Aspirations, Gender and Morality in Vietnamese Migration to Europe

Over the past four decades, international migration has emerged as one of the most significant social transformations shaping contemporary Vietnam. Initially associated with wartime displacement and state-organized labour mobility to socialist countries, migration has now become a normalized and integral aspect of everyday life. For millions of Vietnamese households, migration is no longer viewed solely as a temporary economic strategy; it is recognized as a broader moral, social, and intergenerational project tied to aspirations for mobility, dignity, and the “good life.” This special issue delves into these transformations by focusing on Vietnamese migration to Europe, exploring how migrants navigate the tensions between aspiration and obligation, autonomy and family responsibility, legality and precarity, as well as hope and uncertainty. Situated within broader global discussions on mobility, inequality, and the evolving nature of transnational labour migration, the four substantive papers in this collection are based on fieldwork across Vietnam, Hungary, UK and Czech Republic.