A Grounded Theory of Living in Two Worlds: Torres Strait Islanders’ Experience of Contemporary Migration

This study explored the resettlement experiences of Torres Strait Islanders who moved to the Australian mainland. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 individuals, using a grounded theory method. Findings suggest that Torres Strait Islander contemporary out-movers are adjusting rather than assimilating to the Australian mainstream culture. 

The concept of “living in two worlds” required managing the crossing between the obligations of island life and the demands and expectations of the mainstream. As people made sense of their experiences, out-movers developed strategies to “manage the crossings” from one world to another - the simpler lifestyle of “island life” that offered a greater sense of certainty and familiarity, and “mainstream” which may present many challenges, competing demands and expectations.

While Torres Strait Islander out-movement is internal, there are similarities to international migration experiences, and like other internal movements, this movement tended to go unnoticed. Migration is an important area of social work practice that needs the attention of social workers, particularly with the predicted increases in out-movements that may occur in response to economic and climate-related change.

Torres Strait Islander internal migration is absent from social work literature. There is a gap in knowledge of how contemporary migrants experience and make sense of life on the mainland. Social work can learn from this movement to prepare for further migration responding to environmental and economic imperatives, both internally and internationally.