International Migration Institute

Maren Borkert presents her paper 'Worldwide@home: transnational networks in the Digital Age' in Parallel session I(B) of the conference Examining Migration Dynamics: Networks and Beyond, 24-26 Sept 2013 In the almost 20 years of existence transnational studies have focused on a variety of topics and social phenomena (Faist 2000, Levitt 1998, Levitt & Glick-Schiller 2004, Pries 1999 and 2010, Vertovec 2004). Different perspectives on the nexus between transnationalism and migrants networks have emerged that have, on the one hand, led to the diffusion and rapid establishment of transnationalisation as a genuine field of study and approach. On the other hand, transnational concepts have become catch-all phrases for cross-border ties and have been seen as equivalent to such different processes as globalisation, de-nationalisation, de-materialisation, virtualisation or the ‘liquidation' of social relations. While some might mourn the unspecific use of the term, others add to its uncertainty with claims regarding t