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25 - Work and Family among Immigrants

from Part V - Cultures within Cultures

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2018

Kristen M. Shockley
Affiliation:
University of Georgia
Winny Shen
Affiliation:
University of Waterloo, Ontario
Ryan C. Johnson
Affiliation:
Ohio University
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Summary

The decision to immigrate from one country to another often involves considerations about work and family.  Despite this and the reality that over 200 million individuals migrate globally, the work and family literature is largely silent about immigrants. This chapter seeks to motivate systematic research on immigrants’ work and family experiences. The chapter opens by characterizing global patterns of international migration, and emphasizing that immigrants are a meaningful segment of the labor force in developed countries like the United States. It then illustrates how immigrants’ work and family experiences are shaped by the laws governing legal entrance into a host country. The main body summarizes what is known about immigrants’ work and family experiences. Finally, a theoretically-informed conceptual framework is outlined and a high priority research agenda is described for advancing understanding of immigrants’ work and family experiences and for designing solutions that benefit immigrants, their families, and employers.
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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2018

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