Identities and integration in the context of ethnic migration

A longitudinal, multi-pronged approach to studying Ingrian-Finnish migrants

Abstrakti

This paper presents some of the key results of the INPRES (“Intervening at the pre-migration stage: Providing tools for promoting integration and adaptation”) research project concerning identity and integration of Ingrian Finns migrating from Russia to Finland. Conducted at the University of Helsinki between 2008 and 2011, the aim of the research project was to investigate the factors involved in these migrants’ integration processes over the course of the migration process, starting before they move to Finland. The project also aimed to provide researchbased tools to promote integration and positive intergroup relations. In this paper, we discuss our findings that concern the complexity of identities and how they are constructed and change based on context. The role of identities in the formation of acculturation orientations, and anticipated and actual intergroup relations are also discussed. The results presented are derived from our most recent INPRES publications and ongoing work.