Negotiating social capital: An analysis of the experiences of Brazilian language students in Dublin (original) (raw)

2012, Masters of Philosophy (Mphil) in Race, Ethnicity, Conflict

This dissertation aims to explore the development of social capital resources among Brazilian language students in Dublin using the concept of social capital as a framework of analysis. The study uses Portes and Sensenbrenner’s (1993) social capital sources: value introjections, bounded solidarity, reciprocity transactions, and enforceable trust. It begins by acknowledging that immigration has a hugely disruptive impact, which requires particular social support for immigrants as they attempt to adapt and adjust to new social contexts. In this regard, social capital has received significant attention as a way of understanding processes such as integration, adjustment, and cohesion of immigrants. It then argues that, in the migration process, social capital is understood as resources developed and held within networks. The dissertation is designed as an exploratory case study, using snowballing as the main sampling technique. Interviews were conducted in Portuguese, tape-recorded, transcribed, and translated. The collection of data was through semi-structured interviews, and data analysis employed coding and thematic analysis. It argues that the pull and push factors influencing interviewees’ intentions to go abroad to learn English varied, however, they did not vary by age, gender, or previous social ties. Regarding push factors, it found that Ireland was not the first choice for the majority of the interviewees. However, social ties, costs, and flexible visa and migration regulations weighed most heavily upon their decision. Regarding social capital, it found that several themes related to value introjections, bounded solidarity, reciprocity transactions, and enforceable trust emerged among the interviewees; however, these themes did not vary by gender and age. On the other hand, they were more likely to happen at the household level than at the community level. Reciprocity transactions and bounded solidarity varied according to social ties, level of English, and length of stay. However, there was not much evidence to support the idea that value introjections and enforceable trust varied by social ties or length of stay.