CONFERENCEReasons and attractions: geographical mobility of young people
Girts Burgmanis
University of Latvia
Elina Apsite-Berina
University of Latvia
DOI: 10.22364/fg.15.18
Keywords: youth migration, migration motives, migration destinations
Abstract
Latvian youth migration is a very important topic, as it contributes to the depopulation processes that take place in the country. Young people aged 16 to 25 were surveyed in 2012 and 2014 in the top five destination countries – the UK, Ireland, Germany, Norway and Sweden. Online data collection made it possible to survey 5267 respondents in total, with 1676 of these respondents being in the target group. This article examines push and pull factors taken into consideration when making the decision to migrate. The first wave of the survey largely concerns economic crisis migrants, and the most recent wave represents emigrants in their destination countries after the crisis. Data analysis displays several interesting trends: unemployment is decreasing as a main push factor, but a desire to work in better conditions and experience higher career prospects – especially in Germany – is more frequently mentioned. Established families are relevant mostly to emigrants in countries with wider social networks like the UK and Ireland. Interestingly, previous economic motivations have been replaced to some degree with adventure-seeking the desire to gain new experiences. For Latvia, a country with a high risk of depopulation, it would be most valuable to try and attract these young people back to Latvia, and benefit from the international experience they have gained abroad.