Motivation in the dynamics of European youth migration

ABSTRACT In this article, we explore the complexities of the relationships between motivations in the migration process of young Europeans who have returned to their country of origin. We analyze a unique database of over 3,000 returnees, a sub-sample from a larger survey of about 30,000 young people in nine European countries. The findings suggest that there is a link between the motivations for the first migration and those for future migration among this group. Generally, past migration motivations tend to reinforce future migration motivations of a similar nature. By controlling for variables related to geographic space (countries of residence, development profiles of NUTS2 regions, urban profiles of local communities of residence), as well as for several socio-demographic variables and life satisfaction, we can better understand the influence of motivations for past migration on motivations for future migrations. This article extends the internal dynamics of migration approach by combining the idea of individual chains of migration motivations that are extending over-time with the idea of cumulative causation operating at the meso level.