The Role of Language in the Wellbeing of Migrants

East Asian Communities in Germany

Zi Wang

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2022
• ISBN:
  9781000551587
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Emigration & Immigration
• Index: Social Sciences

This book examines the correlations between language behaviour and happiness amongst communities of migrants, and addresses the overarching question of whether language can affect wellbeing.

Zi Wang takes an innovative look at migration and wellbeing by examining the crucial role language – a quintessential part of the international migration experience – plays in migrants' wellbeing. Drawing on case studies from Chinese and Japanese-speaking communities in Germany, as well as secondary survey data on the general migrant population, Wang shows that proficiency in both host country and heritage languages is associated with robust enhancements of migrants' subjective wellbeing. He argues that acquisition of host country language and the preservation and promotion of heritage culture should not be portrayed as a zero-sum game by stakeholders in host societies. Instead, we ought to consider the unique experiences of migrants in order to fully comprehend the ways in which they experience, evaluate, and pursue happiness in a host society.

Presenting a novel approach to the study of migrants' wellbeing, this book will be of interest to scholars and students of area studies, education, international migration, sociology of language, and wellbeing research.

1 Language and migrants’ wellbeingAn overview

DOI: 10.4324/9781003025863-1

Migrants exist in virtually every country and the international migrant population is set for further growth. Whereas in 2000 there were 170 million people who crossed state borders in search of living abroad, the number was 281 million in 2020, constituting more than three percent of the world’s population (De Haas et al. 2019; United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs 2020). However, these figures reflect just the number of people who have actually moved. If we consider migration aspirations, an additional 750 million adults expressed a desire to permanently migrate to a new country if and when they could (Esipova et al. 2018).

A central tenet of migration research is that people migrate in search of a better living (Sagynbekova 2016; Sorensen and Olwig 2002); but what contributes to better livelihood? Since the 2010s, a burgeoning strand of scholarship at the crossroads of migration and wellbeing has begun to empirically examine migrants’ quality of life. To date, extant scholarship has established a plethora of factors thought to influence wellbeing both for migrants and non-migrants alike: Income, health, education, housing, job satisfaction, community relations, leisure time, and crime rate (OECD 2013); marital status (Coombs 1991); religion (Snoep 2008); political participation (Lange and Pacheco 2010); democratic governance (Frey and Stutzer 2002); and environmental sustainability (Corral-Verdugo et al. 2011). Furthermore, in the past decade, major reports by international organisations have also contributed to policy discussions and the pertinence of the specific issue of migrant wellbeing, notably publications such as the 2013 World Migration Report on migrant wellbeing and development (IOM 2013) and the 2018 World Happiness Report on the happiness of migrants (Helliwell et al. 2018).

Taken as a whole, the most recent research of the state of the art in migration and wellbeing/quality of life offers the following broad findings when the aggregation of the aforementioned factors is considered:¹

• The level of socio-economic development affects migrants’ quality of life: Those moving from the global South to the global North reported higher levels of change in quality of life than those moving within the global South.
• The level of freedom of choice affects migrants’ wellbeing: Migrants tend to be more satisfied with life in host societies that offer higher levels of personal freedom of choice and expression in political, religious, and cultural spheres.
• The level of host society happiness affects migrants’ happiness: If a host society is already very happy, newly arrived migrants tend to experience increased happiness.

Out of the many factors examined, one factor has rarely been thematised in empirical research on migrant wellbeing: Language. Yet, for people who cross state and linguistic borders, the factor of language is a quintessential experience in their migration trajectory. In particular, the act of acquiring the (dominant) language in the new host society and simultaneously maintaining migrants’ native/heritage tongues is an experience peculiar to most international migrants. In this sense, it is apt to ask if, and how, this language experience that migrants face affects their wellbeing. For instance, it is possible that overcoming the barrier of host country language leads to more active participation in host society life, or being able to maintain their own languages helps preserve identities and transnational familial and professional connections. Moreover, as mentioned above, the extent to which a society accords free choice in economic, political, and social life is positively associated with people’s happiness and life satisfaction (Frey and Stutzer 2002; Inglehart 2018). For migrant minorities, having the freedom, support, and ability to both master the new host country language and keep their heritage tongue in their newfound home should also constitute important aspects of free choice and self-expression. Despite its prevalence in the international migration experience, how (or if) language as a factor impacts migrants’ wellbeing is largely neglected in the burgeoning scholarship on migration and subjective wellbeing. This book’s objective is to examine the intersection of migration, language, and wellbeing by addressing the big, overarching question: How does language affect migrants’ wellbeing?

