Immigration, Identity, and the Internet

This class exmines a critical issue in contemporary societies: How do changes in technology affect the process of immigration and how immigrant identity is shaped? While some immigrants have chosen to maintain strong symbolic and material ties to their home countries throughout history, technology has greatly reduced the costs of doing so. Increasing and less expensive opportunities for the acquisition of information, communication, and travel means that immigrants can choose different areas in which to settle without giving up access to their home culture. In addition, they frequently know much more about the new country, and they can develop transnational identities that embrace both the home and new country cultures. How do these changes affect patterns of immigrant settlement, political participation, and socialization? In this class we will combine studies of immigration with studies of the social uses of technology, building on theories and explanations which explore how transnational identities and processes are shaped.
Course Attributes: EN S; AS LCD; AS SSC; AS SD I; AS WI I; FA SSC; AR SSC; AS SC

Immigration, Identity, and the Internet

AMERICAN CULTURE STUDIES 4373

Section 01