Migration in the internet age: The 21st century: When refugees went online

Abstract: This paper provides a new take on how to explain irregular migration. The results of this study takes a leap forward in scientific thinking of how larger irregular migration flows can be understood in the modern age where migrants are using internet technology to their advantage. By using existing migration theory and big data search patterns from google a completely new way of understanding irregular migration is developed. This longitudinal quantitative cross-country study gives new analytical insight in how irregular migration can be explained by analysing potential and actual migrant’s internet behaviour. This paper is the first of its kind to use Google search patterns as a determinant for where and when migrants journey by combining it with time series of number of asylum seekers yielding successful ways to predict large irregular migration. Data from eight different receiving countries and Europe as whole is used in combination with data from two transit countries and five sender countries. It’s argued that to understand the ‘Age of migration’ we must see how it relates to the ‘Information age’ and that these two global phenomena must be seen in connection and not as separate from each other if we are to understand modern migration.