Discuss the Factors Which Influence a Person’s Migrability
An individual’s migratability refers to how likely, or the probability they are to migrate. There are a few prominent factors that influence this decision.
One main factor is that of distance. Ravenstein’s distance-decay law states that as the destination country’s distance from the home country increases, the less likely someone will migrate due to unfamiliarity of a completely foreign environment, culture, way of life and even problems of assimilation and psychic costs. research has proven that over half of immigrants in America come from neighboring Mexico which is only a 3000 km long border away, while minorities of Mexican migrants go further than that. This shows how distance-decay theory is a main influence on destination of migration, and whether they will even migrate. The nearer the destination, the lesser the emotional costs and thus the more likely migration will occur.
Another strong factor is the extent of difference in culture and way of life in the destination country compared to the home country. few choose to migrate to countries like Japan where probability of acculturation and even integration is unlikely, as the Japanese have their own unique way of thinking that is alien to much of the world or even strange. In events where such a high level of difficulty of connecting with the local populace is involved, it is less likely that one will choose to uproot and take on such a challenge in a foreign territory. One famous case is the world-renowned journalist and writer Pico Iyer, but few others like him exist.
Another main factor that affects the decision to migrate would be the extent of attractiveness of pull factors in the host country coupled with that of the push factors from the home country. In India, Mumbai, Chennai, New Delhi and many other cities, the richest and most well-educated young people are leaving the country in greater numbers. The push factors of pollution is severe where our pollution is above that of official guidelines. Meanwhile the prospect of a high-paying job as an engineer or otherwise in a suburb or city in USA, UK like London or New York is alluring. When there is such a stark contrast in standard of living in the host country, it is not unusual for people to make the choice to migrate for the sake for career prospects and long-term prosperity. If the contrasts are not as stark, then they may not have as much incentive to make such a drastic change in their lives.
