Challenges in Lifestyle Migration Research: Reflections and Findings about the Spanish Crisis

The lifestyle migration conceptual framework is based on the motivation for moving reported by the migrants themselves. We discuss the operability of this approach, which is built on the subjective assessments of individuals. It diminishes the actual importance of economic factors and has an underlying ideological element associated with the categorisation of people according to their nationality. A comparative analysis of residential variations by nationalities between 2005 and 2010 in Alicante (Spain) shows that, when faced with the economic crisis, the so-called lifestyle migrants are changing their mobility patterns in a way similar to the rest of the migrants. This calls into question the adequacy of juxtaposing lifestyle and labour migration. Both theory and research show that this duality, instead of clarifying applied research, makes it more difficult. We argue that the lifestyle migration framework is inadequate to study changes in mobility patterns, particularly when using a quantitative approach.

Transnationality and Social Integration within Lifestyle Migration. A comparative study of two cases in Mexico and Spain

International mobility in search of amenity spaces for long-stay tourism is a growing phenomenon. U.S. citizens have practiced this lifestyle migration for decades to Latin American countries, especially to Mexico. British citizens move to Spain for similar reasons. In this paper we make a comparative analysis of these two international contexts in order to gain greater insight into the diversity and breadth of this type of migration. The study uses quantitative surveys administered at each field site. First, we analyze the phenomenon of U.S. citizens’ mobility to Mazatlán, Mexico. Second, we analize citizens from the United Kingdom residing in El Campello, Spain. In particular we compare their socio-demographic profiles, transnational practices and some patterns of social integration.