The Sociology of International Migration

Migration Theory: Talking across Disciplines, 3rd edition. Edited by Caroline B. Brettell & James F. Hollifield. New York: Routledge. 2014.

Abstract

International migration always has been a core concern of sociology in the United States and it has become central to the global discipline. The dominant US approach of studying the assimilation of immigrants as a multigenerational ethnic competition has disproportionately shaped the sociology of international migration, but diverse analytical perspectives attend to a widening array of migratory contexts, including refugee and other forced migrations. Major domains of inquiry include immobility, drivers of international migration, assimilation/integration, transnationalism, dissimilation, and return. The most promising studies specify the political conditions that shape who moves and subsequent variation in the experiences of migrants and their descendants.