Modern population movements are dramatically different from those of last century, and traditional perceptions and paradigms of international migration must be revisited to understand the reality of migration in the 21st century. CReAM research in this direction focuses on the understanding of population movements by considering current and future forms of international migrations, their relationship to migrants’ behaviour, and how these relate to other fundamental changes in the international economy such as globalisation and new forms of technology and communication.

Past and current research questions include: How do immigrants form their migration and re-migration plans, and how do these react to economic shocks, and interact with adaptation and integration? How are return plans of migrants affected by the learning of skills and development of social links which are specific to the country to which they migrate? How do return plans affect integration and education of immigrants’ children?

Migration affects not only those who move, but also those they leave behind in their home countries and those they join in their host country. We seek to enhance our understanding of the effects of population movement in a globalised economy on both these destination and source countries. Of interest are the skills migrants bring to an economy and how native populations are affected by migration, as well as the direct fiscal impacts on government budgets through taxes paid and pressures imposed on public services.

Past and current research questions include: What are the effects of migration on European labour markets, and in particular on wages and employment? What are the exact mechanisms by which immigration affects employment and wages of native workers, and which workers are affected? Can we empirically distinguish between long-term and short-term effects of immigration? How does emigration affect those left behind in the origin countries? To what extent are the labour inputs of immigrants and non-immigrants with similar skills and education levels comparable? How do labour markets in receiving countries adapt to immigration through adjustment of technology and industry structures? What is the fiscal contribution of migrants to their destination country’s budget?

Research in this area focuses on the processes of integration and exclusion of immigrants, their economic and social adaptation, and how this relates to immigrants’ socio-economic characteristics and features of their immediate environment. Research investigates these issues in the context of decisions made over migrants’ life-cycles and across generations.

Past and current research questions include: How is immigrants’ social and economic adaptation and integration related to their individual characteristics? How do ethnic enclaves affect this process? What is the role of language? What is the rate of upward and downward intergenerational mobility of immigrants, and how do patterns compare to those of natives, and vary between countries? Are there differences between natives and immigrants in the evolution of employment and wages and their response to the economic cycle? What are the mechanisms that determine the differences in the adaptation and labour market performance of female and male immigrants?