Macro-Conditions of Class and Micro-Patterns of Social Interaction: Studying Labor Migrants' Discontent

Natalya D. Tregubova

Dmitrii M. Zhikharevich

Saint-Petersburg State University

41st IIS Congress, Uppsala 2013

The Challenge of Labor Migration Russia continues to attract labor

migrants by virtue of its 'soft power'

10-12 million per year, 70-80% from the FSU (2nd place in the world after the US)

Labor migrants are still in a high demand; their conditions in accepting community is highly vulnerable

What's the experience of labor migrant's uncertain condition?

Sociology of Emotions

'Discontent' as a long-term emotion,

(a) determined by the structural conditions

(b) produced and transmitted through the social interaction

(c ) capable to result into collective action

Discontent and Agency Formation

STRUCTURESTRUCTURE

AGENCY AGENCY

? DISCONTENT

Emotions and Social Existence: Scales and Temporal Regimes

'STRUCTURAL' EMOTIONS

LONG-TERM EMOTIONS

SHORT-TERM

EMOTIONS

Macro-Conditions of Class

Emotional dimension of inequality: class emotions

Inequality in dynamic: trade cycles

Emotions vs. Culture

Micro-Patterns of Social Interaction

Discontent as a long-term emotion produced in chains of interaction

Balance of emotional energy: enough to be discontent, not enough to act

Focus on the negative sacral objects

Micro-Patterns of Social Interaction

Discontent as a long-term emotion produced in chains of interaction

Balance of emotional energy: enough to be discontent, not enough to act

Focus on the negative sacral objects

Questions for Prospective Research How to measure discontent?

Macro-conditions: economic crisis and social exclusion?

Localization of interaction: where migrants meet each other?

To be continued...