'I wish I had listened and not come to South Africa': fantasies, expectations and trajectories of migration among Ethiopian unaccompanied child migrants into South Africa.

Migration studies often focus on the socio-political and economic factors that drive people to migrate, overlooking the fantasies and processes involved in actualising the journey. This paper examines unaccompanied Ethiopian child migrants in South Africa, using the concept of fantasy to understand...

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Published in:Journal of Ethnic & Migration Studies Vol. 51; no. 7; pp. 1688 - 1705
Main Author: Nyamnjoh, Henrietta
Format: Article
Published: Taylor & Francis Ltd Apr2025
Subjects:
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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        atl: 'I wish I had listened and not come to South Africa': fantasies, expectations and trajectories of migration among Ethiopian unaccompanied child migrants into South Africa.
      aug:
        au: Nyamnjoh, Henrietta
        affil: Department of Sociology, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
      su:
        Children of immigrants
        Virtual reality
        Economic impact
        Fantasy (Psychology)
      sug:
        subj:
          Children of immigrants
          Virtual reality
          Economic impact
          Fantasy (Psychology)
      keyword:
        Ethiopian
        Fantasy
        phases of migration
        psychosocial
        unaccompanied child migrants
      ab: Migration studies often focus on the socio-political and economic factors that drive people to migrate, overlooking the fantasies and processes involved in actualising the journey. This paper examines unaccompanied Ethiopian child migrants in South Africa, using the concept of fantasy to understand the preparatory processes of migration and their realisation. It argues that fantasies of future expectations and self-enhancement propel individuals into virtual fantasy worlds that can lead to physical migration. This study contributes to the migration literature by exploring the fruitful yet limited role of fantasies and expectations in the complex and multi-phased phenomenon of migration.
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    language: English
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