Return migration is an under-explored area of population mobility studies.
Although the return intention does not represent a guarantee for its
realization, migrants who express the intention to return have a better
chance of achieving it compared to those who do not even think about it.
Return migration can have great importance for the country of origin?s
overall development, especially when it comes to return of young people. The
paper presents the results of a survey carried out among the second
generation members of migrants from Serbia in canton of Lucerne
(Switzerland) with the aim of determining their return intentions. The
research excludes the possibility of short-term (temporary) return, and the
respondents answered about the intentions related exclusively to permanent
return. For the purposes of the paper, an online questionnaire was conducted
as well as interviews. The results indicated the complexity and
indissolubility of migrants? ties with the Republic of Serbia on different
levels. However, the return intention has been shown to be influenced by a
number of factors that are primarily related to life satisfaction in the
country of destination. In that context, it is not surprising that most of
the respondents (48.4%) do not plan to return to Serbia, some of them
(30.3%) might return, while the smallest number of respondents (21.2%)
intend to return. In contrast to the intentions of the respondents
themselves, it was found that the respondents? parents (the first generation
of migrants) have a greater intention to return to Serbia (66.7%). By
crossing the data, it was determined that the return intention is most
express among employedmen who are married, who send remittances and visit
Serbia two to five times a year. The intention to stay in the country of
destination is most express among women aged 20-24 who are employed,
unmarried and have no children. In addition, the results showed that
respondents who plan to return are more likely to make contact with friends
and relatives in Serbia than respondents who do not plan to return.
Between desires and reality: Investigating the return intentions among the second generation members of migrants from Serbia in Switzerland