1.1 Multiple dimensions of subjective wellbeing

Theoretically, there is no standard definition as to what should constitute wellbeing as understood in a subjective sense. Extant literature does, however, converge upon a consensus as to what this should entail viz. multiple dimensions to capture the full range of subjective feelings of wellbeing (Ewers et al. 2020; Michaelson et al. 2009; Stiglitz et al. 2009; Veenhoven 2012). Hence, in this book, the term ‘wellbeing’ is used as an umbrella term which covers different dimensions: Affective wellbeing (happiness, emotions, moods), cognitive wellbeing (satisfaction with life), and eudaimonic wellbeing (sense of good life; purpose and meaning in life). I argue that this is more encompassing than simply using terms such as life satisfaction and/or happiness.² Moreover, as later chapters will show, language (and for that matter any factor) affects different dimensions of wellbeing to different extents.

1.2 The migration context

Since there is no legal definition of ‘migrant’ under international law, this task is taken up by different stakeholders. International and multilateral organisations provide a rather uniform understanding of who should be considered a migrant: A person who moves away from his/her usual place of residence, either within or across international borders, temporarily (for at least a year) or permanently, due to various motives (IOM 2019). Note that this book’s focus is on international migration, as this represents more common cases of crossing linguistic borders and the ensuing language experience discussed above. In addition, the emphasis here is on movement by choice; hence specific categories of forcibly displaced people, such as refugees, do not fall under the definition of ‘migrants’ (UNHCR 2019), insofar as objectives of this book are concerned. Seen in this light, the first group of research subjects who are of direct concern of this study are the so-called first-generation migrants who have themselves moved. For the purpose of this study, data collection and analyses also involved a second group of people who may not or do not consider themselves ‘migrants’, but who come from families with migration backgrounds, i.e., second-generation local-born but with migrant parentage. For the sake of simplicity and flow in writing, both first-generation migrants and second-generation residents are collectively referred to as migrants in this book (see Chapter Three). They will be referred to separately as and when the need arises from the analyses.

The host society context discussed in this book is set in Germany. Based on the aforementioned understanding of migration and who qualifies as a migrant in the context of this volume, Germany hosts the highest number of first- and second-generation migrants among European Union (EU) member states (OECD 2014). In terms of the proportion of migrants within the population, approximately a quarter of residents in today’s Germany fall into this category of migrants (Federal Agency for Civic Education 2020). Among younger residents of age five and below, this percentage is even higher, at more than 40 percent in 2019 (Federal Agency for Civic Education 2020). In spite of current migration dynamics and growing trends, the German migration landscape still remains relatively understudied in English-language scholarship, especially on wellbeing-related themes. So, too, are the two specific East Asian migrant groups discussed in this book: Chinese- and Japanese-speaking communities. They have an established settlement history in Germany, with initial community-building efforts stretching back a long time (more than 100 years in the case of the Chinese-speaking groups, and more than 60 years in the Japanese case). Given such established histories, these two groups experienced multiple waves of migration to Germany with vibrant dynamics and a strong presence in several regional centres throughout the country (see Chapter Four). By focusing on these two East Asian migrant communities, this volume makes two additional contributions. First, it contributes to the general migration research scholarship on East Asian diasporas in Germany by putting these two communities on the research agenda. The hitherto understudied nature of East Asian migration does not correspond to their established history of settlement and vibrant community dynamics in Germany and many continental European countries.

Second, focusing on these two East Asian communities also helps to address the question of whether the dimensions of wellbeing mentioned in Section 1.1 are concepts and aspirations that can be applied across cultural boundaries. We know, for example, that what are common questions and research topics on happiness and satisfaction with life in European and North American social surveys are usually absent in East Asian survey instruments (see Chapter Four). How do people from East Asia or socialised in an East Asian culture think about wellbeing in life? Findings of this book reveal that many subjective wellbeing dimensions do resonate among Chinese- and Japanese-speaking communities. This represents one step in the broader contribution to research on migrants’ subjective wellbeing by adding East Asian experiences to extant discussions.

