Step migration

Last updated
World net migration rate Net migration rate world.png
World net migration rate

Step migration is a migration pattern conceptualized in 1885 by Ernst Georg Ravenstein who observed migration as occurring stage by stage as rural inhabitants move closer to urban areas of growth. [1] It is a migration pattern regarded by some scholars to be a widely popular form of international migration in the twenty-first century globalized world. [2] There is a large breadth of study proving the existence of step migration in many international migration patterns, although there is lack of consensus over its exact specification and measurement. [1] Step migration scholars deem it to be an important international trend that has the power to aid in the design of policy development efforts in both rural and urban areas worldwide. According to Abrahm Lustgarten, Senior Environmental Reporter for ProPublica, in his May 2021 report, Step migration -- or "stepwise migration" -- is a characteristic migration pattern of\\driven by climate change. [3] [4]

Contents

Overview

Dennis Conway has researched into how migration scholars have conceptualised step migration and attempts to clarify these competing definitions into an operational and consistent definition:

"...a process of human spatial behaviour in which individuals or families embark on a migration path of acculturation which gradually takes them, by way of intermediate steps, from a traditional-rural environment to the modern-urban environment." [1]

In 'Laws of Migration', Ravenstein explained how migration could be gradual and occurred step by step geographically. [1] According to Ravenstein, step migration occurred in short distance migration when individuals migrated from rural towns to an urban centre by stepping through intermediate-sized towns. [1] Scholars today see step migration as occurring globally as individuals step up through hierarchies of countries toward their preferred destination. [5] This idea evolved as scholars such as Conway saw step migration as characterised by movements up and down an urban hierarchy. [1] Step migration has been explained as requiring multiple stages of migration due to a failure of the migrant to integrate into the country such as failure to find work or cultural disconnect, which then prompts another migration. [6]

However, there has been confusion in migration literature over the step migration as a concept. [1] The specification of step migration has been contested and there are inconsistencies in definitions by different scholars over the progression of step migration theory. [1] It is still a contested issue as to how relevant step migration is and in what incidences[ spelling? ] it occurs, although it has been stated that it is widespread in Third World Migration. [1] Todaro sees multistage migration as explaining labour migration patterns in less developed countries. [7] These patterns are characterised by two stages: the first being the unskilled and rural worker migrating to the urban city, and the second being the attainment of a more permanent job in the urban area. [7]

In the nineteenth century especially, the definition of step migration was contested and often inconsistent. [1] Ravenstein's conceptualization focused on the spatial movements of migrants in the United Kingdom, where he did not see this pattern of migration as related to an urban hierarchy as he saw urban cities as merely the focus point to which migrants were drawn. [1]

However, in the 20th and 21st centuries, the conception of step migration has grown to include the notions of step migration as related to an urban hierarchy and being a "spatial manifestation of a social process of adjustment." [1] Researchers have found that migration often occurs through a 'hierarchy of places' as people a-spatially migrate in a stepwise formation up a hierarchy of places from rural areas to urban, progressive areas with more opportunities. [4] Other scholars such as Paul see step migration as an option for migrants to overcome structural barriers that prevent them from gaining legal entry to their preferred destinations by stepping up the hierarchy and accumulating sufficient migrant capital. [5]

Scholars have found the existence of step migration in New Zealand, [8] Australia, the Philippines and Arctic Alaska. [4]

Significance as a phenomenon

Step migration is deemed an increasingly popular migration pattern among students and workers and as part of a wider circulatory transnational migratory movement. [9] Stepwise migration is seen to be relevant as a partial contributor to the increase of international migration and as impacting international labour migration which in turn impacts world politics. [10] Whether or not migration scholars use the exact term 'step migration', many have identified that migration in the globalised age is often no longer only one stage, but a multistage phenomenon.

