Graeme Hugo

Theories of International Migration: A Review and Appraisal

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.

An Evaluation of International Migration Theory: The North American Case

The article reviews empirical studies of international migration within the North American migratory system in order to evaluate the various theories that seek to explain the initiation and perpetuation of international movement. The review uncovers significant support for all theories suggesting that they constitute complementary rather than competing explanations of migration. One criticism is that far too much research is focused on Mexico whose unique relationship to the United States may make it unrepresentative of broader patterns and trends in migration. After discussing salient gaps in the research record and outlining promising directions for future study the article attempts to construct a comprehensive model for understanding immigration into North America. (SUMMARY IN FRE AND SPA) (EXCERPT)

International migration and community development

Taylor, J. Edward ; Arango, Joaquin ; Hugo, Graeme ; Kouaouci, Ali ; Massey, Douglas S. ; Pellegrino, Adela

Circular Migration in Indonesia

not only to the widespread incidence, but also to the social and economic significance of circulation, seasonal migration, and commuting within Indonesia. The bulk of this mobility, however, goes unrecorded in large-scale demographic surveys and censuses, which routinely adopt the familiar criteria and questions designed to detect predominantly longer distance, more-or-less permanent changes in usual place of residence. The low levels of the latter type of movement revealed by these censuses and surveys appear to confirm the conventional stereotyping of most Indonesians (and in particular the inhabitants of Java) as immobile peasants who are born, live, and die in the same house, scarcely traveling beyond the confines of their natal village. Although the interprovincial, more-or-less permanent migration detected by the census is but one subset of total population mobility in Indonesia, in the absence of more comprehensive national (or even regional) level statistics census-defined migration and population mobility have become synonymous in the literature.1 This paper reviews the findings of a number of intensive studies carried out in several parts of Indonesia to establish whether nonpermanent population mobility is a phenomenon of social, economic, and demographic significance in Indonesia. Evidence from a large number of surveys demonstrates the widespread occurrence of temporary forms of population mobility in Indonesia and the many forms that mobility takes. The major explanations that have been put forward to explain this mobility are then summarized. Accelerating levels of temporary population mobility have both short- and long-term implications for achieving a more equitable distribution of wealth within Indonesia. A number of these issues are raised in the concluding section of this paper. Several directions in continuing research into nonpermanent mobility are identified in which demographers could make a significant contribution to the understanding of fundamental changes taking place within Indonesian society.

Preparing for Resettlement Associated with Climate Change

Mitigation and adaptation projects will lead to increased population displacement, calling for new research and attention to past lessons. Although there is agreement that climate change will result in population displacements and migration, there are differing views on the potential volume of flows, the likely source and destination areas, the relative role of climatic versus other factors in precipitating movements, and whether migration represents a failure of adaptation (1, 2). We argue that climate change mitigation and adaptation (M&A) actions, which will also result in significant population displacements, have not received sufficient attention. Given the emergence of resettlement as an adaptation response, it is critical to learn from research on development-forced displacement and resettlement (DFDR). We discuss two broad categories of potential displacement in response to (i) climate impacts themselves and (ii) large-scale M&A projects. We discuss policy approaches for facilitating migration and, where communities lack resources to migrate, suggest guidelines for organized resettlement.

Effects of International Migration on the Family in Indonesia

This paper draws upon various studies of internal and international migration and permanent and temporary movements to assess the diverse effects of migration on families in Indonesia. The types of effects examined include those on family structure and composition, family headship, marriage and divorce, intergenerational and intrafamily relationships, care of children and the aged, the economic situation of the family, the role and status of women and power relationships in the family. Both migration and the family are in a very dynamic situation and there are important two-way relationships between them. International migration has both positive and negative influences on families in Indonesia. It is important to gain a deeper understanding of the relationship between migration and family to maximize the benefits and at least ameliorate the negative effects.

THE NEW INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION IN ASIA : Challenges for population research

International migration has a long history in Asia but in recent years it has acquired an unprecedented scale and diversity and is a significant influence on the economic, social and demographic development of all Asian nations. International migration is now an established structural feature of the region although many nations still dismiss it as a temporary, passing phenomenon. Asian nations are developing international migration policies but much of this has not been informed by high quality research relating to the causes and effects of migration. The present paper examines each of the major types of international migration influencing contemporary Asia, reviews major developments within them and puts forward relevant policy and research challenges associated with each type of movement. Issues examined include south–north migration, migration and development, the role of diaspora, international labour migration, the feminization of migration, student migration and the increasing role of governments in influencing movement.

Demographic Trends in Australia's Academic Workforce.

The ageing of the Australian population and its implications are now well‐established on the Australian public policy agenda. Part of this interest is in its impacts on the Australian workforce. It is less well known that different segments of that workforce have quite different age structures. The academic sector has one of the oldest workforces of all groups and this paper analyses its contemporary age structure and its evolution. It shows how uneven growth of universities over the last 40 years and changing human resource practices have contributed to university staff being heavily concentrated in the older age groups. It also shows how international migration of academics to and from Australia is influencing the academic age structure. A case study of the staff of one Australian university is used to show the impact of ageing on future staffing and indicates that Australian universities face a massive recruitment task over the next decade due to the retirement of the large numbers of academics who began work in the 1960s and 1970s. Some of the implications of this for universities are then explained.

Temporary migration and the labour market in Australia

Abstract Australias labour market is most influenced by international migration among OECD nations, but Australian research on this issue focuses almost exclusively on permanent settlement migration. The present paper, however, demonstrates that non-permanent migration has an important impact on the Australian labour market, although such migrants are not included in standard data collections and research on migrants and the labour market. A number of data sources are utilised to estimate the labour-market impact of Working Holiday Makers, Temporary Business Entrants, Overseas Students, and New Zealand temporary migrants. It is shown that their impact is equivalent to more than 400 000 full-time jobs. However, the effect is magnified because it is concentrated in particular sectors of the economy and in particular communities within Australia. A number of issues relating to temporary migration are discussed, including the nature of its relationship with permanent migration, the effects on job training, and the implications for regional development.

A Global Labor Market: Factors Motivating the Sponsorship and Temporary Migration of Skilled Workers to Australia

The recruitment of skilled foreign workers is becoming increasingly important to many industrialized countries. This paper examines the factors motivating the sponsorship and temporary migration of skilled workers to Australia under the temporary business entry program, a new development in Australias migration policy. The importance of labor demand in the destination country in stimulating skilled temporary migration is clearly demonstrated by the reasons given by employers in the study while the reasons indicated by skilled temporary migrants for coming to work in Australia show the importance of both economic and non-economic factors in motivating skilled labor migration.