Migration, Integration and Social Stratification

The socio-economic integration of immigrants and their children in the host society has been well investigated in sociology. The process of integration involves separation from familiar daily life in the home society and adaptation to a new life in the host society. Although the process of integration is particularly dominant among first-generation immigrants, its degree and form may have crucial consequences for their children and future generations. Therefore, when the socio-economic integration of the first generation of immigrants is hindered, it can have long-term consequences for the integration of the next generations, thereby intensifying stratification in the society. Empirical studies on migration and integration often refer to several important dimensions of integration in the host society: structural integration (achievements in education and the labor market), acculturation (culture and socialization), social interaction (social relations) and identification (emotional integration). In this seminar, we will discuss the processes of integration in these four dimensions, their relationship to each other as well as their variation across generational statuses and countries. Special attention will be paid to the socio-structural integration of children and young adults with migration backgrounds, particularly in the critical periods of education and the transition from school to work. Students in this seminar will read and interpret empirical studies from the fields of migration and integration and social stratification. They will also make an oral presentation on one of the seminar’s topics.