Expatriates Versus Immigrants: a Comparative Study of Second-generation Egyptians in Qatar and the United States
Year: 2013
Type: dissertation
Abstract: Academics have extensively studied the life trajectories of second-generation immigrants.Various research studies have explored their identity-negotiation processes by looking at their degree of assimilation and acculturation into their host countries and their transnational connections to their home countries.However, there is a dearth of literature on how children of expatriates handle their identity negotiation processes.Relying on open-ended interviews, the research question that this thesis addresses is the following: how can we explain the differences and similarities in identity negotiations that arise between second-generation Egyptian immigrants in the U.S. and second-generation Egyptian expatriates in Qatar?The main similarity that arises between the identity negotiation processes of Egyptians in Qatar and Egyptians in the U.S. is that both groups negotiate the 'identities' around them while getting involved in various "transnational practices" in the context they operate.Respondents were raised in highly "transnationalized" environments in their communities, which subsequently served as pretexts to respondents' decisions to "engage" in further "transnational practices."And finally, I would like to thank my family and friends, for being my constant source of support throughout the past two years.I want to thank them for being engaged in my research and for challenging my arguments and pushing me to go deeper in my research.This thesis is dedicated to my parents, my siblings, my niece, my grandmother, and to my entire family in Egypt that impatiently awaits our return to the homeland.
Author: Nada Soudy
Language: English
Subfield: Demography
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W803449237