The Unbearable Lightness of Moving
Czech Migrants Making a Home (or Not) in the UK
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10566693 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Kristýna Janurová (0000-0003-1229-2197, Charles University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2018 |
| Volume | 54 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 315-342 |
| Publication date | 2018-06-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Czech Sociological Review (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0038-0288 • E-ISSN: 2336-128X |
| Publisher | Institute of Sociology of the Czech Academy of Sciences (PUBLISHER • CZ) |
| DOI | 10.13060/00380288.2018.54.3.409 |
| OpenAlex | W2891589725 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 29 |
This article builds on the emerging tradition of transnationalism in migration research, which considers both migrants' 'making a home' in their host societies and their continued attachments to their places of origin as parallel processes. It examines the factors that influence migrants' simultaneous negotiation of 'belonging' in the home and host societies. This question is particularly significant in the 'liquid' context of free intra-EU mobility. The analysis is based on semi-structured in-depth interviews conducted in 2014-2016 with 41 Czech migrants who had moved to the United Kingdom in 1990-2015. Building on existing research of Central and Eastern European migration, the article shows that despite their diverse trajectories, most interviewees strive for 'grounded' lives with a family and a predictable future. Their sense of 'belonging' is affected by their reasons for coming to and staying in the UK, but especially by the presence or absence of agency; whether the migrant's decision to stay was voluntary or dependent. Aspects of the individual's migration situation and personal characteristics are also shown to structure migrant belonging. The concept of a 'leap of faith' is introduced to capture the role of a conscious commitment to settling in the host country, both physically and mentally, and thus re-gaining 'control' over one's migration trajectory in cases when the decision to stay was not made independently
Agency (philosophy · Context (archaeology · Czech · Geography · Identity negotiation · Migration studies · Negotiation · Political science · Social science · Sociology · Transnationalism · Diaspora, migration, transnational identity · Gender Studies · Law · Migration and Labor Dynamics · Migration, Ethnicity, and Economy · Psychology · Social Psychology
Basics of qualitative research
Analysis of Personal Narratives
Eurostars and Eurocities
The Sociological Life Course Approach and Research on Migration and Integration
Transnationalism
Arguments within geographies of movement
Conceptualizing Simultaneity
The Re-emigration of Czech Western Emigrants in the 1990s from the Perspective of Economic Sociology
Polish Contemporary Migration
The Experiences of Accession 8 Migrants in England
Economic Migrants” or “Middling Transnationals”? East European Migrants’ Experiences of Work in the UK
Highly skilled dependent migrants entering the labour market
On the Differential Attachments of Migrants from Central and Eastern Europe
Home and Migration
Collective Remittances and Integration
Ugandans in Britain Making 'New' Homes
Gender Identity and Agency in Migration Decision-Making
Liquid migration, grounded lives
The Migration Industry and Civil Society
Time, Self, and the Curiously Abstract Concept of Agency
What Is Agency
Super-diversity and its implications
| Citations per year | 0.33 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2020 - 2026 (7) |
| Highly cited | No |