Affecting Lives: How Winning the US Diversity Visa Lottery Impacts DV Migrants Pre‐ and Post‐Migration

Usual debates about the diversity visa (DV) programme revolve around the impact of DV initiated mass migration on African countries’ development, on whether the programme sufficiently diversifies U.S. immigrant streams, and on whether there is a tradeoff in immigrant quality for diversity. This article seeks to extend the focus of these debates by examining the impact of the diversity visa programme on DV migrants at the micro‐level pre‐ and post‐migration. Based on in‐depth interviews with sixty‐one diversity visa lottery winners from Ghana and Nigeria, the article examines how this immigration policy has become a contextual determinant of immigrant incorporation. It argues that an account of the impact of immigration policies on immigrants pre‐ and post‐migration must be added to theorization of state agency in shaping migration flows. It concludes with a discussion on ways the diversity visa programme can be modified to facilitate incorporation of DV migrants in the United States.     

Migrating Gender Inequalities? Immigrant Women's Participation in Political Survey Research

This study examines the participation of immigrant women in political surveys in Canada as a form of political participation. Investigating immigrant women's participation in the various components of the Canadian Election Studies, this study highlights the structuring impact of pre‐migration experiences with gender inequalities from two different perspectives. The larger the gender inequalities in immigrant women's country of origin, the lower their retention rate to the post‐election surveys, and the greater their propensity to provide non‐responses to political survey‐items. This study contributes to a better understanding of immigrant political integration and the related impact of pre‐migration experiences.     

Migration Planning Among Female Prospective Labour Migrants from Nepal: A Comparison of First‐Time and Repeat‐Migrants

As international female labour migration has increased, so too have efforts to prevent the exploitation of labour migrants. However, evidence to underpin prevention efforts remains limited, with little known about labour migrants’ migration planning processes. Using data from a survey of female prospective labour migrants from Nepal, this article compares socio‐demographics and migration‐planning processes between first‐time and repeat‐migrants. We identified several factors which might increase repeat‐migrants’ vulnerability to exploitation during the migration process, or obstruct their engagement in pre‐migration interventions: more rapid migration planning than first‐time migrants; lower involvement in community groups; and a perception that they already have the knowledge they need. Only one‐third of repeat‐migrants planned to go to the same destination and 42 per cent to work in the same sector as previously. With repeat‐migration a common livelihoods strategy, it is crucial that interventions are guided by evidence on the needs of both first‐time‐ and repeat‐migrants.     

Emotional Integration across Immigrant Generations in Baden‐Württemberg,Germany: the Role of Discrimination

Immigrants’ integration is a multi‐faceted process, involving structural, cultural, social, and emotional dimensions. This study focuses on the emotional dimension of integration, investigating immigrants’ emotional attachments to their national origin and their host country. Specifically, we ask what role perceived discrimination plays in shaping identification preferences among immigrants and immigrant descendants in Germany. The contribution of this study is twofold: First, we present results for three generations of post‐WWII labour migrants of Turkish and Italian descent. Second, we estimate the consequences of perceived individual discrimination for national and ethnic identification separately. The findings indicate that while discrimination is not related to ethnic identification, it is negatively correlated with national identification. Regarding future challenges, we believe that our findings suggest that the German society can come closer to achieving integration of migrants by reducing perceptions of rejection by the immigrant population, or better yet, fighting off discrimination against immigrant minorities.     

Economic Well‐Being in Salvadoran Transnational Families: How Gender Affects Remittance Practices

This article examines how migrant parents' gender affects transnational families' economic well‐being. Drawing on 130 in‐depth interviews with Salvadoran immigrants in the United States and adolescent and young adult children of migrants in El Salvador, I demonstrate that the gender of migrant parents centrally affects how well their families are faring. Gender structurally differentiates immigrant parents' experiences through labor market opportunities in the United States. Simultaneously, gendered social expectations inform immigrants' approaches to parental responsibilities and remitting behaviors. Remittances—the monies parents send—directly shape children's economic well‐being in El Salvador. I find that even though immigrant mothers are structurally more disadvantaged than immigrant fathers, mother‐away families are often thriving economically because of mothers' extreme sacrifices.     

