The Migration Process through the Eyes of Migrants: Experiences, Interpretations and Responses of German Migrants to New Zealand

Research Aims and Questions
This study explored the experiences of the whole migration process of German migrant couples who live in New Zealand and intend to stay, and German migrant couples who had migrated to New Zealand, but returned to Germany; and to elucidate how they interpret these experiences. In particular, it sought answers to three main questions: What psychological and social factors influence the migration process, health/well-being and the likelihood of staying or returning? How do German migrants address obstacles during the migration process, and what psychological and social resources did they develop and/or use to maintain their psychological health? What are the positive health/growth outcomes of migration? The objective is the development of a local theory of the experience of German migrants to New Zealand. This paper provides an overview of this local theory.9

Research Design
Sixteen German migrants participated in this study: four German migrant couples who live in New Zealand (stayers) and four couples who returned to Germany (returners). Participants were recruited through snowballing 10 and were eligible to participate if they were Germanand permanent residents or citizens of New Zealand, had migrated together with their current partner/spouse to New Zealand, and had lived longer than five years in New Zealand or returned to Germany. The sample obtained was highly diverse (see Table 1).