The ties of migrant networks

An interview with Ukrainian sociologist Tetiana Kostiuchenko

Like so many others, Tetiana Kostiuchenko was forced to leave Ukraine because of the Russian invasion. Since March, she has been a guest researcher at the Institute for East European Studies at Freie Universität Berlin. Her research deals mostly with the networks of political elites, applying social network analysis.

During her temporary stay in Berlin she will expand her approach to look at how Ukrainian diaspora networks are being mobilized to help refugees from Ukraine. She is interested in what types of connections were more efficient in fostering acts of solidarity: so-called weak or strong ties, the latter being based mainly on interpersonal trust. Her assumption is that, given the current circumstances, strong ties tended to play a larger role. "In Ukraine, we rely more on whom we know well, with whom we have a long history of interactions, our friends, relatives or friends of friends", says Tetiana.

Last month, WZB researcher Carla Hornberg spoke to Tetiana for the WZB blog War in Europe. Causes and Consequences. They talked about Tetiana's research, resuming teaching online, and how to incorporate the ongoing war into the university curriculum.

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23.5.22