| The study selects highly-educated migrants who have returned to mainland China from Canada as its research subject. Three participants, Tom, James and Helen, are involved in the study. By life history research method, the study explores four stages of their transnational migration: pre-emigration, post-arrival, pre-return, and post-return. The study finds that transnational migration is a highly individualized process affected by various personal conditions. For individual returnees, transnational migration embodies a journey of discovery and self-discovery by which they keep on moving, learning, self-adjusting, and seeking for a free space. Transnational migration changes migrants themselves as well as their relation with the outside world. Individual Space Theory (1ST) is constructed based on the data analysis and used in illustrating the ongoing trait of transnational migration and the motivations, perceptions and practices of the returnees in the globalized context. The study contributes to expand the knowledge of transnational migration, particularly the Chinese returnees' migration experiences. |
