Migration in the Context of Globalization: Modern Trends and Social Problems (Based on Saskia Sassen's Theory)

The significance of the research topic is determined by the specificity of the theoretical and methodological approach of Saskia Sassen, an American scholar, the Robert S. Lynd Professor of Sociology at Columbia University. She focuses on the significant processes of global migration and their social aspects. Of particular interest is the exploration of the relationship between migration processes and global cities-the crucial elements of Sassen's general theory of globalization. The analysis of modern migration reasons, factors, and features allows detecting the important aspects of global cities' connectivity and mechanisms of cities' transnational networks formation and characterizing their influence on the social system in general. The aim of the study is to identify features of Sassen's theoretical and methodological approach in the study of migration and to determine its main contribution to the future prospects of the global migration processes analysis. The article deals Sassen's key works, which allow tracing the evolution of her ideas about key social trends and identifying the starting points for a further construction of the migration concept. Thus, the initial focus of Sassen's attention on the financial and economic aspects of the relationship between the mobility of capital and labor resources is gradually shifting to the social aspects of migration and to the study of the modern migrant figure as such. The author considers the methodological features that distinguish Sas-sen's approach from other approaches and are important for understanding her views. In particular, a critical component of her theory is identified, according to which the concepts and categories widely used in scientific, political, and public discourses should be revised: globalization, urbanization, territory, finance, migration, citizenship, inequality, etc. The article considers new concepts and definitions which Sassen offers for the analysis of modern global processes. The author analyzed the data, reports, and materials of modern international research centers and organizations in order to verify the key provisions of Sassen's theory. As a result of the study, the analytical potential and heuristic value of Sassen's migration concept were determined, her contribution to the development of modern ideas about global migration processes within the framework of the general sociological theory was revealed.

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