MOVE: Mapping mobility – pathways, institutions and structural effects of youth mobility in Europe

The freedom of movement is one of the “Four Freedoms” of the European Union. EU-citizens have the right to freely choose the place to live and to work. Against the backdrop of high youth unemployment rates in many European countries, labour migration is being intensively and controversially discussed. The European research project MOVE aims at improving the conditions of the mobility of young people in Europe and at reducing its negative impacts.

The main research question is: How can the mobility of young people contribute to both the socio-economic and individual development of the young people and what are the factors that foster/ hinder such beneficial mobility?

In an interdisciplinary andmultilevel research approach, a comprehensive and systematic analysis of the phenomenon „mobility of young people in Europe“ will be conducted.  Research steps include quantitative secondary analyses of relevant national and European data sets, qualitative case studies on different forms of mobility and an online survey.

The results will be available in form of a Scientific Use File and an integrated research report, and they will be discussed on the final conference of the project. Moreover, they will be published in peer reviewed articles and presented at relevant national and international congresses.

The project is funded by the European Commission under the Research and Innovation programme Horizon 2020 within the call „The young generation in an innovative, inclusive and sustainable Europe“. The consortium consists of scientists from nine organisations sitting in six countries: Luxembourg, Germany,  Hungary, Norway, Romania and Spain. They are supported on a national level by Expert Committees and on project level through an Academic Advisory Board and a Policy Advisory Board.  The experts involved in these committees provide guidance, grant access to relevant research fields and data sets and contribute to the dissemination and discussion of research results.