ABSTRACT
In contemporary societies, migration is often discussed as an anomaly with respect to the nation-state system and migration research has been prone to methodological nationalism in two of its most explicit forms. First, sociology places migrants inside a nation-state, even though they are empirically situated in more than one nation-state. This is especially true for circular migrants, but also for migrants who settle in the country of destination and who have spent part of their lives abroad. Their educational titles may be from abroad and they will compare their economic situation with that of former compatriots and other migrants. The second generation, too, may have ties with the country of their parents’ origin or may be viewed by others as really belonging to the origin country. Research on globalization has suggested that even sedentary people are not only situated in nation-states, but also, for example, in global consumer markets, and that international trends and developments have an impact on their lifestyles (Albrow 1996; Kennedy 2010; Pries 1999; Robertson 1995).
