Project description
A closer look at the decision to migrate and the mechanisms underpinning migration policy
Knowledge and understanding of people's decision to migrate is critical for policymakers' ability to develop migration policies. The EU-funded PACES project will focus on two parallel research components: the factors shaping migration decision-making and the mechanisms supporting migration policies. The project will combine theoretical and empirical knowledge from several academic disciplines and methodological paradigms to systematically investigate the interactions between migration decisions, policies and broader social transformation. PACES will draw on data collected in Algeria, Ethiopia, Italy, Libya, Nigeria, Slovakia and Spain to elaborate a heuristic model that identifies different constellations of conditions that influence decisions to stay and migrate at various stages of individual life trajectories and migrant journeys.
Objective
PACES offers a groundbreaking approach to studying and understanding people’s decisions to migrate and explores how this knowledge can better inform migration policies. PACES focuses on two parallel research components: the factors shaping migration decision-making and the mechanisms underpinning migration policies. Synthesizing theoretical and empirical knowledge from a broad array of academic disciplines and methodological paradigms, the project systematically investigates the interactions between migration decisions, migration policies and broader social transformation – as manifested in interconnected processes of economic, political, demographic, technological and cultural change. Based on a theoretical synthesis and qualitative and quantitative data collected in Algeria, Ethiopia, Italy, Libya, Nigeria, Slovakia and Spain, PACES will elaborate a heuristic model that identifies different constellations of conditions that shape decisions to stay and migrate at different stages of individual life trajectories and migrant journeys. In addition, by adopting a theories of change approach, PACES will systematically investigate, identify and track the assumptions on migration decisions used by policymakers to formulate policy designs and objectives. By exploring the evolution of EU and national policies towards labour and family migration, PACES investigates the extent to which current migration policies are evidence-based and areas where policies will benefit from valuable insights provided by migration decision-making research. By doing so, PACES seeks to contribute to elaborating more effective models of EU migration governance that also account for the uncertainties of future social transformations. Supported by an interdisciplinary consortium of experienced partners, PACES engages in co-participatory research with policymakers, stakeholders, citizens and migrants to generate maximum scientific, political and social impact.
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Funding Scheme
RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinator
3062 PA Rotterdam
Netherlands