This study addresses two main areas. First, the study focusses on the effect the population size of migrants' community of orientation (the community in which they spent their life from 10 to 20 years old) has on their present socio-economic status. Second, attention is given to the status migrants have achieved in the social stratification of their residing city, as opposed to natives. To gather empirical evidence, a sample survey of women in Okayama City was conducted in 1993. Three hundred and ninety-eight married women under 60 years of age were interviewed. Analysis of the data has revealed the following ;
(1) The larger migrants' community of orientation had been, the higher their educational attainment and husband's occupational status. Whereas the population size of migrants 'community of orientation had a direct effect on their husband's occupational status, it did not have any such effect on their educational attainment.
(2) While migrants from middle-sized or large cities tended to be higher in their educational attainment in Okayama City, migrants from rural areas or small urban communities tended to be lower in their educational attainment in the city. However, in opposition to the original hypothesis, migrants from small cities, which were smaller than Okayama City, were not different from natives at all levels of socio-economic status. This contradiction is explained by the fact that ambitious residents in small cities had moved to Okayama City to achieve a higher socio-economic status.
(3) These findings suggest that the hypotheses derived from studies in large cites are applicable to some extent to middle-sized cities, such as Okayama City.
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