“La Dolce Vita” Integration Patterns of Migrants in Italy

Elena Ambrosetti, Università di Roma "La Sapienza"
Eralba Cela, Università Politecnica delle Marche
Tineke Fokkema, Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI)

Since the end of 1970s Italy has started to turn into a country of immigration and this widespread phenomenon has undergone a fast growing trend, with an annual growth rate of 5.4% in the years 1981-1990 and a much more higher in the recent two decades (14.1% and 13.7%). There has been a particular lack of European studies exploring the diversity in integration patterns across different migrant groups as well as generations (first and 1.5/second generation). Hence, our study aims to fill part of this gap by trying to explicate theoretically and assess empirically the extent and manner of integration of migrant groups to the host society. For the empirical part, we will use survey data collected among a sample of 12,000 migrants. The data comes from the research project Integrometro “Measuring Integration”, carried out on a national scale and coordinated by ISMU Foundation between 2008 and 2009.