Theories of Migration

Migration, population shifts and flights from natural disaster have been known since the dawn of history, yet have only been rigorously studied in modern times. Are contemporary scholars of migration capable of evolving a single comprehensive theory which accounts for the diverse causes and implications of migration? In Theories of Migration, Robin Cohen has brought together a substantive body of scholarship from many disciplines and schools of thought which addresses the failure to produce one satisfactory general theory of migration. Attempts to construct a theory of migration have been constrained by the considerable variety of migrations which have to be considered - professional and unskilled, compelled and voluntary, settler and temporary, internal and international, and finally, illegal and legal. Perspectives arising from all the major social science disciplines are represented in this volume which features over 25 articles originally published in a wide array of professional disciplines. Theories of Migration shows that some important advances have been made across disciplines to create the building blocks of a theory which encompasses the many different forms of human migrations found in recorded history.