Countries such as Australia, New Zealand, and Canada are increasingly introducing study migration pathways, based on step migration, to attract international students with the aim that these students will later become skilled workers. [2] Step and stage-like migration was also seen to exist in migration flows from Poland, the UK and Germany. [10]

Scholars emphasise the economic value that step migration can bring to local economies, and how it creates a reliance on skilled migrants. [2] Around 130,000 international students studying in Australia currently are likely to permanently migrate to Australia after they graduate. [11] In Canada, the number of international students becoming permanent residents is rising, in 2018, 99,410 international students became permanent residents which was a significant increase from the previous year. [12] These international students, who migrate to countries through step migration, are valuable as they are skilled migrants who can aid countries in skill shortages and supply skills and expertise in key industries. [11] The multistage nature of international labour migration flows are said to have boosted the economies of the United Kingdom and Ireland as employment is rising which means the filling of skill shortages, boosting of export income, and lowering of inflation. [10]

Australia's economy relies on skilled migrants to form two thirds of their workforce, partly because of step migration through international students who migrate to study and ultimately end up becoming working citizens. [2] Skilled migrants, which include international student graduates, participate in the labour force at higher rates than permanent residents of Australia. [11] According to scholars, international students have become a highly demanded human capital resource as they are both an education export as well as a skilled contributor to the economy. [2] Hawthorne explains how the phenomenon of step migration may require nations to reform their policies around study migration pathways and improve the outcomes of international students going through these pathways. [2] Countries are now said to compete for international students through promoting their step and study migration pathways in order to be economically competitive. [2]

Step migration of Filipino workers

Step migration was found by Paul to be used by domestic Filipino workers in the Philippines, Hong Kong and Singapore to gain migrant capital and work their way up a destination hierarchy of countries to gain legal entry into their ultimate preferred destinations, usually in the West. [5] Step migration is a popular phenomenon among the developing world as it is a strategy to overcome barriers to migration. [5] According to Paul, it is a necessary pattern as many of these migrants have low-capital and face high cost barriers and immigration policy restrictions which prevent them from migrating to their preferred destinations. [5] Step migration allows migrants to increase the likelihood of reaching the West by undertaking multistage migration often starting with low-wage countries with low immigration restrictions in the Middle East and working their way through multiple countries toward their ultimate destination. [5] Through this process, they increase their savings, gain work experience and educational qualifications which allow them to qualify for jobs in their preferred destination countries. [5] Migrant capital is used to accumulate cultural, financial and social capital to move on to preferred destinations, and these form the reasons given by scholars as to what motivates migration. [13]

Multinational mobility of migrant workers is increasingly popular in the global marketplace as migrants follow an upward pattern of destination hierarchies based on opportunities. [14] Paul sees step-wise international labour migrants as those workers who take incremental steps in a hierarchy of labour migrations from country to country and being able to leverage resources and experience gained. [14] The workers Paul interviewed all started out with menial jobs in their home countries such as working in fast food, and then leaving their home country to become maids in Western countries. [14] However, Western countries are not easily accessible from countries such as the Philippines and so migrants often go through an intermediary country such as Hong Kong which has high wage rates for migrant domestic workers and better labour protections than most Asian countries. [14] The time in an intermediary country allows migrants to gain migrant capital, work experience, and good job references, which enable further migration to a Western country. [14] After working for the required number of years in Western countries, migrants can apply for permanent residency and the process of step migration is complete. [14]

Step migration of Chinese migrants in New Zealand

Step migration is seen as a highly popular migration pattern and part of a wider circulatory transnational migratory movement which describes the migration route of Chinese immigrants. [15] Step migration of Chinese migrants can be seen through New Zealand as a case study. [8] Scholars have identified a pattern in which Chinese Migrants use New Zealand as a step destination toward their preferred destination of Australia. [8] The aim found behind this particular pattern of step migration from New Zealand to Australia is that moving to New Zealand first helps these migrants overcome structural obstacles of migrating to Australia. [8] There has been an increase in New Zealand departures to Australia due to better employment and lifestyle reasons. [16] Historically, due to events like the Chinese being subject to military defeats by the Western world, the Chinese regard immigration to Western countries as a move toward personal advancement that could only be undertaken by those who possess a significant amount of human and cultural capital. [8] By emigrating first to New Zealand and gaining permanent residence or citizenship, this allows migrants to gain a safeguard or a step toward another destination with better financial and social prospects, such as Australia. [8] There has been a 20 percent increase in migrants who originally moved to New Zealand to live, departing New Zealand and migrating elsewhere. [16]

