Push and pull
It has now been a year since I decided to leave Karlstad and move to Oslo. I've said that I followed an impulse, which is not too far from the truth.
But it's not the whole truth, of course. Years ago, I learned about the "push and pull"-theory, when it comes to migration. Thinking about this theory today, I realized that it could be used to explain my migration from Sweden to Norway.
When millions of Europeans left Europe for America in the late 19th and early 20th century, some of the push factors were: poverty, religious oppression and lack of opportunities. Some pull factors were: free land for newcomers, religious freedom, and opportunities. The immigrants came in search of the American dream: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
When thousands of Finns (among them my paternal grandparents) left Finland for Sweden in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s they had their reasons. The reasons my grandparents have mentioned are: a currency without value and lack of decent housing in Helsinki, when they left in 1956. These were their push factors. In Sweden at that time, there were plenty of jobs and supposedly, better housing (which was not entirely true: my grandparents had to live in barracks for years). Also, my grandmother's parents already lived in Stockholm.
So, what about me? By October, 2005 (one year ago) I had been working for one and a half year as a telephone interviewer at a company called Norstat. I was working part-time (at best, 24 hours/week at that time), and I had been looking for other jobs, but I didn't find any. I was getting tired by the whole situation. This was my push factor.
I knew that a lot of Swedes were (are) working in Oslo, and by October, last year, I decided that I should leave. I decided, that I would leave Sweden before 1 March 2006, and so, I left 6 February 2006. The reasons for me to move were simple: more jobs and better pay. This was my "pull".
Of course, human action cannot only be explained by theories, since human beings got a free will, but in my case, the push and pull-theory seems to have some points.
But it's not the whole truth, of course. Years ago, I learned about the "push and pull"-theory, when it comes to migration. Thinking about this theory today, I realized that it could be used to explain my migration from Sweden to Norway.
When millions of Europeans left Europe for America in the late 19th and early 20th century, some of the push factors were: poverty, religious oppression and lack of opportunities. Some pull factors were: free land for newcomers, religious freedom, and opportunities. The immigrants came in search of the American dream: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
When thousands of Finns (among them my paternal grandparents) left Finland for Sweden in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s they had their reasons. The reasons my grandparents have mentioned are: a currency without value and lack of decent housing in Helsinki, when they left in 1956. These were their push factors. In Sweden at that time, there were plenty of jobs and supposedly, better housing (which was not entirely true: my grandparents had to live in barracks for years). Also, my grandmother's parents already lived in Stockholm.
So, what about me? By October, 2005 (one year ago) I had been working for one and a half year as a telephone interviewer at a company called Norstat. I was working part-time (at best, 24 hours/week at that time), and I had been looking for other jobs, but I didn't find any. I was getting tired by the whole situation. This was my push factor.
I knew that a lot of Swedes were (are) working in Oslo, and by October, last year, I decided that I should leave. I decided, that I would leave Sweden before 1 March 2006, and so, I left 6 February 2006. The reasons for me to move were simple: more jobs and better pay. This was my "pull".
Of course, human action cannot only be explained by theories, since human beings got a free will, but in my case, the push and pull-theory seems to have some points.
Labels: America, Europe, immigrants, Karlstad, Oslo
posted by Johan R. Sjöberg at 3:40 PM
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