Intra‐diaspora Knowledge Transfer and ‘New’ Italian Migration

The Italian Australia diaspora is a heterogeneous mix of regional, class and generational identities. This article identifies and considers the influence of four recent Italian‐Australian cohorts on the processes of Italian‐Australian cultural formation. Of particular interest is the most recent wave of migrants (post‐2000), whose arrival is prompted by the European economic crisis and facilitated by Australia's skilled migration programme. We argue that this cohort is a new form of “elite” skilled migration comprised of people who are independent of, yet reliant on, the community infrastructure and social standing that previous waves of Italian migrants have established. We consider the relationship between these cohorts as a process of “intra‐diaspora” knowledge transfer and show how diasporas play a fundamental role in the skilled migration project. These dynamics challenge assumptions that skilled migrant integration is “frictionless”. Rather, their arrival simultaneously generates diaspora renewal as well as tensions around identity and community resources.     

Historical writing on migration into the commonwealth Caribbean: A bibliographical review of the period c.1838‐c.1938

For almost a century after slave emancipation in the Commonwealth Caribbean a steady stream of immigrants entered the colonies, from such diverse places as India, Africa, Europe, China, North America, Syria and Lebanon. Historical scholarship on these migrants has concentrated heavily on the Indians, while almost completely neglecting the Syrian/Lebanese. Moreover, the main emphasis has been on the economic roles of the migrants within the dominant plantation sector. Recently, however, increasing attention has been focused on the non‐plantation sectors, while interesting and scholarly work is also emerging on the socio‐cultural aspects of immigrant society. Much research still needs to be done on migrants into the smaller Caribbean islands. Although small in number by comparison with those migrating to Guyana and Trinidad, a knowledge of their roles in and adaptation to their host societies will help us to understand more fully the impact of post‐emancipation migration on the Commonwealth Caribbean.     

On‐The‐Job Skills and Earnings of Returned Migrants

In this paper we study the factors altering the probability of migrants to acquire additional on‐the‐job skills while abroad, and the determinants of their earnings level, using a sample of 6120 returned migrants from Bosnia, Bulgaria, Georgia, Kyrgyz Republic, Romania, and Tadjikistan. We use a two‐stage procedure to estimate a system of two equations where on‐the‐job skills and earnings are determined simultaneously. The probability of acquiring skills on‐the‐job is found to be positively affected by the level of earnings. It is also higher for migrants who are employed in the same sector (pre‐ and during migration), and for migrants with lower initial financial status. Interestingly, the probability is lower for migrants with university education. The earnings level is positively affected by acquired on‐the‐job skills, the level of education, and the duration of migration. Women have lower earnings while those (males and females) who have learned the language of the destination country have higher earnings. The country variables are statistically significant in all cases but one, indicating that there are differences in the acquisition of skills and earnings reflecting unspecified differences among the countries of origin.     

Post‐urbanism,Incorporation, and Migration

This paper explores an emerging pattern of migration currently being written by the new wave of Mexican migrants in New Haven, Connecticut, a city with little to no history of Mexican migration. Using New Haven as a case study, this paper argues that local conditions shape immigrant experiences and thus frame the process of social and economic incorporation. By contrasting first‐wave Italian migration and contemporary Mexican migration, we demonstrate that urban conditions both foster and impede the social and political integration of immigrant groups. Our analyses demonstrate that the presence of established ethnic communities pose challenges and benefits to the political and social incorporation of Italians and Mexicans in their respective urban eras. Moreover, we find that contemporary immigrants are entering settings that are more racialized and economically distinct than that of their first‐wave immigrant predecessors.     

Socio‐Cultural Incorporation of Skilled Migrants at Work: Employer and Migrant Perspectives

Migration studies have predominantly investigated the socio‐cultural incorporation of low‐skilled migrants and refugees, fuelled by concerns that these migrants may pose a burden on the state and a threat to social cohesion. Few studies have investigated the socio‐cultural incorporation of skilled migrants, perhaps assuming that they will fare well in a country of destination. Using the petroleum industry in Norway as a case study, this article examines the workplace as a key site of transmission of norms and values of the host society. We investigate firm initiatives for the socio‐cultural incorporation of skilled migrants and analyse the challenges that these workers experience in the workplace. We then discuss the roles of non‐state actors in the incorporation process and offer suggestions that may enhance the socio‐cultural incorporation of skilled migrants into the host society.     

Adult vocational training for migrants in North‐East Italy

This article contributes to the study of policies for the integration of immigrants into the labour markets of European immigration countries by focusing on the specific issue of vocational training for immigrant workers in Italy. Vocational training has a central role in the European employment strategy. Moreover, with regard to migrants, it is also relevant to the topical issue of the governance of international labour migration. The article analyses both the demand and the supply of vocational training in north‐east Italy, generally regarded as the rich and industrialised heart of the country. It draws on 30 interviews conducted with key informants and experts from local and regional governmental bodies, trade unions, employment offices, and private educational agencies in the main towns of the Veneto region. Various types of vocational training for immigrant workers are considered, from traditional full‐time courses financed by the European Social Fund to new projects for the selection and pre‐training of immigrants in their countries of origin. The extent to which these policy tools are able to meet the actual needs of immigrant workers and of the local business sector is investigated, as well as their problematic interaction with the national regulatory framework for immigration control.     

