Doctoral Dissertation Research: Migration and Universalism in Social Democracies

Indiana University, Bloomington IN

Investigators

Abstract

------------------------------ ABSTRACT FOR 1519228 The social democratic states of Northern Europe are characterized by a universalistic welfare system, which guarantees basic living standards for everyone. Although these countries have historically had little diversity, recently they have experienced significant demographic change through international migration. The incorporation of diverse immigrant groups into Nordic societies presents a number of interesting challenges for the principle of universalism. This project, which trains a graduate student to conduct rigorous social scientific research in the areas of international migration and political sociology, analyzes the forces that have created universalist social democracies that are strikingly different from those of the past. Moreover, it investigates whether increased migration has undermined universalism. The dissertation project will investigate country-to-country trends in international migration and some consequences of these trends in three steps. First, the research uses quantitative panel techniques on an extended sample representing all welfare state types to test whether migration follows a welfare magnet pattern, where migrants are disproportionately drawn to the generous welfare institutions of the Nordic social democracies, as some researchers have suggested. Second, the project offers a contemporary approach to international migration by tracing the institutional and social influences on migration flows within a context of increased global connectedness, going beyond conventional macro-structural explanations. In particular, the study considers destination countries' ties and commitment to an international society that seeks to aid refugees. It also considers social connectedness and exchange factors, like the sending of remittance monies and the increased use of communication technologies in an understudied context - migrants' origin countries. Third, the study turns to multilevel quantitative analyses of individual-level survey data to examine whether increasing migration levels and diversity in a region or country are associated with a decline in individual social trust and support for state welfare programs.