Neo-Plural Society: Research on Ethnic Group Relations with a Focus on Expatriate Workers in the Arab Gulf States

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26257004
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 海外学術
• Research Field: Area studies
• Research Institution: Rikkyo University (2015-2017); Osaka University (2014)
• Principal Investigator: ISHII Masako 立教大学, 異文化コミュニケーション学部, 教授 (40353453)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 松川 恭子 甲南大学, 文学部, 教授 (00379223) ; 安里 和晃 京都大学, 文学研究科, 特定准教授 (00465957) ; 松尾 昌樹 宇都宮大学, 国際学部, 准教授 (10396616) ; 細田 尚美 京都大学, アジア・アフリカ地域研究研究科, 助教 (70452290) ; 渡邉 暁子 文教大学, 国際学部, 講師 (70553684) ; 石井 由香 静岡県立大学, 国際関係学部, 教授 (20319487)
• Research Collaborator: HORINUKI Koji 一般財団法人日本エネルギー経済研究所, 中東研究センター, 主任研究員
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: 湾岸アラブ諸国 / 移民労働者 / インド / フィリピン / 複合社会

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Rapid economic development based on petroleum export income and investment have turned the Arab Gulf States (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates) into the third largest set of receiving countries of expatriate workers, after the United States of America and the European Union. Yet, in the Arab Gulf States there are seemingly few incidents of cultural friction, anti-immigration movements, or ethnic conflicts attributable to the immigrant flow. Migration from Asian countries has continued for more than forty years; it is now “normal.”
In this research project, we tried to conceptualize the situation in terms of a “neo-plural society,” a system in which both nationals of receiving countries and expatriate workers show little interest in building social contacts and instead form mostly economic relations.

Free Research Field

フィリピン地域研究