Migration costs

Author(s): Martha W. Rees / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2009

Much has been written about the costs—and benefits--of migration--in terms of the costs to the US (or receiving regions) and of the benefits to migrants. Massey (2005) concludes that because (Mexican) immigrants pay taxes, they are not a drain on public services. In fact, migrants are less likely to use public services, and pay taxes for services they don’t use. Almost two-thirds have Social Security taxes withheld, only 10% have sent a child to public schools, and under 5% or have used food stamps, welfare, or unemployment compensation. They also pay sales taxes. In terms of criminality, Rumbaut and Ewing (2007) refute the myth that migrants bring crime. They find that Mexican immigrant men have a lower rate of incarceration (0.7%) than US born Latinos (5.9%) or for US born males (3.5%).

The value, costs, and meaning of transnational migration in rural Oaxaca, Mexico

Author(s): Jeffrey H. Cohen,Lise Byars,Bernardo Rios / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2009

Rural Oaxacan migrants are defined as quintessential transnational movers, people who access rich social networks as they move between rural hometowns in southern Mexico and the urban centers of southern California. The social and cultural ties that characterize Oaxacan movers are critical to successful migrations, lead to jobs and create a sense of belonging and shared identity. Nevertheless, migration has socio-cultural, economic and psychological costs. To move the discussion away from a framework that emphasizes the positive transnational qualities of movement we focus on the costs of migration for Oaxacans from the state’s central valleys and Sierra regions.

Discourses of diasporic responsibility in Ireland: The modern moment and the discursive costs of moving

Author(s): Aaron Thornburg / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2009

In this paper, I offer a critical reflection regarding the rhetorical employment of an analogy between mid-nineteenth-century, Famine-age emigrants from Ireland and non-Irish-national immigrants that have been increasingly present in the Republic of Ireland since the mid-1990s. While this discursive device is considered to be politically correct, cosmopolitan, and/or accepting of recent migrants to Ireland, I maintain that drawing the comparison between Famine-age and earlier emigrants from Ireland and current-day immigrants to the island supports the characterization of non-Irish-national residents as less than modern and incapable of integration into Irish society.

Endurance of Transnationalism in Bolivia’s Valle Alto

Author(s): Richard C. Jones,Leonardo De La Torre / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2009

The increasing difficulty of return migration and the demands for assimilation into host societies suggest a long-term cutting of ties to origin areas—likely accentuated in the Bolivian case by the recent shift in destinations from Argentina to the US and Spain. Making use of a stratified random sample of 417 families as well as ethnographic interviews in the provinces of Punata, Esteban Arze, and Jordán in the Valle Alto region the authors investigate these issues. Results suggest that for families with greater than ten years cumulated foreign work experience, there are significantly more absentees and lower levels of remittances as a percentage of household income. Although cultural ties remain strong after ten years, intentions to return to Bolivia decline markedly. The question of whether the dimunition of economic ties results in long-term village decline in the Valle Alto remains an unanswered.

Boats, planes and trains: British migration, mobility and transnational experience

Author(s): Neil Lunt / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2008

This paper discusses the paucity of scholarship on contemporary British international migration experience, and highlights why British nations are viewed as beyond detailed international migration and transnational scholarship. Resisting this closure, discussion invokes a transnational lens to explore three flows: post-war migration of British citizens to traditional destinations; British retirement migration to the Mediterranean; and British professional migration. The paper adds its voice to a growing body of work that argues for a widening of the migration agenda to include qualitative work and a transnational approach to enable British migratory experience to be fully investigated.

Net migration estimates for Greece by age, sex and citizenship, 1991-2001

Author(s): Cleon Tsimbos / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2008

This paper applies techniques of demographic analysis to official data of Greece to obtain net migration estimates by age, sex and citizenship for the intercensal period 1991-2001. It is found that the overall net immigration rate for the decade is 6.3 per 100 resident population and the contribution of foreign immigrants to this figure is 88.2 per cent. 85.4 % of the net immigrants are of working age and 70.3 % of net immigrant women are of reproductive age. The results of the study can be used to formulate assumptions regarding the migration component when handling population estimates and projections.

Migration to Germany: Is a middle class emerging among intra-European migrants?

Author(s): Roland Verwiebe / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2008

This article analyses intra-European migration on the basis of primary data gathered in Berlin in 2002 and 2003. The theoretical foundation of the contribution is mainly based on newer migration research and research on Europeanisation. The empirical results of the study show that the individual patterns of migration within Europe vary quite strongly. It can be hypothesized that inner-European migrants increasingly come from diverse social classes and possess education and work experience in varying degrees. Recent European migration seems to be, above all, a middle-class phenomenon.

The Impact of a Migration Shock on Tenant Satisfaction: The Case of Hurricane Katrina and Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Author(s): Velma Zahirovic-Herbert,Russell N. James III / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2008

The damage inflicted by Hurricane Katrina resulted in a massive displacement of residents, in particular from New Orleans, Louisiana. Initially, many of these evacuees moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the closest major town that escaped significant hurricane damage. Using comments posted on the United States’ largest consumer comment website for apartment residents, this study tracks the self-reported residential satisfaction of tenants in Baton Rouge before and after the massive migration of refugees from nearby coastal areas. Although this migration resulted in a dramatic drop in residential satisfaction, within nine months satisfaction levels had rebounded substantially.

