Chinese Assimilation in Zambia: Testing Migration Theories in the Global South

• In Event: 3251 - Section on International Migration Refereed Roundtables (1 hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: 6. Drivers and Dynamics of Migration

Abstract

South-South migration has replaced traditional migration routes to become the mainstream migration direction of the world. Yet so little is known about this new migration pattern. Neither do we know how well the migration scholarship—based on migration to North American and Europe—can explain migrants to the South. The recent immigration from China to Africa is a great opportunity to study this phenomenon. Based on a pioneering survey of 624 Chinese immigrants in Zambia, this study tests the application of the assimilation theory to this diaspora. Statistical results show that Chinese with higher English language skills report higher levels of assimilation, but those with local Zambian language skills do not report a higher tendency of assimilation. Education is positively correlated with assimilation, as predicted by the assimilation theory, but ownership of a company, considered an indicator of income, does not predict assimilation. This study shows that while two commonly accepted indicators of assimilation theory apply to Chinese immigration in Zambia, the third indicator has failed. This research probes for further study on migration to the south to seek further understanding of this new phenomenon and has the potential to extend and change migration theories.

Author

• Yao Lu, University of California-Davis