The Motivation and Characteristics of Internal Migrants: A Socio-Medical Study of Young Migrants in Scotland

Abstract

The material used in this study was obtained from information secured from all primiparous women booked for confinement at the Maternity Hospital during the years 1951-59 representing 95% of all 1st pregnancies to Aberdeen residents. History was obtained of place of up-bringing, place of residence at the time the women left school, economic status of the family, as well as other pertinent data. This information was supplemented by a more intensive study on a selected sample of this group during part of this period. Natives of the city made up 77% of the larger sample studied. Of the remaining women 12% came from the north of Scotland and 5% each from the south of Scotland and from outside. The migrants contained a much higher proportion of non-manual workers and a lower proportion of skilled and unskilled workers than the general population of the city. Most migrants came to the city before marriage but this is explained by the fact that 75% of married couples in this area have their 1st baby within the 1st year of marriage. Thus, the sampling of primiparous women would be affected by this short period. Consideration of out-migration shows that this too is affected by socio-economic class and that families in the higher classes have much greater mobility than those in lower classes. This is true irrespective of age.