Migration: Meaning, Theory and Impact
Migration is the movement of people from one place to another within a certain period. Migration can be permanent or temporary.
Migration is generally done to get a better quality of life, whether it be from an economic, social, or religious perspective.
Migration is one of the main factors affecting population density and distribution. Areas that are more attractive to migrants will have a higher population density compared to areas that are not attractive.
Migration is also one of the factors that influence population growth.
High migration will cause high population growth while high emigration rates will actually cause negative population growth.
There are two general scopes of migration, internal and external. The internal scope of migration refers to movements within one's own country between regions while external includes migration between countries. However, Jay Weinstein and Vijayan Pillai in classified the third scope of migration, forced migration, and impact internal migration of economic development.
Internal migration is between regions but remains within the same country. This movement is generally caused by differences in the value of driving and pulling factors between regions.
Migration Generally Occurs from the Village to the City
In the case of internal migration, migration generally occurs from economically undeveloped regions to economically developed regions. One example is the migration of people to big cities such as from the surrounding villages.
The following are some examples of cases of internal migration that we can observe in daily activities
Rural-urban displacement. This movement is often equated with urbanization and is one of the factors driving the growth of high urban population and slow progress in villages.
Regional movements occur between provinces, districts or between islands.
This movement is generally caused by economic, social, or family factors.
Intra-urban / urban movement. This transfer occurs when we remain in the same city but change position. An example is when we do commuting or moving house.
Displacement from a city or large city. This transfer generally occurs to retirees or workers who are tired of urban life that is very dynamic and stressful. This movement is also known as urban-rural.
Displacement due to political / policy factors. These transfers are generally caused by policies that force, attract, or encourage someone to move. The policy can be in the form of transmigration, payment of wages if you want to migrate, or forced relocation to certain communities.
External
External migration includes movement between countries. This movement, like internal migration, is caused by differences in the driving and pulling factors between countries.
In the case of external migration, politically, the migration process is more influenced by the policies of the destination country compared to the country of origin.
Documents that must be brought and other requirements become obstacles for external migration.
External migration generally occurs between developed and developing countries. Many workers or from developing countries choose to stay in developed countries while working or continuing their studies, but many workers from developed countries are placed in developing countries and feel comfortable, so they continue to live there.
The following are some examples of external migration that we can observe in everyday life
Refugees can be considered forced migration which migrates externally when he moves to get asylum.
The most obvious examples of these refugees are Rohingya refugees, Syrians, and African minorities exposed to civil war and power conflicts.
An expatriate worker can be considered an external migration because he or she migrated to work. An example is the oil engineer from America who works for Shell and is based in Kuwait.
Students who study abroad can be considered as external migrants. An example is Indonesian students who are studying in the UK
A pensioner can be considered an external migrant when he retires in a country other than his home country. An example is an American retiree who retires in Switzerland because he likes nature.
Migration is forced not to be related to spatial scopes such as internal and external but rather influenced by the scope of will. A migrant is arguably forced when he is forced either directly or indirectly to move from his residence.
A concrete example of forced migration is refugees who have fled war areas in Syria and Africa. In addition, refugees who leave from disaster areas such as can also be considered forced migrants. Because, basically, they don't want to leave their homes, it's just that because of a war or disaster, they are forced to find a safer place.
Duration of Migration
Migrations have different durations. Although according to BPS, a person must stay in a certain place for a period of time to be considered a migration, there are also those who argue that every activity traveling beyond the boundaries is migration.
Therefore, in general there are 4 categories of migration when viewed from the period of residence. The four categories are
Permanent
Migration is considered permanent when migrants migrate forever, or intend to stay in the area forever.
The following are a few examples of permanent migration
Transmigration
North-South shift in England
Urbanization to big cities
Slave trade
The move from the colony to the host country
Migration between countries
Semi Permanent
Migration is considered semi-permanent when migrants only intend to stay for a few years in their destination.
Offshore Oil Drilling
Workers in the Offshore Oil Drilling are classified as Semi-permanent Migrants
This migration generally occurs to students studying in other regions / countries, workers with placements outside the city / state, and diplomats and their diplomatic corps.
Examples of semi-permanent migration include
Seasonal
Migration can be categorized as seasonal when migrants only stay for a few weeks or months at their destination.
This type of migration generally occurs during the harvest season where farmers and landlords need additional energy to harvest plants for the duration of the harvest season.
Therefore, farmers open up employment opportunities for farm workers who want to help harvest. This additional employment creates a pull factor for migration.
After the harvest season, the additional workers will be paid and they return to their original place.
Another example of seasonal migration is students who are studying tertiary education at universities outside the city with a considerable distance. For example, these students come from and study.
Because of distance and high transportation prices, the student can only go home during semester breaks, so that within a year, he will stay for 2 semesters.
Commuting / Space Shuttle
Migration and commuting fundamentally have differences in the length of time and the purpose of their migration. Migration is for permanent or semi-permanent while commuting for just coming / stopping by.
However, in this case, it will be simplified so that commuting and migration are considered to be the same, namely moving places, only the duration of time and destination are different.
Commuter Line
Commuter Trains Are One Of The Transportation Options For Workers Who Make Space Shuttle
Commuting generally occurs in workers and students who have a place to live in a different area from the place of work / college.
Examples are workers who live and work or students who live.
Causes of Migration
There are many theories that explain why people migrate. The theory that is often used when discussing the causes of migration is the theory of push and pull factors.
Everett S Lee's Migration Theory
This theory was put forward by Everett S. Lee to explain why people move. This theory focuses on two aspects, namely the driving factor and the pull factor of migration.