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Based on interviews with women who were professionals in different fields in Nigeria prior to migrating, The Migration of Professional Women from Nigeria to the UK examines the ways in which professional, middle-class women make sense of their lived experiences, their roles in migration decision-making and their experiences of adaptation in the UK. Drawing on the thought of Mead on the symbolic reconstruction of the past from the standpoint of the present, and employing a feminist approach to qualitative research, the book considers the reflexive construction of women's narratives concerning their lived experiences in Nigeria and sheds light on their decisions to migrate. Using intersectionality and critiquing the concept of "Strong Black Woman", the author analyses participants' narratives of integration, adaptation, and work and family life in the UK. Rejecting the notion of "culture shock" as a means of explaining immigrants' early experiences, the use of a "person-by-situation" approach is proposed to accommodate the nuances of individual narratives.
A rich, theoretically informed study of the narratives of skilled migrants, whose experiences are often subsumed into studies of "African" migration more broadly, this volume will appeal to scholars of sociology, anthropology and cultural geography with interests in migration, gender and the sociology of work and family life.
List of contents
1. Introduction 2. Nigerian Women in Context: (Re)Telling (Her) Story 3. My Journey into the Research Field: Methodological Choices and the Research Process 4. Reconstructing the Past from the Present: Participants' Lived Experiences in Nigeria 5. Migration Decision Making: Linking Possible Selves to Imagined Futures 6. You're "On Your Own" (O Y O): Negotiating Early Days Experiences and Integration in the UK 7. Working, Wife-ing and Mothering in the UK: Trajectories of Life Changing Experiences 8. Conclusion
Summary
Based on interviews with women who were professionals in different fields before migrating, this book explores Nigerian women's narratives of immigration, examining the ways in which middle-class women make sense of their lived experiences, their roles in migration decision-making and their experiences of adaptation to life in the UK.