In specific regions

Step migration in Arctic Alaska

Ravenstein's step migration hypothesis was found to exist among the Inupiat peoples in Arctic Alaska according to scholars evaluating census data and logit models. [4] Arctic Alaska is also an example of a rural and remote location in the United States where migrants move in and out of. [9] Berman, Huskey and Howe discovered that step migration occurred both upward and downward in an urban and rural hierarchy. [4] Step migration is hierarchical in Alaska as people move from rural villages to regional centres. [9]

The key factors identified by scholars in broader migration literature influencing migration decisions are networks such as family, friends, and community ties. [4] Migrants are said to choose to move because of household and personal characteristics and technological changes, which have significantly impacted migration patterns, as the bridge between rural and urban areas can be bridged over networks of communication. [4] Migration can also be impacted by the environment since are undertaking step migration towards urban cities because of coastal erosion in the Arctic, which has increased the risk of storms to rural and coastal villages. [4] According to Berman, Huskey and Howe, step migration is more likely to occur if family and friends are concentrated in an area, and the quality of information about a place declines with distance. [4]

Step migration to the European Union

The enlargement of the European Union in May 2004 was said to have resulted in a multistage nature of migration to the new member countries of the EU. [10] Kraler and Iglicka analysed the migration step migration pattern from Poland to the new members of Germany, and the United Kingdom. [10] The first stage was the migratory labour movement from Ukraine, a neighbouring country of the EU, to Poland and then from Poland to the UK and Germany. [10] The scholars see the motivation behind multistage migration as being both economic and institutional. [10] Ukrainians migrating to Poland do so due to the growing GDP per person of those employed in Poland. [10] At the second stage of migration, those who migrated from Poland to Germany did so due to its proximity, the unemployment level in Poland and the level of GDP per capita in Germany. [10] They conclude that the multistage nature of migration seen in the Ukrainian migration to Poland, then migration to Germany and the UK occurred due to the EU enlargement, the free movement of labour and economic factors. [10]

Step migration of African Americans post Civil War

During the mid-1860s to 1870s, congress implemented various contributions to reconstruct the South prior to the Civil War. This was in an effort to rebuild the unification of an irregular segregated society. [17] After the former slaves became free following the Emancipation Proclamation many ventured up towards the Lower Midwest from the South in search of opportunity. Step migration was seen 91.9% of cases of this new migration pre-1890. One reason for this serge in step migration was the lack of Northern newspapers and common illiteracy in the black communities, leading to a reliance on verbal communication to have awareness of prospective destinations. [18] Difficulties in transportation also made a singular journey a difficult task. During the American Civil War many railway systems were destroyed, which left many rebuilding projects to take place. It wasn't until 1890 that the three states of the Lower Midwest had stable connections to the South. [18] The journey to the North was also unmanageable for most in one trip due to poor conditions and high prices. The trip would be about 30 hours sitting on wooden benches with only the food and drink one brought abroad. Instead many African Americans elected to travel via steamboat, which was a cheaper alternative to its railroad counterpart. [18] Even with cheaper prices, many had to work in shipping docks for extended periods of time to accumulate more money to continue on the rest of their journey. Step migration was also more commonplace pre-1890 because of the mass amounts of African Americans heading towards the Lower Midwest compared to later time periods. [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rural flight</span> Migratory pattern of people from rural to urban areas

