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TITLE

Methodological Approaches to the Analysis and Assessment of Traditional and Emerging Forms of Migratory Mobility among Russian-Speaking Communities

Olga D. Vorobieva, Alexander A. Subbotin

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RAR (Research Article Report)

JEL F22, O15, R23

https://doi.org/10.52180/1999-9836_2026_22_1_10_155_168

AUTHORS

Olga D. Vorobieva

Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia

E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1304-3715

SPIN-code: 6059-0372

ResearcherID: H-9920-2016

Scopus Author ID: 56297013500

Alexander A. Subbotin

Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia

E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5016-0473

SPIN-code: 1124-8020

ResearcherID: AAG-6149-2021

Scopus Author ID: 57196629252

FOR CITATION

Vorobieva O.D., Subbotin A.A. Methodological Approaches to the Analysis and Assessment of Traditional and Emerging Forms of Migratory Mobility among Russian-Speaking Communities. Uroven' Zhizni Naseleniya Regionov Rossii=Living Standards of the Population in the Regions of Russia. 2026;22(1):155–168. https://doi.org/10.52180/1999-9836_2026_22_1_10_155_168 (In Russ.)

ABSTRACT

This article examines traditional and emerging forms of migratory and spatial mobility among Russian-speaking communities in regions where they are most numerous and where repatriation potential is considered significant, namely the post-Soviet space and the countries of South-East Asia. The subject of the study comprises the socio-demographic, ethno-cultural and professional characteristics of different forms of mobility among Russian citizens in these regions, as well as the factors shaping the reversibility of migration strategies and the maintenance of stable ties with the country of origin. The aim of the study is to identify and compare forms of migratory mobility among Russian-speaking communities in the selected regions and to assess their potential for reversibility on the basis of new methodological approaches, primarily through an in-depth analysis of expert assessments of repatriation potential, with particular attention to new mobile categories associated with the development of digital nomadism and remote employment. For the first time, the paper proposes methodological approaches that enable a comparable analysis of traditional diasporic forms of mobility and new flexible mobility strategies among Russian citizens within a single analytical framework. The research is grounded in sociological and comparative-analytical approaches and employs expert assessment methods, content analysis and the synthesis of empirical data. The empirical base consists of in-depth interviews with experts specialising in demography and migration in the regions under study, as well as qualitative interviews with Russian citizens engaged in remote employment and temporarily residing abroad. The findings demonstrate that the post-Soviet space constitutes the most stable core of migratory mobility among Russian-speaking communities, underpinned by historically established social, cultural and linguistic ties and increasingly intertwined with emerging processes of digital nomadism. In the regions of South-East Asia, the scale of Russian-speaking communities is expanding more intensively, while more flexible and generally reversible forms of mobility prevail, closely linked to professional activity in the digital sector. The study concludes that contemporary migratory mobility among Russian-speaking communities is multi-layered, combining stable diasporic forms with new mobility strategies that differ in socio-demographic characteristics, time horizons and the extent to which ties with the country of origin are preserved. The practical significance of the research lies in the potential application of the proposed methodological approach to the analysis of contemporary migration processes and the improvement of state migration policy.

KEYWORDS

migratory mobility, Russian-speaking communities, repatriation potential, international migration, post-Soviet space, Southeast Asia, digital nomads, diaspora, migration policy

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The study was funded by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation (project No. 24-28-01328, “Russia’s Repatriation Potential in Foreign Countries: Assessing the Scale”).

INFORMATION ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Olga D. Vorobieva

Doctor of Economics, Professor, Professor at the Department of Demography of Higher School of Contemporary Social Sciences, Lomonosov Moscow State University.

Alexander A. Subbotin

PhD in Sociology, Associate Professor at the Department of Demography of Higher School of Contemporary Social Sciences, Lomonosov Moscow State University.

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