THE EFFECTS OF MIGRATION ON COMMUNITY COHESION IN RURAL ROMANIA: ANTECEDENTS AND CONSEQUENCES
THE EFFECTS OF MIGRATION ON COMMUNITY COHESION IN RURAL ROMANIA: ANTECEDENTS AND CONSEQUENCES

Summary/Abstract: This paper examines the effects of migration on community cohesion in rural Romania, with particular emphasis on its antecedents and consequences. Drawing on qualitative thematic analysis, the study integrates insights from rural sociology, social capital theory, and social disorganization theory to situate Romanian migration within broader European and global debates. Findings highlight how economic factors such as unemployment and income disparities intersect with social and institutional drivers, including family expectations, cultural norms, and weak governance, to shape migration flows. Consequences for rural communities are multi-layered: while remittances and return migration can support household economies and even stimulate entrepreneurship, demographic decline, family separation, and challenges for left-behind children erode traditional forms of trust, participation, and solidarity. The paper argues that migration reconfigures social cohesion by transforming networks of reciprocity, altering community identities, and reframing the meaning of belonging across transnational spaces. By integrating theoretical perspectives with empirical evidence from Romania, the study contributes to understanding how rural communities negotiate resilience and vulnerability in the face of sustained out-migration. Implications for rural policy stress the need for long-term strategies that go beyond mitigating economic loss to strengthening social cohesion, educational opportunities, and inclusive community development.

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