Publications
Recent theoretical developments on migration decision-making
This paper presents recent theoretical and methodological developments relating to the trajectories, temporalities and dynamics of decision-making in migration, especially in the context of migration processes within and beyond the Global South. The conceptual framework lays the basis of empirical research on diverse migrations in selected African countries and their European diasporas.
Innovative methods for studying migration dynamics: Insights from the DYNAMIG project
This report presents methodological insights from the DYNAMIG project, which studies migration decision-making as a dynamic and evolving process rather than a one-off choice. Gender mainstreaming is essential. Gender norms and inequalities shape migration aspirations and constraints and affect who can be reached by different research methods. Social media advertising enables fast, scalable recruitment for survey experiments in the Global South, but systematically produces gender and access biases that require active correction and monitoring. Elite conjoint survey experiments provide structured and rare evidence on how policymakers and experts understand migration drivers and policy levers, complementing migrant-focused data. Digital diaries capture migration decision-making as it unfolds over time, revealing shifts in aspirations, emotions, and information that retrospective approaches miss. Visual elicitation tools, such as the Blob Bridge, help access affective and relational dimensions of migration that are difficult to verbalize through standard interviews. Overall, the report shows that migration research benefits from combining complementary methods within designs that are context-sensitive, ethically grounded, especially if researchers are aware of and appropriately deal with their limits.
Migration Decision Making and Heterogeneities, Infrastructures and Trajectories of African Migrations
This report examines migrant decision-making processes among African populations through a comparative, multi-sited qualitative study conducted in Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, and diasporas in Italy and the UK. Drawing on 179 semi-structured interviews and 18 longitudinal digital diaries collected between 2023 and 2024, it reveals migration aspirations, planning and trajectories as iterative and contextually contingent, rather than linear or predetermined. Analysis demonstrates significant heterogeneity in decision-making stages - from non-migration and aspiration to preparation, transit, settlement, and return - with participants frequently oscillating between these positions amid evolving personal circumstances, social networks and structural constraints. Legal statuses varied widely, encompassing internal migrants, regional movers, refugees, long-term European residents, returnees, and users of regular/irregular pathways.
The three stages of the pre-migration journey: Insights from digital diaries
Necla Acik reflects on her experience with digital diaries, where she followed 18 individuals over half a year to explore how migration decisions take shape. The diaries reveal that migration begins long before departure, unfolding as a pre-migration ‘journey’ with three key stages. Understanding this process is essential to ensuring safe migration pathways.
Emerging insights from our work in Kenya, Morocco and Nigeria
Omololá Olárìndé and Necla Acik share some of the emerging findings of our research, focusing on social media and gender, and reflect on what they take away from the workshops in Ilara-Mokin, Nairobi and Rabat.
Conceptual framework: Report of synthesis of recent theoretical developments
This paper looks at recent discussions and trends on African migration, and reviews recent theoretical and methodological developments on migration decision-making within and beyond Africa. By doing so, it seeks to better understand the decision-making process of heterogeneous groups of aspiring migrants at different stages in their potential and actual journeys.