Aspirational Migration and Cultural Entrepreneurship: Taiwanese Immigrants in Austria

• In Event: International Migration Section Refereed Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): 20. Cosmopolitan migration

Abstract

Applying C. Wright Mill’s notion of vocabularies of motive, this paper examines Taiwanese immigrants’ interpretations of their migration movies to Austria in order to identity major migration patterns. The findings are based on 22 in-depth interviews and over 100 hours of ethnographic observations within the Taiwanese immigrant community in Austria. The study shows that advanced professional music training and the pursuit of a European lifestyle are the two major factors motivating initial emigration. By converting ethnic cultural capital into economic capital in various ways, migrants strategically engage in cultural entrepreneurship to achieve long-term settlement in Austria.

Author

• Chien-Juh Gu, Western Michigan University