Periodic Reporting for period 4 - MIGRADEMO (Migration and Democratic Diffusion: Comparing the Impact of Migration on Democratic Participation and Processes in Countries of Origin)
Período documentado: 2022-09-01 hasta 2024-02-29
Processes of international migration and democratic development are important academic and policy concerns. The presence of citizens in one country residing in another combined with new opportunities for transnational political engagement generates a series of research questions: Do emigrants influence democratic processes at home through their remittance of money and ideas? Do return migrants bring back new or different understandings about democratic rule? Does the emigrant vote from afar align with or contest the direction of the domestic vote? To what extent and under which conditions is the input of emigrants and return migrants contested among non-migrants? And how do these processes intersect with ongoing social and political transformations in the country of origin?
These research questions and objectives are timely and relevant for broader debates on the political impact of migration. The MIGRADEMO research shifts the attention from the predominant focus on what happens when migrants arrive in countries of settlement to countries of origin. Comparing the content, scope and processes of democratic diffusion will contribute to our knowledge of the conditions under which migration can influence democratic practices. Both the empirical and theoretical contributions are relevant to researchers, policy makers and activists concerned with the broader implications of international migration and processes of democratization in migrant countries of origin.
The MIGRADEMO project is an ambitious long-term comparative research strategy to analyse and theorize the scope and dynamics of processes of democratic diffusion through migration. The research strategy of the project engages with both qualitative and quantitative research methods to analyse migration-led diffusion across three levels of democratic participation and processes: 1) The electoral and non-electoral political engagement and attitudes of individual citizens/households. 2) The proliferation, agendas and activities of members of civil society associations. 3) The democratic outlook and activities of members of the national and local political elite with a migration experience. In the fieldwork based part of the project we explore these dynamics at both the local and national level in the cases of Romania, Turkey and Morocco.
These research questions and objectives are timely and relevant for broader debates on the political impact of migration. The MIGRADEMO research shifts the attention from the predominant focus on what happens when migrants arrive in countries of settlement to countries of origin. Comparing the content, scope and processes of democratic diffusion will contribute to our knowledge of the conditions under which migration can influence democratic practices. Both the empirical and theoretical contributions are relevant to researchers, policy makers and activists concerned with the broader implications of international migration and processes of democratization in migrant countries of origin.
The MIGRADEMO project is an ambitious long-term comparative research strategy to analyse and theorize the scope and dynamics of processes of democratic diffusion through migration. The research strategy of the project engages with both qualitative and quantitative research methods to analyse migration-led diffusion across three levels of democratic participation and processes: 1) The electoral and non-electoral political engagement and attitudes of individual citizens/households. 2) The proliferation, agendas and activities of members of civil society associations. 3) The democratic outlook and activities of members of the national and local political elite with a migration experience. In the fieldwork based part of the project we explore these dynamics at both the local and national level in the cases of Romania, Turkey and Morocco.
During the 3rd Period the team has been able to advance the data collection and analysis across all the work packages. First, we have extended and analysed further the forthcoming original dataset on emigrant voting patterns which compiles aggregate data on emigrant partisan voting in elections in their country of origin. This includes analysis which highlights the extent to which the alignment of the emigrant and domestic votes is related to differences in democratic development between the country of origin and residence as well as party-level characteristics of main incumbent and opposition parties. We have also analyzed the relationship between turnout and the timing of the elections across countries of residence and origin. Second, we have completed the data collection, both qualitative fieldwork and survey for Romania, near-completed these tasks for Turkey and secured the relevant permits to collect the data for the case of Morocco. The team is also advancing the relevant coding and analysis of the collected data. Third, the team has been writing papers related to the analysis of the EVP dataset, the comparative data on the political elite and civil society and the need for a revision of the concept of vulnerability in ethical reviews in the wake of the Pandemic. Papers have been presented in international conferences both online and face-to-face and prepared for publication.
Progress beyond the state of the art is being achieved across several work packages. First, the completed dataset on Emigrant Voting Patterns constitute an original and unique dataset which allows for both statistical and focused comparative analysis of the difference in vote choice among emigrants and homeland electorates. It is also the first of its kind to include countries of origin across all global regions and different types and levels of political systems. The high number of observations across 43 countries of origin and 217 countries of residence means that the dataset now includes 1.267 elections. This allows for more solid estimations across country and party levels variables.
In continuation, the collected data both through surveys and qualitative fieldwork based research techniques allows us to analyse processes and mechanisms of democratic diffusion across the three main research levels in the selected countries of origin. This includes attention to how democratic diffusion intersects with ongoing social and political developments in countries of origin as well as a more nuanced conceptualization of which ideas circulate among migrants, returnees and non-migrants. The field research is generating new comprehensive datasets based on quantitative surveys and qualitative research. The former is essential for a systematic evaluation of the influence of migration on the levels and scope of individual democratic participation The latter is crucial for a more nuanced a less binary understanding of which political ideas circulate and how they are negotiated among migrants, returnees and non-migrants. The combination of the different methodologies and approaches create synergies between the more systematic evaluation of democratic diffusion across different local and national contexts and the more interpretative analysis of how this diffusion is negotiated. This research strategy aids us in contributing to the theoretical understanding of the micro-foundations for democratic diffusion and the conditions under which migration can influence democratic processes.
In continuation, the collected data both through surveys and qualitative fieldwork based research techniques allows us to analyse processes and mechanisms of democratic diffusion across the three main research levels in the selected countries of origin. This includes attention to how democratic diffusion intersects with ongoing social and political developments in countries of origin as well as a more nuanced conceptualization of which ideas circulate among migrants, returnees and non-migrants. The field research is generating new comprehensive datasets based on quantitative surveys and qualitative research. The former is essential for a systematic evaluation of the influence of migration on the levels and scope of individual democratic participation The latter is crucial for a more nuanced a less binary understanding of which political ideas circulate and how they are negotiated among migrants, returnees and non-migrants. The combination of the different methodologies and approaches create synergies between the more systematic evaluation of democratic diffusion across different local and national contexts and the more interpretative analysis of how this diffusion is negotiated. This research strategy aids us in contributing to the theoretical understanding of the micro-foundations for democratic diffusion and the conditions under which migration can influence democratic processes.