how potential migrants decide between working in different destinations. We assess theories of income maximization, skill-selection, and multi-destination choice, as we vary migration costs, risk, social benefits, and incomplete information. The standard income maximization model leads to a much higher migration rate and more negative skill-selection than occurs when migration decisions take place under more realistic assumptions. The independence of irrelevant alternatives assumption mostly holds when decisions just involve wages and moving costs, but breaks down once we add risk and incomplete information. Cost-minimization, rather than income maximization, seems to be key in some migration decisions. The deviations found in our study between migration decisions and the predictions of classic migration theories call for richer models of migration to explain global migration patterns.

Migration and Human Trafficking: The A Case Study of the Deceived Sub-Saharan African Women in Turkey

Since the mid-1990s, Turkey has experienced a massive increase in sub-Saharan African migrants. According to the U.S. Department of State’s 2021 report on trafficking in Turkey, in 2019, there were 276 victims of human trafficking. This paper examines the issue of human trafficking through the lens of the concept of deceptive trafficking. The cases of eight victimized women trafficked to Turkey from sub-Saharan Africa are examined, and their responses are thematically analyzed using migration theories with a focus on Van Hear’s model. The testimonies of these sub-Saharan African women exploited by human traffickers serve as the foundation for this study. The paper reveals the circumstances that give rise to the practice of human trafficking and the factors that maintain its existence in sub-Saharan African countries. The results highlighted the vulnerability of African women as a target for international and transnational human trafficking.

ELMÉLETEK ÉS MEGKÖZELÍTÉSEK AZ EGÉSZSÉGÜGYI SZAKEMBEREK MIGRÁCIÓJÁNAK FÖLDRAJZI VIZSGÁLATÁBAN

The migration of health care professionals is a global phenomenon and is discussed exten­ sively in the scientific literature. However, the approaches and theoretical backgrounds of the analyses are extremely diverse. The starting points and points of view of the research affect the results, thus analysing them can provide valuable insights regarding research gaps, future research directions and the limitations of the published studies. In this paper, the approaches and theoretical underpinnings of the international literature on the migration of health profes­ sionals are examined. For data collection, a systematic literature review has been conducted, using the Scopus bibliographic database. The analysis focused on what kind of theories appear in the records of the sample, particularly migration theories, and how these theories are applied. In addition, the publication dynamics of the records in the sample, the geographical scales and places highlighted in these articles, and the data sources and methods used in them have also been investigated.

Strategi Inggris Raya Terhadap Permasalahan Industri Agrikultur Pasca Brexit

Brexit has restricted the flow of migrant workers in the industrial sector and agricultural system in the United Kingdom. This research examines the dynamics of the agricultural industry issues in the United Kingdom, as well as the strategies implemented by the UK government to minimize the issues faced in the agricultural sector. The methodology employed is qualitative, utilizing theories of international migration and concepts of international immigration policy. The UK Government has implemented strategies to minimize the agricultural issues after Brexit. These strategies include implementing seasonal worker visas, adopting a points-based immigration system, formulating the agricultural act 2020, promoting local workers, and embracing automation. These strategies have successfully minimized the issues in the agricultural industry in the United Kingdom.

An approach for quantifying the calcium leaching effect on service performance of concrete cutoff wall of embankment dams

Calcium leaching is one of the essential diseases of concrete impermeable structures; therefore, an effective numerical approach to quantifying the effect of calcium leaching on concrete impermeable structures is critical for evaluating the long-term service performance of the structure. To this end, a seepage and dissolution coupling model for simulating the degradation of hydraulic concrete properties is proposed in this paper by introducing performance parameter evolutionary models based on saturated–unsaturated seepage and calcium dissolution and migration theories. The model is developed in COMSOL with a staggered solution scheme, and a detailed numerical implementation method is presented. The effectiveness of the proposed method is examined by laboratory calcium leaching tests. On this basis, the model was applied to evaluate the effect of calcium leaching on the service performance of a concrete cutoff wall (CCW) of an embankment dam in Shaanxi Province, China. The results demonstrate that the proposed method can effectively reproduce the calcium leaching process of concrete, and the variation of leaching depth based on model simulations is highly consistent with the experimental results. Calcium leaching primarily occurs at the CCW’s upstream waterfront surface, bypass seepage area and the partition of adjacent soil layers where the permeability varies greatly. Under seepage dissolution, the amount of leached calcium, average porosity, diffusion coefficient and hydraulic conductivity of the CCW increased exponentially with service duration, and solid-phase calcium leaching was the underlying cause of structural performance degradation. The length of the seepage path in the CCW decreases as the service duration increases, and the hydraulic gradient within it gradually increases. Based on the allowable hydraulic gradient of CCW, the safe service life of the CCW considering the calcium leaching effect was determined to be approximately 52a.