Transnationalisation and Development(s): Towards a North-South Perspective

Author(s): Thomas Faist / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2007

Public debates and research on the two-way relationship between migration and development has increased considerably over the past years. I argue that the current debates around the migration and development nexus should be approached from a transnational angle that is, looking at the emergence of a new transnational agent in development discourse – intermittently called “migrants”, “diaspora”, or “transnational community”. National states, local governments, inter- and supranational organisations and development agencies seek to co-opt and establish ties to mobile agents who are engaged in sustained and continuous cross-border relationships on a personal, collective and organisational level. Also, and this is crucial for any kind of scientific endeavour, the emergence of this new type of development agent can be tackled by a decidedly transnational methodology.

Regularization programs for undocumented migrants

Author(s): Sebastian Sunderhaus / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2007

This paper is a summary of a study that describes and analyzes the features and outcomes of regularization programs (also referred to as amnesty or legalization) for undocumented migrants in 16 countries distributed among all continents. It gives a general survey on reasons and expectations of governments conducting regularization drives, the different forms that the programs have taken, features and eligibility requirements most frequently used as well as a summary of the implementation and problems associated with this policy tool. The paper also tries to answer how governments might deal with the undocumented flow of people tomorrow. A country comparison table (53 pages) in the annex contains data on more than 60 regularization programs considered in this study.

Wrestling with 9/11: Immigrant Perceptions and Perceptions of Immigrants

Author(s): Caroline B. Brettell / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2006

Soon after 9/11 a research project to study new immigration into the Dallas Fort Worth metropolitan area got under way. In the questionnaire that was administered to 600 immigrants across five different immigrant populations (Asian Indians, Vietnamese, Mexicans, Salvadorans, and Nigerians) between 2003 and 2005 we decided to include a question about the impact of 9/11 on their lives. We asked: “How has the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 affected your position as an immigrant in the United States?” This article analyzes the responses to this question, looking at similarities and differences across different immigrant populations. It also addresses the broader issue of how 9/11 has affected both immigration policy and attitudes toward the foreign-born in the United States.

Elderly immigration to Hungary

Author(s): Sándor Illés / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2005

In general, younger cohorts dominate in the international migration flows, but new form of migration develops, namely, the elderly migration. The old age international movement of people is a migratory phenomenon of the last decades of the 20th century. Parallel with the accelerating ageing process, the share of long-term elderly immigrants has been growing since the middle of nineties in Hungary. In the millennium every tenth long-term immigrants staying in Hungary was 60 years old and over. The share of persons over 60 gaining Hungarian citizenship also increased and stabilised around 12 per cent. The expansion of old-aged immigrants and new citizens is not advantageous under the prevailing legal rules in case of international migration policy preparing utility principles. If the elderly migration to Hungary becomes greater in level, it will be necessary to intervene into the spontaneous process. It is important to state that the emerging problems must be managed in a differentiated manner according to the types of the elderly migrants.

Immigration Policy in the European Union: Still bringing up the walls for fortress Europe?

Author(s): Petra Bendel / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2005

Immigration and asylum policies in the European Union have entered into a new period. The author sums up the most important achievements and failures of the EU's efforts to create a common European asylum and immigration system, and she evaluates the new Hague Programme of the European Council (November 2004) in the light of the hitherto existing policies. She concludes that the European Council's new programme lags behind the more promising guidelines of its predecessor of Tampere.

Conceptualising the Emergence of Immigrants' Transnational Communities

Author(s): Liza M. NELL / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2004

Under which circumstances do immigrant transnational political activities emerge into a sustainable transnational community? First, this depends on the transnational political opportunity structure (TPOS) including both immigrant’s country of settlement and the (ancestral) country of origin. Governments’ integration and emigration models – that politically incorporate or exclude immigrants or emigrants – may invite or discourage transnational political action. Second, different models of citizenship of both countries, used to define a migrant’s membership in society, strongly influence the type of transnational activities. At the same time citizenship contains the norms, values, and loyalties immigrants have in their notion of acting as a good (transnational) citizen.

Унутрашња мобилност становништва Србије у другој половини XX и на почетку XXI века

Author(s): Vlasta Kokotović Kanazir,Marko Filipović,Ivana Magdalenić / Language(s): Serbian Issue: 3/2016

This paper tackles spatial mobility of the population in the Republic of Serbia, according to the census data from 1981 to 2011, and annual data given by The Statistical office of the Republic of Serbia from 2002-2013. The aim of this paper is to establish the basic characteristics of the inner population mobility and to point out the regional inequalities. Analysis shows that on the territory of Serbia there is inter-municipal definitive and temporary migration, and that its direction and intensity change over time. Increased population mobility can be observed towards Belgrade area, as well as other regional centers: Novi Sad, Kragujevac, Nis. The conclusion is that Serbia is in its late transition phase of spatial mobility of population, with prominent daily migrations in large city areas, especially Belgrade area.