Rural flight is the migratory pattern of people from rural areas into urban areas. It is urbanization seen from the rural perspective.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human capital flight</span> Emigration of highly skilled or well-educated individuals

Human capital flight is the emigration or immigration of individuals who have received advanced training at home. The net benefits of human capital flight for the receiving country are sometimes referred to as a "brain gain" whereas the net costs for the sending country are sometimes referred to as a "brain drain". In occupations with a surplus of graduates, immigration of foreign-trained professionals can aggravate the underemployment of domestic graduates, whereas emigration from an area with a surplus of trained people leads to better opportunities for those remaining. But emigration may cause problems for the home country if the trained people are in short supply there.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human migration</span> Movement of people for their benefit

Human migration is the movement of people from one place to another with intentions of settling, permanently or temporarily, at a new location.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bar-tailed godwit</span> Species of bird

The bar-tailed godwit is a large and strongly migratory wader in the family Scolopacidae, which feeds on bristle-worms and shellfish on coastal mudflats and estuaries. It has distinctive red breeding plumage, long legs, and a long upturned bill. Bar-tailed godwits breed on Arctic coasts and tundra from Scandinavia to Alaska, and overwinter on coasts in temperate and tropical regions of Australia and New Zealand. The migration of the subspecies Limosa lapponica baueri across the Pacific Ocean from Alaska to New Zealand is the longest known non-stop flight of any bird, and also the longest journey without pausing to feed by any animal. The round-trip migration for this subspecies is over 29,000 km (18,020 mi).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Immigration to Australia</span> Overview of immigration to Australia

The Australian continent was first settled when ancestors of Indigenous Australians arrived via the islands of Maritime Southeast Asia and New Guinea over 50,000 years ago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Migrant worker</span> Person who migrates to pursue work

A migrant worker is a person who migrates within a home country or outside it to pursue work. Migrant workers usually do not have the intention to stay permanently in the country or region in which they work.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian Australians</span> Australian citizens of Italian descent

Italian Australians are Australian-born citizens who are fully or partially of Italian descent, whose ancestors were Italians who emigrated to Australia during the Italian diaspora, or Italian-born people in Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian diaspora</span> Ethnic group

The Australian diaspora are those Australians living outside of Australia. It includes approximately 527,255 Australian-born people living outside of Australia, people who are Australian citizens and live outside Australia, and people with Australian ancestry who live outside of Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Immigration</span> Movement of people into another country or region to which they are not native

Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and other short-term stays in a destination country do not fall under the definition of immigration or migration; seasonal labour immigration is sometimes included, however.

The economic results of migration impact the economies of both the sending and receiving countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Second Great Migration (African American)</span> 1940–70 exodus from the South to the Northeast, Midwest and West U.S.

In the context of the 20th-century history of the United States, the Second Great Migration was the migration of more than 5 million African Americans from the South to the Northeast, Midwest and West. It began in 1940, through World War II, and lasted until 1970. It was much larger and of a different character than the first Great Migration (1916–1940), where the migrants were mainly rural farmers from the South and only came to the Northeast and Midwest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Circular migration</span>

Circular migration or repeat migration is the temporary and usually repetitive movement of a migrant worker between home and host areas, typically for the purpose of employment. It represents an established pattern of population mobility, whether cross-country or rural-urban. There are several benefits associated with this migration pattern, including gains in financial capital, human capital, and social capital. There are also costs associated with circular migration, such as brain drain, poor working conditions, forced labor, and the inability to transfer acquired skills to home economies. Socially, there are strong connections to gender, health outcomes, development, poverty, and global immigration policy.

International migration occurs when people cross state boundaries and stay in the host state for some minimum length of the time. Migration occurs for many reasons. Many people leave their home countries in order to look for economic opportunities in another country. Others migrate to be with family members who have migrated or because of political conditions in their countries. Education is another reason for international migration, as students pursue their studies abroad, although this migration is often temporary, with a return to the home country after the studies are completed.

