Transnationalism, diaspora, and development: A purposive review of the literature

Abstract

In view of the observation of some scholars and policymakers that contemporary international migration and its developmental effects are better understood from a transnational perspective, this paper attempts a systematic review of the impact of the transnational perspective on the relationship between migration and development in the fields of migration studies, population studies, and demography. Based on a study of 666 publications on transnationalism, diaspora, and development derived using keyword searches of the Web of Science database and a more in‐depth review of a subset of 60 influential papers on transnational linkages, the paper discusses five types of transnational linkages—familial, political, economic, sociocultural, and subjective. While the influence of transnationalism has been profound, stimulating an innovative body of work on changing migration patterns, the linkages between diaspora and their homelands, and the impact of these linkages on development, the review also identified significant gaps, namely, the inadequate attention to generating evidence of the developmental impact of transnational migration, particular in the Global South; the lack of consideration for the way diaspora from single homelands is internally differentiated and distributed across multiple transnational social spaces; and the need to identify data sources for more robust quantitative analyses of the multiple linkages between diaspora and development.

Introduction to Handbook on Transnationalism

“…elite, middling and capital-poor subjects) operating within and across national borders (Collins 2009). A quarter of a century after its initial efflorescence, transnationalism studies have moved considerably from the earlier preoccupation, particularly in the US-centric literature, on immigrant ties within homeland-host society relationships to a much broader conception of social ties including transnational connections forged by businesses, the media, politics, religion, family, kinship and all manner of social experience (Levitt and Jaworsky 2007;Tan et al 2018). Used extensively in migration studies in particular, transnationalism has become something of a shorthand, underpinning research in multiple domains including the growing significance of migrant remittances in migration-and-development discourses, studies on dual, multiple and flexible citizenship and sense of belonging, and transnational parenthood, care chains and the social reproduction of the family, to name a few.…”

“…above/below, or micro, meso and macro levels); and identifying multiple transnational actors (e.g. individuals, families, communities and organisations) (Tan et al 2018).…”

Global development, diasporic communities, and civic space

“…Diasporic civic participation then gives voice to social and political concerns “in, between and across specific locations” (Horst, 2018: 1353). This provides an opportunity to acknowledge the importance of race (and racism), politics and feelings of belonging, emotions and spiritualities in shaping diasporic participation in development processes (Fischer, 2018; Gilroy, 1993; Hammond, 2013; Jons et al., 2015; Mercer et al., 2008; Page & Mercer, 2012; Tan et al., 2018; Werbner, 2009; Zou, 2020). These considerations are crucial for thinking about how the changes in civic space more widely, as detailed in Section 3, may shape diasporic engagement in global development.…”

“…The nexus between migration and development, and more specifically the roles and impacts of diasporic communities has been explored at different scales, for example, the nation state, the community and the family. Prevailing discourses of the diaspora‐development nexus attend to the ways in which diasporic communities, who are often presumed to be from the ‘global South’ 2 yet residing in the ‘global North’, can utilise (increasingly entrepreneurial) knowledge, skills and investments to offset historical and contemporary global inequalities (Tan et al., 2018; Trotz & Mullings, 2013). The last 2 decades have also witnessed a changing environment for civic engagement and participation, with civic space 3 often perceived to have narrowed around the world, particularly for more progressive voices and agendas, through myriad processes of delegitimisation, state sanctioned violence and reduced funding (Buyse, 2018).…”

Transnational linkages, power relations and the migration–development nexus: China and its diaspora

“…The migration-development nexus from a transnational perspective Faist (2008) and de Haas (2010) note a shift from optimism associated with remittances and return migration in the 1950s and 1960s, to a pessimism about 'brain drain' in the 1970s and 1980s, then a return to optimism ('brain gain', 'brain circulation') over diaspora's role in promoting transnational flows of financial, social and political resources since the 1990sunderpinned by the neoliberal development agenda (Larner, 2007). This resurgent optimism is coeval with transnationalism's integration into migration studies (Tan et al, 2018). In this context, Glick-Schiller et al (1992a: ix) defined transnationalism as the process through which 'migrants establish social fields that cross geographic, cultural and political borders'.…”