ABSTRACT
The causal factors behind the movements of people have been referred to in the first two chapters. There is no one theory which satisfactorily explains why an individual or a group moves from one place to another and then follows a variety of patterns: settlement, re-migration or, after an intervening period, movement onwards. For some the initial migration might be a life-or-death decision, for others a test of religious beliefs. For many it has been, and continues to be, a process of carefully weighing up the economic pluses and minuses of what, so often, proves to be a voluntary, yet emotion-ally, psychologically and physically testing experience. Whatever the motivation, upon arrival in the receiving society the migrant is faced with the necessity of securing a means of survival. All too frequently, and sometimes unfairly, immigrant groups are judged by their perceived ability to succeed commercially in their new environment. The graph of success is often based on past example, as evidenced by Ceri Peach's categorisation of post-Second World War ethnic groups according to the ‘Jewish’ or ‘Irish’ model. 2 Success in Britain has been, and continues to be, measured through the eye of western capitalism; the visible creation of profitable and expanding businesses accompanied by social status and a high standard of living.
