Migration rhythms in trajectories of upward social mobility in Asia: Survey documentation

The MigrationRhythms project conducted a face-to-face survey in Hanoi, Karachi, Manila, and Mumbai to investigate the relationship between migration and upward social mobility among the lower-to-middle-middle class. The documentation describes a probability-based sampling method using random walks to identify 500 respondents per city. It details the use of SurveyCTO CAPI software for data collection, the development of a structured questionnaire covering socio-economic status and multi-generational migration histories, and the rigorous data cleaning and anonymization processes required to produce an open-access dataset for publication on Zenodo.

• The survey targeted middle-middle and lower-middle class residents in four specific Asian cities: Karachi (Pakistan), Mumbai (India), Hanoi (Vietnam), and Manila (Philippines).
• The project defined 'middle class' based on living standards rather than income alone, incorporating factors such as housing type, vehicle ownership, education, and asset ownership.
• A probability-based sampling strategy was employed, utilizing stratified random sampling and random walks to select households in areas identified as 'predominantly middle class'.
• The survey instrument was designed as a quasi-longitudinal tool to capture the migration and socio-economic histories of respondents, their parents, and their grandparents.
• Data collection was conducted via face-to-face interviews using SurveyCTO Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) software on tablets, with an average interview duration of approximately 40 minutes.
• To ensure data quality, the project implemented automated skip-logics, duration flags for unusually short or long interviews, and manual checks for contradictory responses.
• The final dataset underwent a rigorous anonymization process, removing metadata, specific birthplaces, and individual-level household member data to protect participant privacy before public release.
• The resulting open-access dataset, to be published on Zenodo after April 2026, consists of 2,016 respondents across the four cities.

APA

Erdal, M. B., Abraham, A., & Schjølberg, P. N. (2025). Migration rhythms in trajectories of upward social mobility in Asia: Survey documentation. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/0ad90514-b3b5-4c60-bb59-e4776004d6db/Migration Rhythms - Survey documentation PRIO Paper 2025.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Erdal, Marta Bivand, Anu Abraham, and Patrick Nyheim Schjølberg. Migration rhythms in trajectories of upward social mobility in Asia: Survey documentation. Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2025. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/0ad90514-b3b5-4c60-bb59-e4776004d6db/Migration Rhythms - Survey documentation PRIO Paper 2025.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Erdal |first1=Marta Bivand |last2=Abraham |first2=Anu |last3=Schjølberg |first3=Patrick Nyheim |title=Migration rhythms in trajectories of upward social mobility in Asia: Survey documentation |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |date=2025 |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/0ad90514-b3b5-4c60-bb59-e4776004d6db/Migration Rhythms - Survey documentation PRIO Paper 2025.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{erdal2025migration, author = {Erdal, Marta Bivand and Abraham, Anu and Schjølberg, Patrick Nyheim}, title = {{Migration rhythms in trajectories of upward social mobility in Asia: Survey documentation}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2025}, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/0ad90514-b3b5-4c60-bb59-e4776004d6db/Migration Rhythms - Survey documentation PRIO Paper 2025.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }