High Mobility of Polish Women: The Ethnographic Inquiry of Barcelona

This article analyses migration narratives of a small group of Polish female “repeat migrants” currently residing in Barcelona. Before settling there they lived in at least three other countries. I argue that repeat migrants experience many challenges: learning multiple languages, integrating into m...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International migration 2014-02, Vol.52 (1), p.130-145
Main Author: Main, Izabella
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Barcelona, Spain
Cultural adaptation
Ethnography
Expatriates
Females
Immigrants
Labor Migration
Labour market
Markets
Migrants
Migration
Mobility
Narratives
Poland
Social Integration
Social networks
Sociocultural Factors
Spain
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Summary:This article analyses migration narratives of a small group of Polish female “repeat migrants” currently residing in Barcelona. Before settling there they lived in at least three other countries. I argue that repeat migrants experience many challenges: learning multiple languages, integrating into multiple labour markets, building multiple social networks, and adapting to cultural contexts. I asked whether these challenges have resulted in increased integration in the host societies or integration into international expatriate communities. The main findings are that the two main subgroups were 1) women who adapted well to life in Barcelona because of their Catalan partners and 2) women with international partners who tended to live in clusters of internationals. Polish immigrant women in my fieldwork perceived themselves as outsiders unless they quickly learned Spanish and Catalan. I also argue that the availability of different kinds of Urry's mobilities might influence and facilitate decisions on becoming more mobile.
ISSN:0020-7985
1468-2435
DOI:10.1111/imig.12119