The Role of Information in Contemporary Migration. More Sources but Less Informed

Abstract

Contemporary international migration is embedded in a process of global interconnection defined by the transport and information and communication technologies revolutions. One of the consequences of this global interconnection is that migrants have more capacity to process information both before and after departure. These changes could have unexpected implications for contemporary migration as regards: migrants ability to make more informed decisions, the reduction of uncertainty in migration contexts, the blurring of the concept of distance, or the decision to migrate to more distant places. This research is important as the lack of knowledge concerning this issue could be contributing to the increasing gap between migration policy goals and outcomes. The role that information agents play in migration contexts may also be changing. In that scenario, migration policies to become more effective should take into consideration the greater capacity of migrants to process information and which information sources are relied upon.