Контекстуализација проблема миграција (ауторизована дискусија са научног скупа

Author(s): Mirjana Morokvašić / Language(s): Serbian Issue: 3/2016

Göç ve göçmen yazını üzerine

Author(s): Ali Tilbe,Ibrahim Sirkeci / Language(s): Turkish Issue: 1/2015

Göç ve Edebiyat konusuna ayırmış olduğumuz bu sayımıza katkıda bulunan tüm yazar ve hakemlerimize özellikle teşekkür ederek başlamalıyız. Hem Türkiye’de hem de Avrupa’da göç giderek önemi artan bir mesele olarak karşımıza çıkmaktadır. Türkiye gibi en azından yakın tarihi kitlesel ve yoğun göç deneyimleriyle örülü bir ülkedeki ve onu yurtdışına uzanan nüfusundan çıkan yazınsal yapıtların de göç olgusuna yabancı kalmalarını tahayyül etmek güçtür. Bu özel sayı ile özellikle bu alana yeni bir soluk ve açılım getirmeyi amaçladık. Bu bağlamda, 25-27 Haziran 2015 tarihleri arasında Prag’da üçüncüsünü düzenlediğimiz uluslararası Türk Göç Konferansı’nda da göç ve edebiyat konusuna öncelikli bir yer ayırdık. Görece geride kalmış bu alandaki araştırmaların ve kuramsal çalışmaların gelişmesi açısından iki girişimin de önemli fırsatlar sunduğunu ve özendirici bir nitelik taşıdığını düşünüyoruz.

Türkiye’de göç çalışmaları

Author(s): Ibrahim Sirkeci,M. Murat Yüceşahin / Language(s): Turkish Issue: 1/2014

Türkiye’de göç araştırmaları hem akademide hem de genel kamuoyunda son yıllarda daha fazla ilgi odağı haline gelen konulardan biri durumundadır. Londra’da yer alan Regent’s Üniversitesi’nde iki kez düzenlenen ve üçüncüsü 2015 Haziran ayında yapılacak olan Türk göç konferansları bu konuda uluslararası düzeyde artan bir ilginin varlığını göstermektedir1 . 2012 ve 2014’te gerçekleştirilen bu konferanslara Kuzey Amerika, Avrupa ve Türkiye’den toplamda dört yüzden fazla akademisyenin katılmış olması ‘Türk göçü’ konusunun oldukça yaygın bir uzman grup tarafından önemsendiğinin açık bir göstergesidir.

Uluslararası göç kuramlarının bir değerlendirmesi

Author(s): Douglas S. Massey,Joaquin Arango,Graeme Hugo,Ali Kouaouci,Adela Pellegrino,Edward J. Taylor / Language(s): Turkish Issue: 1/2014

The configuration of developed countries has become today diverse and multiethnic, due to international migration. A single, coherent theoretical explanation for international migration is lacking. The aim of this discussion was the generation and integration of current theories that clarify basic assumptions and hypotheses of the various models. Theories were differentiated as explaining the initiation of migration and the perpetuation of international movement. Initiation theories discussed were 1) macro theories of neoclassical economics; 2) micro theories of neoclassical economics; 3) the new economics, with examples for crop insurance markets, futures markets, unemployment insurance, and capital markets; 4) dual labor market theory and structural inflation, motivational problems, economic dualism, and the demography of labor supply; and 5) world systems theory and the impacts of land, raw materials, labor, material links, ideological links, and global cities. Perpetuation theories were indicated as network theories of declining risks and costs; institutional theory, cumulative causation through distribution of income and land, organization of agrarian production, culture of migration regional distribution of human capital, and social labeling factors; and migration systems theory. The assumptions and propositions of these theories, although divergent, were not inherently contradictory, but had very different implications for policy formulation. The policy decisions over the next decades will be very important and carry with them the potential for misunderstanding and conflict. Policy options based on the explicated models range from regulation by changing wages and employment conditions in destination countries or promoting development in countries of origin to changing structural market economic relations.

The european refugee and migrant crisis and Slovenian response

Author(s): Jernej Zupančič / Language(s): English Issue: 4/2016

The article deals with the geopolitical interpretations of the causes, geographical size and variability of the migration wave from the areas of the Arab-Islamic arc to Europe after 2013, which occurred after world-economic crisis (2008 onwards) and at the time of new strategic escalation with Russia. Within a few years the number of those immigrants (including refugees) exceeded the number of 5 million. The refugee crisis has become a European problem because of the sequences of decisions, that increased the volume of migration wave, it intertwined with the economic motives of migration, giving up control and underestimated the negative economic and cultural effects. The exile has become a tool of political pressure both within European countries and outside them. The second part is analyzing the Slovene response to the immigration influx. Slovenia was primarily a follower of Europe's migration policies.