Belonging in monthly installments

Abstract

In this thesis, I explore the unexpected tendency among adult children of immigrants to send remittances to their parents’ countries of origin, even in instances where they have had limited contact with that country. I propose an explanation that depends on socialization by parents and communities who I argue, are responsible for helping to create an “imagined community” to which the subjects of the study perceive themselves belonging. Using Levitt and Glick Schiller’s understanding of ‘ways of belonging’ as it relates to transnational activity, I assert that remittances represent an attempt to put the sense of belonging that children of immigrants experience as a result of their socialization into action. My findings indicate that socialization factors, as well as variables from two other hypotheses, are all relevant in determining whether or not respondents in the dataset chose to send money home. I conclude by recommending future avenues for research into remittance behavior by non-first-generation migrants and its implications for future interaction with settled immigrant families in receiving countries.