The Paradigm of Chain Migration – Verifiable Concept or Metaphorical Reference Point in Migration Research?

Definition und Konzept der Kettenwanderung

Abstract

Since the concept of chain migration had been introduced into scholarly research on migration and ethnicity some forty years ago, it has become an enormously popular and widely used explanation for migration, community formation, and cultural change. Due to its appeal, it became a metaphor and then a paradigm, thus eluding verification. In this article, chain migration was brought back onto a conceptual level that allowed for testing its validity and scope against a whole variety and combination of methods and sources in respect of nineteenth century transatlantic migration. Applied to an entire migrant population, chain migration, however visible, is shown to have a lesser range and a more narrow impact on migration processes than previously thought.