Internal migration in the People's Republic of China is one of the most extensive in the world according to the International Labour Organization. This is because migrants in China are commonly members of a floating population, which refers primarily to migrants in China without local household registration status through the Chinese Hukou system. In general, rural-urban migrant most excluded from local educational resources, citywide social welfare programs and many jobs because of their lack of hukou status. Migrant workers are not necessarily rural workers; they can simply be people living in urban areas with rural household registration.

Internal migration or domestic migration is human migration within a country. Internal migration tends to be travel for education and for economic improvement or because of a natural disaster or civil disturbance, though a study based on the full formal economy of the United States found that the median post-move rise in income was only 1%.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zimbabwean diaspora</span> Emigrants from Zimbabwe and their descendants

The Zimbabwean diaspora refers to the diaspora of immigrants from the nation of Zimbabwe and their descendants who now reside in other countries. The number of Zimbabweans living outside Zimbabwe varies significantly from 4 to 7 million people, though it is generally accepted at over 5 million people, some 30 per cent of all Zimbabweans. Varying degrees of assimilation and a high degree of interethnic marriages in the Zimbabwean diaspora communities makes determining exact figures difficult. The diaspora population is extremely diverse and consists of Shona people, Ndebele, white Zimbabweans, mixed-race people, Asians, Jewish people and other minority groups. The diaspora traces their origin to several waves of emigration, starting with the exodus that followed the 1965, unilateral declaration of independence in Rhodesia, but significantly since the sociopolitical crisis that began in 2000.

Child migration or "children in migration or mobility" is the movement of people ages 3–18 within or across political borders, with or without their parents or a legal guardian, to another country or region. They may travel with or without legal travel documents. They may arrive to the destination country as refugees, asylum seekers, or economic migrants.

Student migration is the movement of students who study outside their country of birth or citizenship for a period of 12 months or more. During the period of globalization, the internationalisation of higher education increased dramatically and it has become a market driven activity. With the rapid rise of international education more and more students are seeking higher education in foreign countries and many international students now consider overseas study a stepping-stone to permanent residency within a country. The contributions that foreign students make to host nation economies, both culturally and financially has encouraged major players to implement further initiatives to facilitate the arrival and integration of overseas students, including substantial amendments to immigration and visa policies and procedures. Institutions are competing hard to attract international students at a time when immigration policies in leading destinations like the US and the UK are not enabling transition to work visas.

Women migrant workers from developing countries engage in paid employment in countries where they are not citizens. While women have traditionally been considered companions to their husbands in the migratory process, most adult migrant women today are employed in their own right. In 2017, of the 168 million migrant workers, over 68 million were women. The increase in proportion of women migrant workers since the early twentieth century is often referred to as the "feminization of migration".

