How Economic Inequalities Shape International Migration Aspirations: A Multilevel Analysis of Perceptions and Context

Economic inequality between countries has long been recognized as a key driver of international migration. However, inequality within communities of origin has received far less attention in the literature. This article addresses this gap by focusing on the determinants of international migration aspirations, challenging existing findings, and contributing to the expanding body of research on the inequality-migration nexus. Leveraging a novel data set from 25 communities in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, this study makes four key contributions. First, we distinguish between perceived and objective measures of wealth and inequality, exploring how each is associated with international migration aspirations. Second, we identify the specific wealth groups most sensitive to inequality and examine how their migration aspirations vary according to both individual wealth levels and the broader context of community-level inequality. Third, our multi-level modelling approach enables a nuanced comparison of subjective and objective measures of wealth and inequality at both individual and community levels. Finally, our findings reveal substantial heterogeneity in both perceived and observed wealth inequality within countries, underscoring the need for localized analyses that move beyond cross-country comparisons to better understand how inequality shapes migration dynamics.