Motives and emotional experiences of relocation among migrants of the sixth wave

Context and Relevance. The beginning of 2022 was marked by a change in the global political situation, which directly affected the Russian Federation. We believe that the flow of emigrants who left our country during this period has specific adaptation and relocation challenges. It is important to consider these challenges to better understand the support that migrants may need both now and during potential readaptation upon their return to their home country.
Objective. To examine the motives for relocation and the emotional experiences associated with migration among individuals who left Russia starting in early 2022. 
Hypothesis. This study focuses on specific psychological consequences of migration, namely the declared motives and emotional experiences related to relocation. The following research questions were formulated: What motives do representatives of the sixth wave identify as the main reasons for changing their country of residence? What emotional experiences associated with relocation are reported by representatives of the sixth wave? How do members of the sixth wave define the concept of "home"?
Methods and Materials. The study was conducted in two stages. The first involved an online questionnaire that included socio-demographic questions and the “Adaptation of the Individual to a New Sociocultural Environment” method by L.V. Yankovsky. The second stage consisted of a semi-structured interview comprising 32 open-ended questions. A total of 44 respondents aged 19 to 62 (mean age = 34 years) participated in the interviews. Of these, 24 (54,5%) were women and 20 (45,5%) were men. All respondents had relocated from Russia no earlier than 2022. The interview recordings were transcribed and the resulting texts were analyzed using content analysis.
Results. The authors identified five key motives for migration: perception of the political course of the Russian Federation, perceived threat to personal safety or the safety of one’s child, opinions of close others, employer’s initiative, and pre-existing relocation plans. Disagreement with the political course of the country was cited as a motive by 78,9% of respondents, and a direct threat to personal safety by 47,4%. The motives “opinions of close others” and “employer’s initiative” were grouped under the category “external influence” and were mentioned in 36,8% of cases.
Conclusions. The most commonly cited motives for migration among sixth-wave emigrants were the perception of the Russian Federation’s political course and the feeling of a threat to personal safety. From the perspective of the migrant adaptation stage theory, the predominance of negative emotions and feelings reported by respondents – such as grief, helplessness, apathy, and longing – may be explained by their experiences during the orientation and depression stages.