Africa hosts the fourth largest number of global international migrants. In 2017, 25 million people migrated within and outside it. Most of migration in Africa occurs within the continent as 19 million people moved between African countries. The surge in international migration within Africa is due in part by the efforts of African states and international institutions to enhance regional integration. Regional migration in the African continent is also largely facilitated by the development of infrastructure and diffusion of western languages and culture.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Conway, Dennis (1980). "Step-Wise Migration: Toward a Clarification of the Mechanism". International Migration Review. 14 (1): 3–14. doi:10.1177/019791838001400101. ISSN   0197-9183. JSTOR   2545058. PMID   12337440. S2CID   32229540.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Hawthorne, Lesleyanne (March 2010). "How Valuable is "Two-Step Migration"? Labor Market Outcomes for International Student Migrants to Australia". Asian and Pacific Migration Journal. 19 (1): 5–36. doi:10.1177/011719681001900102. S2CID   155178209 via Researchgate.
  3. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine : The Great Climate Migration Has Begun | Amanpour and Company. YouTube .
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Berman, Matthew D.; Huskey, Lee; Howe, E. Lance (2014-03-01). "Migration in Arctic Alaska: Empirical evidence of the stepping stones hypothesis" (PDF). Migration Studies. 2 (1): 97–123. doi:10.1093/migration/mnt017. ISSN   2049-5838.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Paul, Anju Mary (2011). "Stepwise International Migration: A Multistage Migration Pattern for the Aspiring Migrant". American Journal of Sociology. 116 (6): 1842–86. doi:10.1086/659641. ISSN   0002-9602. JSTOR   10.1086/659641. S2CID   152300653.
  6. Milana V. Nikolko, David Carment (2017). Nikolko, Milana V; Carment, David (eds.). Post-Soviet Migration and Diasporas. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. pp. 1–10. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-47773-2. ISBN   978-3-319-47773-2.
  7. 1 2 Sawyer, Ronald Eugene (October 1974). "Labor Migration, Relative Wage Levels, and Unemployment in Less Developed Countries". The American Economist. 18 (2): 55–62. doi:10.1177/056943457401800205. ISSN   0569-4345. S2CID   156184979.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Liu, Liangni Sally (January 2018). Chinese Transnational Migration in the Age of Global modernity: The Case of Oceania | Request PDF. Routledge, Oxford, UK. doi:10.4324/9781315438535. ISBN   9781315438535 . Retrieved 2019-04-08 via ResearchGate.
  9. 1 2 3 Howe, E. Lance (March 2009). "Patterns of migration in Arctic Alaska". Polar Geography. 32 (1–2): 69–89. Bibcode:2009PolGe..32...69H. doi:10.1080/10889370903000422. ISSN   1088-937X. S2CID   129785203.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Kraler, Albert; Iglicka, Krystyna (2002), "Labour Migration in Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs)", New Challenges for Migration Policy in Central and Eastern Europe, T.M.C. Asser Press, pp. 27–58, doi:10.1007/978-90-6704-531-5_3, ISBN   9789067041539
  11. 1 2 3 Australian Government (2015). "The value of international education to Australia" (PDF). internationaleducation.gov.au.
  12. Singer, Colin R. (2018-11-23). "Thousands More International Students Becoming Canadian Permanent Residents". Canada Immigration and Visa Information. Canadian Immigration Services and Free Online Evaluation. Retrieved 2019-05-31.
  13. Ryan, Louise; Erel, Umut; D’Angelo, Alessio (2015), Ryan, Louise; Erel, Umut; D’Angelo, Alessio (eds.), "Introduction Understanding 'Migrant Capital'", Migrant Capital: Networks, Identities and Strategies, Migration, Diasporas and Citizenship, Palgrave Macmillan UK, pp. 3–17, doi:10.1057/9781137348807_1, ISBN   9781137348807
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Paul, Anju Mary (2017-09-28). Multinational Maids: Stepwise Migration in a Global Labor Market. Cambridge University Press. ISBN   9781107190894.
  15. Liu, Liangni Sally; Didham, Robert; Lu, Jun (2017-07-21). "Mapping Chinese Return Migration from New Zealand: A Quantitative Data Analysis from a Comparative Perspective". Diaspora. 19 (2–3): 195–228. doi:10.3138/diaspora.19.2-3.195. S2CID   149385293.
  16. 1 2 Dann, Liam (2018-08-21). "Kiwis head back to Australia as net migration slows". The New Zealand Herald. ISSN   1170-0777 . Retrieved 2019-05-31.
  17. "The African American Odyssey: A Quest for Full Citizenship Reconstruction and Its Aftermath". The Library of Congress. 9 February 1998. Retrieved October 23, 2022.
  18. 1 2 3 4 Blocker, Jack S. (2020-10-09). A Little More Freedom: African Americans Enter the Urban Midwest, 1860–1930. Ohio State University Press. pp. 15–36. doi:10.2307/j.ctv16b77k9. ISBN   978-0-8142-7187-2. JSTOR   j.ctv16b77k9. S2CID   241540880.