Does structure of social relationships change in a transnational setting? The making and maintenance of transnational networks between Ghana and The Netherlands

Valentina Mazzucato, University of Amsterdam

Transnational networks are often taken for granted in transnationalism studies as though they automatically exist, yet how they are created and maintained is a result of trans-border exchanges of information, goods, money and affective content. This study analyzes the workings of transnational networks between Ghanaian migrants in The Netherlands and their network members in Ghana and elsewhere in the world. The data consist of a matched sample of people in 33 networks resulting in 131 respondents who were followed over a 3-year period. The paper provides a social network analysis of transnational networks and analyzes what relationships are involved, how new roles are assigned to kinship and non-kinship relations and how these relationships are managed and maintained in both The Netherlands and Ghana.