THE ROLE OF ORIGIN-BASED SOCIAL NETWORKS IN INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION: FOCUSING ON NETWORK STRUCTURE, PIONEER MIGRANTS AND TIE STRENGTH

AUBREY DULDULAO TABUGA

Publication

THE ROLE OF ORIGIN-BASED SOCIAL NETWORKS IN INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION: FOCUSING ON NETWORK STRUCTURE, PIONEER MIGRANTS AND TIE STRENGTH

AUBREY DULDULAO TABUGA

Abstract

How do international outmigration behaviors of households in an origin village cascade to other households or influence the migration intentions of individuals via the network mechanism? This thesis seeks to answer this question by bringing to the literature the role of not only network structure and tie strength but also pioneer migration to add a temporal dimension into the analysis of networks’ influence on migration perpetuation. It expands the body of literature currently dominated by permanent settlement type by using primary data from a developing country that engages in largely temporary labor migration. Using a mixed-methods approach, this thesis finds evidence that the current distribution of outmigration behavior in the area may have been attributed to pioneer migrants’ connectivity combined with their diffuse initial placement within the village network. It further argues that a more careful analysis of tie strength’s effects requires cognizance of the broader economic and policy contexts.