In modern societies, people tend to move from one region to another in search of opportunities. People move from rural to urban centers with the aim of getting better jobs and increase their incomes. While the migrants move in and out of different cities and towns for better opportunities, it can have some effects on society. At the same time, every individual in the society tends to social identity which is a sense of who they are based on the groups in which they are members. All people belong to a particular social group such as social class or family and this affect their self-image and how they relate to each other.
Migration can have both positive and negative impacts in the society. When people migrate to urban centers to seek better jobs, the rate of unemployment is reduced, and living standards of the family are improved ( Cohen, 2016 ). As more workers move to urban centers, they provide labor required to boost economic growth in the region thus improving not only the economic but also the social lives of people. People from different cultures meet leading to increased exchanges in the culture, norms, and customs which promotes unity in society. However, as more people influx urban centers, competition for fewer resources increases and this can lead to conflict between different communities.
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The impact of migration in the society can even be worsened by the self-image and social identity. Once people feel they belong to a certain group, they develop the “them” against “us” slogan. The in-group will always discriminate against the out-group in the effort to enhance their social self-image ( Smaldino, 2015 ). Social identity theory notes that an in-group will always try to find something negative against the other group and will always form a prejudice against them. This move leads to a society in which one group discriminates and forms a stereotype against the other thus eroding the unity and peace in the community.
References
Cohen, R. (2016). Migration and its enemies: global capital, migrant labour and the nation-state . Routledge.
Smaldino, P. (2015). The evolution of the social self: Multidimensionality of social identity solves the coordination problems of a society. Routledge.
