Description
Crossing disciplinary boundaries in migration studies: Are interdisciplinary terminologies and concepts a sensible aspiration... or utopia?Migration studies federate scholars from increasingly diverse disciplines: political scientists, economists and geographers address macro levels, meso- and micro-levels are, for example, explored by psychologists, sociologists or anthropologists. Management and organization scholars contributed more recently with findings related to diversity and migrant inclusion at the workplace. When conducting empirical research or conceptual debates across disciplines, we observe that distinct paradigmatic positions, inconsistent or seemingly discriminatory terminologies can be discouraging, closing the door for deeper collaboration. Taxonomies and jargons and their underlying theoretical assumptions increase the difficulty for “outsiders” to join a discussion. The workshop participants are from multiple disciplines and all have experienced the limitations and benefits of interdisciplinary collaboration in migration studies. They can thereby contribute to a constructive discussion. We suggest focussing on the phenomenon of “work” / “labour” / “occupation” of migrants and internationally mobile individuals. This phenomenon is often interpreted on the basis of underlying disciplinary assumptions and cultural norms of receiving societies, which mostly remain implicit though. Moreover, designations such as “irregular worker” and “global talent” or concepts such as “international career” or “labour market integration” may point to specific ideological lenses or paradigmatic stances. By confronting the participants’ distinct interpretations of a few concepts and terminologies related to migration and “work” in an iterative manner, this workshop attempts to make underlying assumptions explicit. It contributes to an ongoing political and historical deconstruction of terminologies, which might catalyze, as suggested by Favell (2007), a theoretical renewal and nurture inter- / postdisciplinary collaboration.
Period | 9 Jul 2021 |
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Event type | Conference |
Location | Luxembourg, LuxembourgShow on map |
Degree of Recognition | International |