The Contradictory Immigrant Problem: A Sociopsychological Analysis

The author reconstitutes the immigration drama as a process of interdependent events starting in the country of origin and continuing in the host country with the participation of several social actors. Their behavior is motivated not only by the objective events but by their subjective perception and sometimes by unrealistic anticipations. Using a multifaceted psychological and sociological analysis the author reveals the overt and the hidden mechanisms of individual and group behavior in the migration drama. He creates a model in which the contradictory and often apparently illogical behaviors and attitudes of the social actors begin to make sense.