Simulating acculturation dynamics between migrants and locals in relation to network formation

International migration implies the coexistence of different ethnic and cultural groups in the receiving country. The refugee crisis of 2015 has resulted in critical levels of opinion polarization on the question of whether to welcome migrants, causing clashes in receiving countries. This scenario emphasizes the need to better understand the dynamics of mutual adaptation between locals and migrants, and the conditions that favor successful integration. Agent-based simulations can help achieve this goal. In this work, we introduce our model MigrAgent and our preliminary results. The model synthesizes the dynamics of migration intake and post-migration adaptation. It explores the different acculturation outcomes that can emerge from the mutual adaptation of a migrant population and a local population depending on their degree of tolerance. With parameter sweeping, we detect how different acculturation strategies can coexist in a society and in different degrees among various subgroups. The results show higher polarization effects between a local population and a migrant population for fast intake conditions. When migrant intake is slow, transitory conditions between acculturation outcomes emerge for subgroups, e.g., from assimilation to integration for liberal migrants and from marginalization to separation for conservative migrants. Relative group sizes due to speed of intake cause counterintuitive scenarios, such as the separation of liberal locals. We qualitatively compare the processes of our model with the German portion sample of the survey Causes and Consequences of Socio-Cultural Integration Processes among New Immigrants in Europe (SCIP), finding preliminary confirmation of our assumptions and results.Comment: 24 pages, plus supplemental material, 11 figure

Simulating Acculturation Dynamics Between Migrants and Locals in Relation to Network Formation

International migration implies the coexistence of different ethnic and cultural groups in the receiving country. The refugee crisis of 2015 has resulted in critical levels of opinion polarization on the question of whether to welcome migrants, causing clashes in receiving countries. This scenario emphasizes the need to better understand the dynamics of mutual adaptation between locals and migrants, and the conditions that favor successful integration. Agent-based simulations can help achieve this goal. In this work, we introduce our model MigrAgent and our preliminary results. The model synthesizes the dynamics of migration intake and post-migration adaptation. It explores the different acculturation outcomes that can emerge from the mutual adaptation of a migrant population and a local population depending on their degree of tolerance. With parameter sweeping, we detect how different acculturation strategies can coexist in a society and in different degrees among various subgroups. The results show higher polarization effects between a local population and a migrant population for fast intake conditions. When migrant intake is slow, transitory conditions between acculturation outcomes emerge for subgroups, e.g., from assimilation to integration for liberal migrants and from marginalization to separation for conservative migrants. Relative group sizes due to speed of intake cause counterintuitive scenarios, such as the separation of liberal locals. We qualitatively compare the processes of our model with the German portion sample of the survey “Causes and Consequences of Socio-Cultural Integration Processes among New Immigrants in Europe” (SCIP), finding preliminary confirmation of our assumptions and results

Relocation narratives 'Made in Italy': self and place in late-twentieth century travel writing

At the intersection of life writing and travel writing, relocation narratives form a distinct subgenre of contemporary travel memoirs concerned with the inter-subjective and intra-subjective experiences of travellers who become settlers in foreign locales. Lured by the dream of the ‘good life’ abroad, transnational writers detail their post-relocation experiences in autobiographical accounts that seek to educate and entertain global readers about what it means to accommodate to a new life in a new land. This study examines the entwined processes of identity (re)formation and place attachment represented in recent relocation trilogies set in Italy, highlighting the tension between reality and illusion in the pursuit of la dolce vita in the adopted homeland. Focusing on Frances Mayes’s popular Tuscan texts, Annie Hawes’s Ligurian trilogy, and Tim Parks’s memoirs set in Verona, the study addresses how their accommodation over a period of long-term foreign residency is represented in multipart nonfiction accounts. Are their memoirs of ‘becoming Italian’ merely an exercise in social distinction that appropriates Italian ‘authenticity’ and packages it for global tastes? Or does dwelling in cultural difference over time lead to the development of an intercultural competence that is one aspect of an engaged form of cosmopolitanism? A close reading of the language, stylistics, and form of relocation narratives reveals a tension between colonial and cosmopolitan orientations as strategies for cultural representation. By re-positioning themselves across geographic, conceptual, and generic boundaries, relocation writers are mapping out new possibilities for identity-making through new patterns of home-making within contemporary transnational lifestyles. Their deep immersion in place enables the production of situated readings of Italy, Italians and Italianness that avoid essentialising otherness through the recognition of dialogical subjectivities. Keywords: travel writing; autobiography/memoir; lifestyle migration; cosmopolitanism; identity formation

