FIELD STUDIES ON FEMALE IMMIGRANTS IN THEIR HOST COUNTRIES: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS

This paper presents the results of field studies concerning female immigration in Turkey, mainly Istanbul, conducted in Turkey in the 2014-2015 academic year. Objectives of field studies were: identification of female immigrants' reasons for coming to Turkey in recent years; determination of the differences and similarities for their migration, estimation of their issues, prospects, and challenges in Turkey and the consequences of their migration. The results of these field studies showed similarities in their reasons for migration to Turkey. The main reason was their desire to start a new life in that country. The immigrants came to Turkey for various reasons - to marry, to study, to find a business and for other reasons. In these cases, their former life has finished, and they start a new page in their life in the new country. Differences in the migration to Turkey were their characters, the manner of their migration and their level of culture and education. The results of the field studies show the main prospects for them may be marriage using this as a “social elevator”, which “refers to moving from the very bottom of a society to its top”. The biggest challenges for female migrants in Turkey may be unemployment; access to quality health services and retirement pension provision; language barrier; violence and abuse in families and in the society; and gender inequality in the country.