This Working Paper proposes the concept of Migration Narrative Success as a cross-disciplinary tool to facilitate dialogue not only among researchers, but also between researchers and practitioners. Based on existing literature, the authors argue that narratives’ influential capacity depends on their content and framing, as well as the context in which they develop and circulate.
Conceptualising migration narratives
BRIDGES defines narratives as those attempts by actors to develop and convey plausible accounts and interpretations of a phenomenon, event or series of events, person or a group of persons. Narratives are not only simple descriptions. By definition, narratives are characterised by a certain degree of stability and consistency over time and/or across space.
The emergence, uses and impacts of narratives on migration
This Working Paper provides an overview of social science literature on narratives, with a particular focus on narratives on migration (MiNa), tracing the emergence of the concept in a range of social sciences, including sociology, political science, psychology and media studies.
Historical analysis on the evolution of migration and integration narratives
This Working Paper identifies five prominent transnational narratives in France and the UK that aimed to justify restrictions towards immigrants from the Global South, from the 1960s to the mid-1980s, when both countries turned to restrictive policies structurally.