Transnational consumer lifestyle and social movements

My research interest is to understand consumer behavior related to transnationalism. In this dissertation, I address three questions concerning consumption and transnationalism. First, I situate transnationalism within the extensive body of work in consumer culture theory on globalization. Second, I examine one aspect of transnationalism: transnational consumer lifestyle that characterizes the lifestyle of individuals who simultaneously work and/or live in multiple countries (Glick Schiller et al. 1999). This is an interesting context to re-examine important consumer behavior phenomena, including consumer acculturation, relationship to home in contemporary globalization, and the role of consumption in managing a fragmented and multicentered life. Third, I examine another aspect of transnationalism: transnational consumer movement facilitated by transnational digital spaces. Transnational digital spaces, such as social media platforms, facilitate connections between activists, transnational news agencies, and political and social figures and institutions across borders and have the potential to empower some consumers, specifically those in totalitarian societies. I believe these are important phenomena that shape contemporary global consumer culture, but they have received little attention in consumer research thus far

The role of migration in the morphing of Shona identity

Text in EnglishThis dissertation reports on a study, which used story telling through installation art in analysing how migration has affected the identity of Shona people of Zimbabwe resulting in a new hybrid identity. This identity morphing has happened through the increased rate of trans-border mobility for economic survival and development. The research explores reflections associated with the life of individuals through the unfolding of socio-political and economic situations in Zimbabwe focusing on the historical and contemporary social relations of the Shonas (from Zimbabwe). The research in addition speculates as to how this migration creates difficulties with regards to immigrants’ experiences in their new habitats as they enter a state of limbo. It further investigates how the difference in status and the perception of identity affects Zimbabweans in their social inheritance of nomadic characteristics. The main objective of this study is to cast light on how constant migration has affected the constructs of the Shona identity as the people get in contact with various cultures leading to the formation of an intercultural identity. The study used the concept of storytelling through installation art to represent how migration has affected Shona people’s identity resulting in a new hybrid.Art History, Visual Arts and MusicologyM.A. (Visual Arts

Migration in Southern Africa

This open access Regional Reader proposes new ways of theorizing migration in Southern Africa by arguing that traditional western forms of theorizing do not adequately fit the South-South migration context. It explores the existing definitions of a ‘migrant’ with a view to conceptualise a definition which will speak to the complexities, envisioning a more inclusive Southern African region. The book investigates the various levels of migration moving from the local (rural to urban and urban to rural) to cross border migration; middle-class versus working-class migrant household livelihoods; livelihoods procurement versus wage earning; social capital (networks) and how they make meaning of their circumstances in a ‘foreign’ space. It also acknowledges the intertwined issues of gender and class as important in analyzing migration processes and the chapters feature both in varying dimensions. As such, the book provides a great resource for students, academics and policy makers

EUSN 2021 Book of Abstracts, Fifth European Conference on Social Networks

Book of abstract of the fifth European conference on Social Networks EUSN 202

Economic and labour market impacts of migration in Austria: an agent-based modelling approach

