Variation in transnationalism among Eastern European migrants in Italy: the role of duration of residence and integration

TY - JOUR

T1 - Variation in transnationalism among Eastern European migrants in Italy: the role of duration of residence and integration

AU - Cela, E.

AU - Fokkema, T.

AU - Ambrosetti, E.

N1 - Reporting year: 2013

PY - 2013

Y1 - 2013

N2 - Transnationalism of first-generation migrants, usually considered as a core element of their migratory projects, is nowadays taken somewhat for granted. Our aim in this paper is to examine empirically the relations of transnationalism with duration of residence and integration of Eastern European migrants in Italy, a country which evolved into a mass immigration one since the 1980s. Data come from the Integrometro survey 2008–2009, encompassing more than 4500 Eastern European migrants. We chose this group of migrants because East Europeans now constitute half of the foreign population in Italy and these nationalities have been overlooked by migration research on transnational topics. Our results show a positive relationship between migrants’ economic integration and transnationalism, suggesting that economic resources facilitate the maintenance and development of cross-border ties. Being more integrated socio-culturally, however, is accompanied with weaker transnational practices. Moreover, the level of transnational behaviour decreases the more years Eastern European migrants spend in Italy, which cannot be fully attributed to a higher level of socio-cultural integration. Keywords migration, transnationalism, integration, Eastern Europe, Italy

AB - Transnationalism of first-generation migrants, usually considered as a core element of their migratory projects, is nowadays taken somewhat for granted. Our aim in this paper is to examine empirically the relations of transnationalism with duration of residence and integration of Eastern European migrants in Italy, a country which evolved into a mass immigration one since the 1980s. Data come from the Integrometro survey 2008–2009, encompassing more than 4500 Eastern European migrants. We chose this group of migrants because East Europeans now constitute half of the foreign population in Italy and these nationalities have been overlooked by migration research on transnational topics. Our results show a positive relationship between migrants’ economic integration and transnationalism, suggesting that economic resources facilitate the maintenance and development of cross-border ties. Being more integrated socio-culturally, however, is accompanied with weaker transnational practices. Moreover, the level of transnational behaviour decreases the more years Eastern European migrants spend in Italy, which cannot be fully attributed to a higher level of socio-cultural integration. Keywords migration, transnationalism, integration, Eastern Europe, Italy

KW - SSCI

U2 - 10.1080/14683857.2013.789671

DO - 10.1080/14683857.2013.789671

M3 - Article

SN - 1468-3857

VL - 13

SP - 195

EP - 209

JO - Journal of Southeast European and Black Sea Studies

JF - Journal of Southeast European and Black Sea Studies

IS - 2

ER -