Humanising research on (non-)migration decision-making: a situated framework

Recent global challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic, economic crises, and wars have not impeded transnational migration to continuously unfold. The question of why some people migrate while others choose to stay remains one of the important preoccupations in migration studies. It underlines the need to further conceptualise transnational migration to identify the drivers behind individuals’ aspiration or intention to (re)migrate or stay where they are. Drawing from several migration theories and perspectives in various disciplines, this paper proposes the situated framework of “humanising research on (non-)migration decision-making”, that is, highlighting its human aspects. This scholarly enterprise is critically important as mainstream migration theories put more emphasis on individuals’ rationality, thereby overlooking other human aspects of migration and stasis. Viewing individuals as persons, this framework offers three ways to humanise the analysis: thick contextualisation, life dimensions-focused analysis, and time-situated inquiry. It also calls for the engendering of the analysis and decolonising the methodologies adopted in the study of (non-)migration decision-making.

“We always remember the Island”: Puerto Rican climate migrants’ emotional meanings of home

To contribute to the development of a sociology of home, in this article, we integrate migration, emotion, and place and space theories to study how the notion of home interacts with the experience of displacement. Through 54 in-depth semi-structured interviews with Puerto Rican climate migrants who fled Puerto Rico for the continental US after Hurricane Maria struck the archipelago in 2017, we asked this group about their experiences of the disaster and relocation. These interviews collected stories filled with place-making practices, definitions of identity, and descriptions of emotion work. The narrative analysis of these stories allowed us to gain knowledge about our participants’ meaning-making processes and emotions around simultaneously losing their sense of home and striving to (re)constitute it in a new space. The stories also showed the impact of the conditions of displacement on a population that is not commonly associated with forced migration but that is increasingly threatened by the impact of climate change. Our findings showed that the intangible emotional losses of displacement are as important for the adaptation process of climate migrants as material losses can be.

Losing a job and (dis)incentives to move: Interregional migration in Finland

Traditional theories of migration frequently fail to fully explain the real-world patterns of interregional mobility. Empirical studies indicate that individuals may not always migrate for economic reasons such as poor employment and income prospects. Which characteristics drive people to stay or move after job displacement? Using information on establishment closures, we analyse the economic and social determinants of interregional mobility following job loss. We base our empirical analysis on nationwide individual-level register data from Finland for 1997–2015. We find that receiving earnings-based unemployment benefits substantially weakens the economic incentives for interregional mobility. This negative association is particularly strong for the lower educated and those living in more rural areas. Moreover, our results show that the migration decisions of displaced workers are strongly affected by homeownership, differences in regional housing prices, and social connections, as measured by childhood family relations.

The Slow Refugee: Transit as Stasis, Narrative Ethics, and Level Telling Fields

The slow humanities, this article argues, can make valuable contributions to the study of migration narratives. A slow take on literary representations of refugees and migrants has two distinct but related dimensions. On the one hand, the figure of the slow refugee introduced here challenges theories of migration which emphasize movement. On the other hand, the slow approach to literary representations of forced migration focuses on various forms of narrative empowerment. My readings of the novel What is the What (2008) by Dave Eggers and Parwana Amiri’s work My Pen Won’t Break But Borders Will: Letter to the World from Moria (2020) demonstrate how collaborative and allied forms of storytelling help restore narrative agency and authority, moving beyond the exemplary, documentary, and ambassadorial functions of vicarious storytelling. Instead of speaking on behalf of others, or even worse, for others—the default case in many conversations on migration—the literary representations of refugees discussed in this article emphasize the need to tell and share stories with others, for the benefit of everyone. In this sense, they help establish a level telling field, initiating a debate on the terms and conditions of fair conversation on forced migration.

Conceptual views on the migration phenomenon

In recent years, migration processes have been significantly stimulated and accelerated by the transformations produced in the post-communist space. In this context, the Republic of Moldova presents an example of a country with an intense emigration of the population, determined by the precariousness of the current economic situation. The data regarding the number of labor migrants from the Republic of Moldova attest to a certain state of mind, an orientation, which sees emigration as a solution to the problem of survival. It is obvious that the tendency towards emigration strongly marks the social-psychological atmosphere of reality in Moldova, as well as in other post-communist areas. The theoretical and methodological foundation of the study of migration involved the research of several aspects related to migration. Thorough knowledge of migration theories provides an overview of the evolution over time of the migration phenomenon.