The geographies of lifestyle mobilities: Exploring international retirement migration to Spain

Casado-Diaz, Maria

Abstract

This paper explores the relevance of transnational social networks in the context of international retirement migration (IRM). The study uses the concept of social capital as a framework for the analysis of the migrants’ transnational social practices and evaluates the role of leisure in the creation and maintenance of social capital among EU older migrants living in Spain. The paper reports the results of a survey and in-depth interviews with a sample of EU retirees living in Spain. The relative importance of the migrants' individual characteristics, mainly nationality, age, gender and income, on their temporary and permanent mobility patterns, their links with their country of origin and the pattern of visits from friends and relatives are also examined. It is argued that these aspects are of particular importance for the migrants' well-being and their leisure-based post-retirement lifestyle in Spain.

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (unpublished)
• Conference Name: Annual Meeting of the American Association of Geographers
• Start Date: Feb 24, 2012
• End Date: Feb 29, 2012
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 8, 2019
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Keywords: retirement, migration, mobility, social capital, cross-national differences, Spain
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/949715
• Additional Information: Title of Conference or Conference Proceedings : American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting, New York, USA, 24-29 February 2012