Why Migrate? An Analysis of the Drivers of Internal Migration

Abstract

In this paper the authors analyze essential drivers of migration/immigration through examining movements intrinsically connected to the social and cultural context of Brazil. The research is based on interviews of migrants from Northeast Brazil who live in the region of Inhumas, Goiás state and is interpreted with insights drawn from the literature on migration. Three different moments of migration are detected: the importance of migration as a historical process; economic motivations for leaving one’s place of origin; and the migrants’ affective justifications. The latter is shown to be linked to kinship or family ties and to be the most relevant motivation for migrating.