There are a variety of causes and constraints affecting peoples decisions to migrate permanently

Authors Avatar

There are a variety of causes and constraints affecting

people’s decisions to migrate permanently

1. Motives for Migration

The strongest influences on migration are usually economic. Most decisions to migrate are

taken at household level where the constraints that limit migration are weighed against the

positive forces of attraction. Self-improvement, or even mere survival could be seen as

economic forces. Very few people migrate purely for social or cultural reasons although there are clear exceptions.

The vast majority of the world’s economies are run along capitalist lines and consequently the driving forces behind most migrations are economic. The global economy requires increasing freedom in the movement of labour although in many LEDCs, the main migrations involve internal rural to urban movements.

2. The Influence of Push and Pull Mechanisms.

Migration Flow – The number of migrants moving between two locations in a given period of time.

Push factor – The negative attributes of a migrant’s place of origin. These may include low

levels of employment, low income, heavy taxation, high rents, poverty, planning decisions, lack of housing, poor service provision, civil unrest, war, discrimination, persecution, poor

environmental quality, harsh climatic conditions, or environmental or natural disasters such as drought, desertification soil erosion or tectonic disaster.

Pull factor – These are the perceived positive attributes of a place of destination. The most

powerful pull factors are economic ones such as resource exploitation, better employment

opportunities, high incomes, promotion, higher living standards, but other factors such as

service provision, welfare provision, higher education, better environmental quality, marriage, refuge, and freedom of speech can also apply.

A third group of factors called barriers or intervening obstacles also play a role in migration. These include levels of literacy, bureaucracy, immigration laws, religion, family ties, lack of capital and travel costs.

3. The Selective Nature of Migration

Selection can be the result of policies of the countries or regions involved in migration or it can be self-selection by the immigrants themselves. Both internal and external migrations are often selective. Selection can be linked to both opportunities and constraints that vary according to people’s age, sex, level of wealth, skills and country of origin:

Immigration Quotas – Countries like New Zealand are seeking immigrants with specific

skills and a (points system” is used to select would-be immigrants.

Economic Blocks – Groups of countries such as the EU allow freedom of migration within

their shared borders, whereas would-be migrants from outside the EU face greater barriers

or intervening obstacles.

Historical ties – Countries with former colonial ties with a former colonial power are more

likely to experience greater levels of migration between the countries. In the 1960’s, the UK

looked to its former colonies in the Indian sub-continent and the West Indies to provide

workers to meet employment needs in factories and transport services.

Cost of Moving - Within the UK, house prices have an influence of the movement of labour and show selection at a social and an economic level. House prices are seen as a major factor in London and the southeast in creating a shortage of public service workers.

Join now!

A form of age selection takes place in the UK in terms of retirement. South coast resorts

such as Bournemouth display a “top-heavy” population structure as a result of such selfselecting migration patterns.

Expanding towns, such as Swindon, tend to attract younger people seeking employment.

This form of age selection favours people below the age of 40 and attracts a higher

proportion of people with young and teenage children.

In Saudi Arabia, mainly male immigrants are encouraged from other Islamic states such as

Pakistan illustrating sex selection.

In California, there is a reference for young Filipino ...

This is a preview of the whole essay