Abstract: | This paper analyzes temporary migration, migration undertaken as a sojourn. Stressing migrant motivation, this paper shows that the institutionalization of intention, or what is here termed strategy, is an important aspect of all migrations. Using this perspective to distinguish between permanent and temporary migration, the author then analyzes the structural patterns and institutionalized sequence common to most temporary migrations. Four aspects of the sequence are discussed: (1) The structural conditions in societies in which temporary migration is most common, (2) Recruitment patterns and network formation linking home and host societies, (3) Patterns of settlement in host societies, and (4) Patternsof return migration. For each aspect, the paper shows that the institutionalization of motives is an important level of migration often left unanalyzed by theorists using social-psychological or macro-level push-pull theories of migration. |