Migration and social change : the case of returned Gozitan migrants

Abstract

During the last century, many Gozitans have emigrated to earn a living in a foreign country. A large percentage of these Gozitans migrants, chose America or Australia as their host country. After a number of years of hard work, many of them have returned to Gozo. The primary aim of this dissertation is to study whether emigration has resulted in a change in values for the Gozitan migrants, who emigrated to America or Australia and now have re-settled back in Gozo. Using structured questionnaires administered to a sample of 150 returned Gozitan migrants, I will investigate the hypothesis that the returned Gozitan migrants who once lived in America or Australia, did experience a change in their values as a result of their migratory period abroad.