On March 2, 2026, the Institute for Forecasting hosted a public lecture on Social Norms and Migration, in which researcher Ralitza Dimova (University of Manchester) presented her research based on large-scale survey evidence from Ethiopia and Nigeria. The aim of the research was to examine the association between social and personal norms related to migration and migration aspirations, as well as self-assessed migration probability, among young adults. The study offers a valuable micro-level perspective on migration experience and sheds light on evolving social dynamics shaped by gender, culture, and mobility.
Key research findings are as follows:
- Migration aspirations are strongly shaped by social and personal norms.
- Persistent gender differences influence migration preferences: male migration is generally favoured over female migration, particularly where migrant networks are weak and young people face pressure to marry.
- While some families maintain traditional expectations, others actively reconstruct their gender identities in response to the new social environment.
The discussion was enriched by insightful comments from discussant Rizza Kaye Cases of the Institute of Sociology, Slovak Academy of Sciences.
The working paper co-authored by Ralizta Dimova and Hanna Fromell can be downloaded HERE.
Thank you to all participants for contributing to an engaging public lecture.
The research is part of the Horizon project PACES: Making migration and migration policy decisions amidst societal transformations, in which the Institute for Forecasting SAS participates as a research partner. More about the PACES project can be found HERE.