“Transnational” Socio‐Cultural Systems and Ethnographic Research: Views from an Extended Field Site

This article discusses a widespread pattern of migratory moves that is often overlooked in contemporary research on transnational migration. Transnational theory has successfully highlighted the significance of migrants' attachments to people and places transcending the confines of nation‐states. By emphasizing, a priori, the national, this theory tends to overlook the full complexity and meaning of migrants' extra‐local socio‐cultural relations. Through an ethnographic study of dispersed family networks of Caribbean origin, I explore the wide range of migration practices in which differing actors engage and the nature of the sociocultural systems that emerge as migrants move between places.     

A capital theory approach to migrants' views and engagement with climate adaptation in the region of origin: A qualitative study in Belgium

Combining insights from migration and climate adaptation studies, this study examines how migrants living in Belgium contribute to climate adaptation in their region of origin, based on 29 qualitative interviews with migrants in Belgium. The findings varied considerably, depending on the region of origin, the main driver of migration and the possibility of returning. The results show that both the knowledge and capacity to contribute to climate adaptation in the region of origin depends on the forms and degrees of capital individuals have, both in the immigrant country and region of origin. Migrants with more cultural capital in the region of origin had more transnational bonding and bridging ties, resulting in more opportunities to contribute to the development of the region. However, as many of the interviewees originated from urban areas, their actions were oriented more towards waste, pollution and life domains other than climate adaptation. This contrasts with migrants with less formal cultural capital. Due to specific living conditions, they were more familiar with local climate impacts. Their transnational bonding social ties increased this knowledge and familiarity with the need for climate adaptation. Nevertheless, the high costs of integration into the immigrant society and a lack of cultural and economic capital limits this group's capacity to contribute to climate adaptation initiatives in the region of origin. Bringing the concept of ‘migrant capital’ into the study of climate adaptation fills a gap in the literature on environmental migration, and especially engages with discourses that frame migration as an adaptation strategy.     

Success on European Labor Markets: A Cross‐national Comparison of Attainment between Immigrant and Majority Populations1

Typical labor market outcomes vary considerably between majority and migrant populations. Drawing on scholarship from across the social sciences, we assess competing micro‐ and macro‐level explanations of differential occupational attainment among immigrant groups across 28 countries. The analyses of occupational attainment are run separately for first‐ and second‐generation migrants as well as children of mixed marriage and take into account their wider social and cultural background. Results from four rounds of the European Social Survey show that people with a migration background do not necessarily achieve a lower labor market success than the majority. However, human capital, social mobility, and cultural background explain these outcomes to different degrees, suggesting tailored pathways to labor market success for each group of migrants. We also find that occupational attainment varies considerably across countries, although this is hardly attributable to immigration policies. These and other findings are discussed in the light of previous studies on immigrant incorporation.     

Gendered Perspectives on Integration Discourses and Measures

This article focuses on gendered discourses in integration policy and the problems immigrants pose in the reproduction of inequalities in a number of European countries. There has been little consideration of how gender categories operate in relation to broader political discourses around the construction of ‘us’ and ‘them’ and the constitution of national social and political communities and identities. Yet gender issues have become significant in the backlash against multiculturalism and gender and sexual relations have moved to the centre of debates about the necessity to enforce integration, if not assimilation. The first section outlines recent developments in the immigration‐integration nexus in different European states. The second section draws out some of the reasons for the focus on family migration and spouses who are seen as the main importers of the ‘backward’ practices and with ‘doubtful’ parenting practices for future generations of citizens. The third section tackles the shift of current debates about integration of migrant women from the periphery, where they were largely invisible or mere appendages of men, to the centre, where they have acquired in the process a heightened, though not necessarily positive, visibility. Too often, representations of migrant women are based on a homogenised image of uneducated and backward migrants as victims of patriarchal cultures, legitimizing in this way the use of immigration controls to reduce the numbers entering and to tackle broader social issues, as has clearly been the case with forced marriages. Furthermore, the more discourses focus on Muslim women and Islam as inimical to European societies, the more the debate becomes culturalised and marginalises the socio‐economic dimension of integration and the structural inequalities migrants face. Thus pre‐entry tests may have less to do with integration than with a desire to reduce the flow of marriage migrants or to raise their human capital.     

