Browsing by Author "Lovio, Ilari"

This Master’s Thesis studies the multi-local family ties, transnational practices and social dynamics behind remittances in the context of Senegalese and Gambian migrants in Finland. Transnationalism refers to the ways migrants continue to be active in communities of origin, and thus participate in familial, social, economic, religious, political and cultural processes that span across national, geographic and cultural borders. This study focuses on transnationalism in the sphere of family life. Transnationalism is a central approach in contemporary international migration scholarship, and has gradually gained attention in the Finnish context. Migration in the West African countries of Senegal and Gambia is a common way of achieving socio-economic upward mobility and transnational practices of migrants are prevalent. The research questions of this Thesis are: 1) How family ties in Finland shape the transnational engagement of Senegambian migrants? and 2) How expectations of remittances shape the transnational family ties of Senegambian migrants, and how are remittances negotiated? In answering these questions the study draws from the theoretical orientation of transnationalism and the formulation of transnationalism as social spaces. In addition, concepts of relativizing and frontiering and an analytical framework of asymmetries in transnational relations are employed. The data of the study is gathered by conducting 12 semi-structured interviews with Senegalese and Gambian migrants residing in Finland, mapping the participants’ transnational relations and practices, ties and opportunities in Finland, and representations related to migration in Senegal and Gambia. The methods of qualitative analysis employed are thematic analysis and an analysis strategy of multiple case design. The findings show that the participants of the study are engaged in transnational practices that mostly locate themselves in the sphere of family life. At the same time, nearly all participants have family ties with Finns, which enables mobility and transnationalism, but at the same time attaches migrants to Finland in a way that also has implications for the transnational engagement. Migrants’ family and migration trajectories are shaped by different familial obligations and socio-economic opportunity structures in the different locations of the transnational social space. Transnational family ties are reproduced through communication and remittances, but due to high expectations of remittances, relationships are continuously negotiated. Remittances are shaped by cultural dynamics and norms associated with an ‘African family’ are reproduced, but also questioned. However, frustration in transnational relations can be better explained by examining spatial dynamics, and looking into the asymmetries within transnational relations. The study provides important sociological information on the role of transnationalism among migrant groups in Finland. It also shows the need for further study and to bridge the gap between research on transnational families and bi-cultural families.