Paper Short Abstract:

I elaborate on the experiences of children of skilled international professionals in Finland. Anthropological methods bring new knowledge on the phenomenon. Nuclear family and schools appear as particularly important, and "learning to befriend" here and now is crucial.

Paper Abstract:

In this presentation, I elaborate on the views and experiences of children of skilled international professionals in Finland. I argue that with these mobile families, the nuclear family becomes particularly important. At the same time, the families often put much effort in trying to maintain relationships to larger kin but when years go by, it may become increasingly challenging. Moreover, in the children’s lives “learning to befriend” becomes crucial when they, and their classmates, change schools frequently. Yet, friendships here and now are crucial whereas maintaining ties with friends from previous places of residence is rare. Moreover, school becomes a particularly important location where ties are constructed as the repeatedly moving children do not necessarily get involved in many hobbies beyond school. I argue that ethnographic research methods provide important new knowledge on the phenomenon. Much of the existing literature is either based on quantitative methods or on reflections of young adults of their past experiences as internationally mobile children. Conducting anthropological research with children and teenagers here and now enables to gain first-hand insights on their lives. It is not enough to investigate how children and teenagers talk about their ties with kin and friends but we need to also see how those ties are constructed, maintained and dissolved in real-life practices.