Description

Article written by 2007 DPDF Rethinking Europe: Religion, Ethnicity, Nation Fellow Alex Street:

In recent decades millions of people have migrated to the democracies of North America and Western
Europe. Some of these immigrants have become citizens of their new homelands, while others remain
foreign residents. This article shows that the family context shapes decisions over naturalization. The
costs and benefits of becoming a citizen of one’s country of residence depend, in part, on the
naturalization decisions of immediate family members. The article draws on evidence from interviews
and census data in Austria, and extends the analysis to the USA in order to test the scope for the
argument to generalize. I conclude by discussing what family-level dynamics in naturalization can teach
us about the concept of citizenship.