This study examines the potential economic and labour market impacts of a hypothetical but plausible migration scenario of 250,000 new migrants inspired by Austria’s experience in 2015. Using the agent-based macroeconomic model developed by Poledna et al. (Eur Econ Rev, 151:104306, 2023. 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2022.104306, the study explores the detailed labour market outcomes for different groups in Austria’s population and the macroeconomic effects of the migration scenario. The analysis suggests that Austria’s economy and labour market have the potential to be resilient to the simulated migration influx. The results indicate a positive impact on GDP due to increased aggregate consumption and investment. The labour market experiences an increase in the unemployment rates of natives and previous migrants. In some industries, the increase in the unemployment rates is more significant, potentially indicating competition among different groups of migrants. This research provides insights for policymakers and stakeholders in Austria and other countries that may face the challenge of managing large-scale migration in the near future

Schooling of refugee youth and its effect on their identity = ナンミン セイショウネン ノ ガッコウ キョウイク ト アイデンティティ ケイセイ

PDF/A formatsAccess: via World Wide Web東京外国語大学大学院総合国際学研究科博士 (学術) 論文 (2023年1月)Author's thesis (Ph.D)--Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, 2023博甲第341号Bibliography: p. 251-330東京外国語大学 (Tokyo University of Foreign Studies)博士 (学術

Exploring critical issues faced by Chinese immigrant entrepreneurs in the U.K

Despite the significant contributions of Chinese immigrant entrepreneurs in the U.K. (Lin, 2015), their unique challenges and how they manage these challenges have not been well documented. Extant literature notes that facing challenges hinders acculturation, negatively affects an enterprise's growth (Zolin et al., 2016) and causes stress to the migrant. Immigrant entrepreneurs with limited cross-cultural competencies face additional challenges (Mathews et al., 2015). Furthermore, per literature, co-ethnic enclaves can assist new immigrants by offering financial and advisory support and bringing new opportunities (Zhang et al., 2016; Zolin et al., 2016). Extant literature chronicles local language skills (e.g., Azmat & Fujimoto, 2016; Sui et al., 2015) and cross-cultural intelligence (Aslam et al., 2016; Alon et al., 2016) are essential for easing the acculturative journey of immigrant entrepreneurs. An exploratory qualitative enquiry for extracting rich contextual data (Babin et al., 2019) using a mono method, semi-structured interview methodology was applied to capture diverse viewpoints. An exploratory, investigative research strategy is best suited when little prior research is available on this topic (Bougie & Sekaran, 2019). Purposive sampling was used along with the snowball method to get suitable respondents (Saunders et al., 2016) till the point of data saturation was achieved (Saunders et al., 2017). In total, 25 interviews were taken until no further information was gathered. Resultant data were coded to recognise themes (Belotto, 2018). The findings of this research made a significant theoretical contribution to the extant literature on this subject area which has been relatively unstructured so far (Aliaga Isla & Rialp, 2013; Malerba & Ferreira, 2020) . Moreover, current literature does not explicitly address the point of view of Chinese immigrant entrepreneurs in the U.K. and their challenges, which were covered comprehensively in this research. The findings of this study indicated that, despite the documented importance of cross-cultural competencies in literature, Chinese immigrant entrepreneurs in the U.K. displayed low levels of local language skills and cross-cultural awareness, which increased their challenges. Moreover, contrary to extant literature (Sullivan & Ford, 2014), ethnic enclaves did not offer adequate entrepreneurial support, business opportunities or networking prospects for Chinese immigrant entrepreneurs in the U.K. as per the results of this study. It was theorised that ethnic enclaves could potentially be losing their importance as financial and business support structures for newly incoming Chinese immigrant entrepreneurs because of the lack of support being available to them (Kye, 2018). This lack of support could also be because ethnic enclaves are no longer limited to highly concentrated ethnic business centres in the middle of cities. They have begun to spread out to suburbs due to city centre real estate limitations, making them less unified and easy to access. Further research was recommended for assessing the current role of ethnic enclaves due to these research findings that indicated that ethnic enclaves are no longer the support structures for immigrants as they were earlier (Kye, 2018)