Young Asian migrants don't consider NZ home, finds study

By STUART DYE, education reporter

Many young Asian immigrants do not consider New Zealand their home and plan to travel overseas, new research has found.

The study, by Dr Allen Bartley at Massey University, reveals a phenomenon known as "transnational migration".

Asian adolescents, who arrived here as children when their parents migrated, were ambivalent about their identities as New Zealanders and considered themselves to have two homes.

Dr Bartley's study centred on adolescents from Taiwan, Korea and China. Most had taken part in a variety of social activities with New Zealanders when young, but planned to pursue a career or further education overseas.

In many cases their fathers had returned home, leaving their families in New Zealand.

"This adds to the perception of young migrant people that a presence can be maintained in two countries and there can be two homes," said Dr Bartley. "This group is set to produce a new form of transnationalism that challenges much of our understanding and expectations of migration, immigration settlement and adjustment."

But David Wong, vice-president of the Auckland Ethnic Council, said it was only natural that many Asian migrants would have strong feelings for their home country. Others found it difficult to settle and years later this could be passed on to their children.

Young Asians often left New Zealand after school or university because they could not get the jobs they wanted here, he said.

"But that is not so different from Kiwis going on their OE."