Paper short abstract:

Based on qualitative research conducted in Ghana, this paper investigates how Ghanaian parents foster the place-belongingness of their American 'jackpot babies' upon their return to Ghana from the United States.

Paper long abstract:

The number of planned binational families (PBFs) of Ghanaian origin has grown as globalisation allows Ghanaians to participate in international mobility. The PBF is a family unit in which at least one child is an American ‘jackpot baby,’ which is considered unusual and a novelty in Ghanaian society. There has been a little empirical study on the lived experiences of Ghanaian parents in PBFs in developing their American ‘jackpot babies’ sense of belonging outside the United States during childhood. Also, where do these American 'jackpot babies' belong when they reach maturity, between Ghana and the United States? This paper, based on qualitative research done in Ghana, investigates how Ghanaian parents nurture the place-belongingness of their American ‘jackpot babies’ upon their return to Ghana from the United States. It contends that the sense of belonging of American ‘jackpot babies’ in Ghanaian PBFs is mixed. Thus, they ensured their American ‘jackpot babies’ place-belongingness to Ghana as children by non-disclosure of their US citizenship and upbringing. Furthermore, as adults, these American ‘jackpot babies’ grew appreciative of their Ghanaian parents’ efforts in nurturing their sense of belonging to Ghana, since they felt more at home in Ghana even after their selected migration to their birth country, the United States. These parents, however, are unaware of the difficulties associated with an ambivalent sense of belonging, such as enmity among siblings with different citizenships, their American ‘jackpot babies’ struggling with identity crises, and enduring social exclusion.