Transnational involvement and social integration

Abstract In this article we offer a quantitative examination of the extent to which migrants from various countries are involved in transnational activities and have transnational identifications. The study is based on a survey of 300 immigrants (from the USA, Japan, Iraq, former‐Yugoslavia, Morocco and the Dutch Antilles) living in the Netherlands. The respondents are deliberately chosen to include different categories of immigrants. Transnational activities constitute a substantial part of their lives and are to a large extent socio‐cultural. Many migrants also transfer money abroad. Professional economic activities were rare and mainly limited to the American group. As a whole, our respondents identify more with other compatriots living in the Netherlands than with people living outside the Netherlands. The research also found that transnational involvement in general does not impede ‘immigrant integration’. Migrant groups that are known as poorly integrated into Dutch society are not more involved in transnational activities and have no stronger identifications with the country of origin than other groups. However, within the Moroccan and Antillean groups those respondents with the weakest labour market position identify more strongly with the country of origin than others. Strong identifications with compatriots living elsewhere and withdrawal from Dutch society may reinforce their poor labour market integration     

Ethnic Self‐Identification of First‐Generation Immigrants1

This paper uses the concept of ethnic self‐identification of immigrants in a two‐dimensional framework. It acknowledges that attachments to both the country of origin and the host country are not necessarily mutually exclusive. There are three possible paths of adjustment from separation at entry, namely the transitions to assimilation, integration, and marginalization. We analyze the determinants of ethnic self‐identification in this process using samples of first‐generation male and female immigrants, and controlling for pre‐ and post‐immigration characteristics. While we find strong gender differences, a wide range of pre‐immigration characteristics like education in the country of origin are not important.     

Post‐return experiences and transnational belonging of return migrants: a Dutch—Moroccan case study

In this article we explore the links between return migration, belonging and transnationalism among migrants who returned from the Netherlands to northeast Morocco. While transnationalism is commonly discussed from the perspective of a receiving country, this study shows that transnationalism also plays a vital role in reconstructing post‐return belonging. Return migration is not simply a matter of ‘going home’, as feelings of belonging need to be renegotiated upon return. While returnees generally feel a strong need to maintain various transnational practices, the meanings they attach to these practices depend on motivations for return, gender and age. For former (male) labour migrants, transnational practices are essential for establishing post‐return belonging, whereas such practices are less important for their spouses. Those who returned as children generally feel uprooted, notwithstanding the transnational practices they maintain. The amount of agency migrants are able to exert in the return decision‐making process is a key factor in determining the extent to which returnees can create a post‐return transnational sense of home.     

Language Background,Ethno‐Racial Origin,and Academic Achievement of Students at a Canadian University

Research conducted in Canada and the United States shows that the age of arrival of immigrant children, language spoken in the home, and ethno‐racial origin have consequences for English language acquisition and academic attainment. So far, however, the degree to which these factors have consequences for academic achievement at the post‐secondary level has scarcely been studied. In this study, it is found that the communication skills of university students who are the sons and daughters of immigrants, independent of length of time in Canada, are not as high as those of native‐born English‐speaking Canadians. Moreover, all else being equal, independent of length of time in the country, the university GPAs of immigrant and non‐European origin groups are generally lower than those of native‐born Canadians. Findings such as these suggest the presence of social and cultural processes at the family, community, and educational system level that continue to disadvantage identifiable groups of post‐secondary students.     

Business and Social Profiles of Immigrant‐Owned Small Firms: The Case of Pakistani Immigrant Entrepreneurs in Greece

This study examines Pakistani immigrant entrepreneurs in Greece in order to identify patterns of ethnic entrepreneurship and socio‐economic challenges faced by ethnic entrepreneurs. The research aims to enhance understanding of the characteristics and business profiles of Pakistani immigrant entrepreneurs in Greece's capital, Athens, and make recommendations for the development of a follow‐up three‐year longitudinal study of Pakistani immigrant businesses in Athens. A survey administered to 13 Pakistani immigrant entrepreneurs recorded a wide range of data from which frequency distributions were processed as well as cross‐tabulations and Chi‐square tests, to reveal strong associations. Findings of note reveal that Pakistani immigrant entrepreneurs set up enterprises with their own capital rather than turning to the private financial sector, are mostly well‐educated despite earlier research noting the opposite, Greece is the terminal migration destination of choice for Pakistani immigrant entrepreneurs, their market‐share of work permits is proportionately larger than their residence permit share, they differ from other ethnic groups by substantial preference for operation of call centers, and they are very much bound to their ethnic enclaves. This body of research offers a unique contribution to an area which has until now been largely ignored.