1.3 A brief word on methods and findings

This book investigates correlations between language (host country and heritage language use and skills) and migrants’ wellbeing using a mixed-method approach. A custom-designed survey instrument was administered to participants from the two migrant speech communities, the results of which were used in a series of quantitative analyses (regression, analysis of variance, etc., see Chapter Three). In-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and observations of community activities provided data for qualitative analysis that supplemented the quantitative results. Key findings are reported both in text form and in figures, the latter of which has the ability to show data in vivid forms. Based on the series of findings, this book advances the argument that language contributes to migrants’ subjective wellbeing in host societies. Both host country and heritage languages contribute to wellbeing, but effects vary and different demographic control variables (age, education level, and country of origin) also exert an effect. The general correlations between language and migrants’ wellbeing, however, do stand after having considered effects of control variables. Further analyses based on secondary data from the German Socio-economic Panel (SOEP) showed that correlations between language and wellbeing as established in this book not only apply to the two East Asian migrant groups, but also to the general migrant population in Germany. This therefore points to a direction of potential future research.

Understanding such dynamics of migrant wellbeing is important for further research and policy on multiculturalism, as well as on measuring social progress beyond economic terms for different social groups (such as migrant populations). While the importance of host country language skills for migrants’ active participation in the host society is widely (and rightly) acknowledged and support schemes are available, discussions on cultural and identity traits (i.e., heritage languages) of migrant minorities are often marginalised from mainstream rhetoric (Shin 2018). But what if they matter to the happiness and wellbeing of the minorities, and at the same time contribute to their more active participation in the host society? As paradoxical as it sounds, data presented in this book reveal that promoting better transmission and maintenance of migrants’ languages – a central tenet of one’s culture, heritage and identity – not only improves wellbeing, but could also enhance integration and an active life in the host society (Chapters Six and Seven). The key here, then, is to support migrants’ host country language acquisition while recognising the added benefits of heritage language maintenance and encouraging migrants and their offspring to do so. In other words, insofar as migrants’ wellbeing is concerned, integration policies and ideologies, as well as educational practices should not imply a zero-sum game between the host country and heritage languages, cultures, and identities.

1.4 Organisation of the book

Before examining migrants’ language use and its wellbeing effects, it is instructive to understand the underlying problem faced by minorities. In a world system dominated by nation states, we are used to the ‘one nation one language’ dogma whereby it is often implied that one standard and common language (or a few specifically defined ones) make(s) the nation. I start Chapter Two by showing the salience of language in nation states in contemporary societies. I then move to show that social realities are, of course, more complex, since linguistic and cultural minorities exist within virtually every state border. Many European countries, for instance, have myriads of minority populations – either indigenous or those stemming from newer immigration – within their borders. Today, in public domains, it is not uncommon to see states protecting, and at times even promoting, the use of selected minority languages. I ask the question: What is the basis for such multilingualism in the public domain and for whom is it meant? I address this by first presenting the ways in which questions of language and rights are anchored in international documents as part of the broader human rights framework. Next, I show that, insofar as Europe is concerned, institutional instruments (notably the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages) are in place and countries subscribed to them have implemented measures to ensure the language rights of minorities. By way of example, I present and discuss the nature and extent to which Germany (the main focus of this book) accorded language rights to minority groups. However, this does not imply that all minorities’ languages are protected and promoted – international migrant minorities are a case in...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Endorsements
• Half-Title
• Series
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• List of figures
• List of tables
• Acknowledgement
• Foreword
• 1 Language and migrants’ wellbeing: An overview
• 2 Language, nation states, and minorities
• 3 Migration-induced diversity and a framework to study language and wellbeing of migrants
• 4 Europe’s top migrant destination and two dynamic Asian communities
• 5 Effects of host country language skills on migrants’ wellbeing
• 6 Effects of heritage language skills on migrants’ wellbeing
• 7 Heritage language maintenance in educational contexts: The role of community-based heritage educational organisations
• 8 Language ideologies in current policies: Issues and benefits of mainstreaming migrant multilingualism
• 9 Epilogue: Migration and wellbeing from the language perspective
• Annex: Full regression magnitude tables
• Index