The integration nation for empiricists

ABSTRACT

Adrian Favell’s The Integration Nation is a provocative book, inviting academics to think critically about the integration paradigm, a concept that supports entire fields of study in the processes of immigration, settlement, and citizenship in (Western) host societies. The text offers many points of agreement for critical theorists and positivist empirical scholars to agree upon, as well as opportunities for necessary reflection on our shared terminology. Where it falls short is in its characterization of the field, focussing almost exclusively on the contributions of sociology, to the detriment of a more accurate picture of the American case study and the field of integration studies more generally. Moreover, in neglecting to suggest ways to implement these very serious and important critiques, even if a reader agrees with Favell’s sentiment, they are ultimately left without solutions, which inevitably preserves the status quo.

KEYWORDS:

• Integration
• empiricism
• immigration
• citizenship
• positivism
• Europe

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).