engleski

Migration motives of university students: An empirical research

The main aim of the paper is to analyze the factors affecting migration decisions of young people. Two scales were developed for measuring the perception of importance of these factors, i.e. the list of emigration factors and the list of stay factors. The data used in the investigation were collected by a survey of the opinions and attitudes of the students in Osijek in July 2010. The paper also analyzes psychometric properties of the scales, i.e. their content validity, dimensionality and reliability. Results of confirmatory factor analysis undoubtedly indicate that both scales are multidimensional constructs. A combination of the results of t-tests for an independent sample, factor analysis (exploratory and confirmatory) and reliability analysis suggests that emigration and stay factors are two sides of the same migration decision, and that they can be classified into several factors: economic situation, social networks, insider advantages (that can be divided into inherited amenities and public-safety conditions) and a wealth of possibilities. Depending on the power in the initial and target destination, the factors can function as push or pull factors. The results of the study show that only social networks have demonstrated the pull effect for the city of Osijek. The other factors, especially the economic ones, have demonstrated the push effect. Understanding the factors affecting the migration decision of young people contributes to deeper understanding of the migration itself, and it can also become an important parameter for place management.

migration decision; university students; stay factors; emigration factors

Article first published online: 23 DEC 2012.