Professor Majella Kilkey (she/her)
PhD, MA, BSSc (Hons)
Department of Sociological Studies
Professor of Social Policy
Director of Research
Director of the CDT in New Horizons in Borders and Bordering
+44 114 222 6459
Full contact details
Department of Sociological Studies
The Wave
2 Whitham Road
Sheffield
S10 2AH
- Profile
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Majella’s work is in the field of migration studies, with particular focus on the intersections between migration and families / care / gender / ageing / geopolitical transformations, which she approaches from sociological and social policy perspectives. These interests coalesce in different configurations around three key areas: transnational families, transnational political economy of care and migration and transformations. She works with groups traditionally seen as ‘marginalised’ / ‘excluded’ / ‘disadvantaged’, including older people with a migrant background, young migrants and asylum seekers and migrant care workers. Her research is grounded in partnership working, and she uses creative and participatory approaches to research lived experience with the aims of engendering inclusion, respect and esteem. She has a strong track record in co-producing public engagement events around challenging topics.
Majella has a strong track record in UKRI funding, and is involved in two current initiatives: she is Principal Investigator on the project Storying Life Courses for Intersectional Inclusion: Ethnicity and Wellbeing Across Time and Place (2022-2025), funded under the ESRC’s Inclusive Ageing programme; and Co-Investigator in the ESRC’s Centre for Care (2021-2026), leading a programme of work on Borders and Care. She also currently holds a number of externally funded international research grants. Currently these include two EU H2020-funded projects on which she is University of Sheffield Principal Investigator: Empowerment through liquid integration of migrant youth in vulnerable conditions [MIMY] (202-2023) and Migration, Integration and Governance Research Centre [MIGREC] (2019-2023). She is a member of the Management Committee of the COST Action Transnational Family Dynamics in Europe (2022-2025).
- Research interests
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Majella’s main current research areas are: migration, (transnational) families and care; migration and gender, including masculinities, ageing and migration; family migration policies; the multiple and interconnected ‘crises’ experienced in Europe in recent years, including the economic crisis, the ‘refugee crisis’, Brexit and Covid-19, examining their implications for EU integration, European Free Movement, EU migration governance and migrants’ lived experiences.
Majella currently holds a number of externally funded research grants in those areas.
- Storying Life Courses for Intersectional Inclusion: Ethnicity and Wellbeing Across Time and Place (PI, 2022-2025), funded under the ESRC’s Inclusive Ageing programme. Its key aim is to interrogate accepted interpretations of social inclusion/exclusion in order to reconceptualise them from the perspective of the “Black Asian and Minoritised Ethnic and Refugee” (BAMER) population's life courses, and to employ this reconceptualisation as the basis for a new understanding of inclusive ageing and the steps needed to achieve it. The project's interdisciplinary team will research in partnership with BAMER groups and other key local and national stakeholders. These are included variously in the project as Co-investigators, Policy & Practice Partners, Community Researchers, Voice Forum and Stakeholder Platform members. In undertaking impactful co-produced research, we will centre the lived experience of BAMER older people, employing a creative 'storying' approach throughout the project. This will give us a participant-led, inclusive and adaptive way of developing knowledge with those who have experienced exclusion and/or exploitation. Through an innovative combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, we will co-construct a more pluralistic and inclusive knowledge-base and provide a catalyst for change, identifying creative policy and practice steps at micro, meso and macro levels to prevent the risks of exclusion and to promote inclusive ageing.
- ESRC’s Centre for Care (Co-I, 2021-2026). Majella leads the Care Trajectories and Constraints Research Group, and within that has particular responsibility for a strand of work on Borders and Care. The overarching aim of the work in the Borders and Care research strand is to understand the role of bordering processes in shaping experiences of care depletion within the care convoys of people with migration experiences. In this work we put lived experience centre stage to explore the relational, affective and temporal nature of care in different parts of the care ecosystem. We are committed to using our work to influence care policy and practice and support ‘recognition’ of care in people’s daily lives. Our research is co-produced with people who require, receive and provide care in participatory and, we hope, empowering ways.
- EMpowerment and Integration of Migrant Youth (MIMY). Majella leads the University of Sheffield’s team work on this European Commission H2020-funded project (2020-2023) composed of twelve partners. The project aims to improve the situation of migrant youth throughout Europe by understanding what enables and constrains integration. It focuses specifically on the situation of migrant young people from outside of the EU who have experienced different conditions of exclusion, vulnerability and inequality. MIMY puts the experiences of young migrants at the centre of its activities by directly involving them as peer researchers through participatory research.
- Migration, Integration and Governance Research Centre (MIGREC). Majella leads the University of Sheffield’s team work on this European Commission H2020-funded project (2019-2023). MIGREC is a research-capacity building project in the field of Migration Studies at the University of Belgrade. The project focuses on three inter-related challenges for confronting Serbia – migration, demographic ageing and geo-politics.
- Storying Life Courses for Intersectional Inclusion: Ethnicity and Wellbeing Across Time and Place (PI, 2022-2025), funded under the ESRC’s Inclusive Ageing programme. Its key aim is to interrogate accepted interpretations of social inclusion/exclusion in order to reconceptualise them from the perspective of the “Black Asian and Minoritised Ethnic and Refugee” (BAMER) population's life courses, and to employ this reconceptualisation as the basis for a new understanding of inclusive ageing and the steps needed to achieve it. The project's interdisciplinary team will research in partnership with BAMER groups and other key local and national stakeholders. These are included variously in the project as Co-investigators, Policy & Practice Partners, Community Researchers, Voice Forum and Stakeholder Platform members. In undertaking impactful co-produced research, we will centre the lived experience of BAMER older people, employing a creative 'storying' approach throughout the project. This will give us a participant-led, inclusive and adaptive way of developing knowledge with those who have experienced exclusion and/or exploitation. Through an innovative combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, we will co-construct a more pluralistic and inclusive knowledge-base and provide a catalyst for change, identifying creative policy and practice steps at micro, meso and macro levels to prevent the risks of exclusion and to promote inclusive ageing.
- Publications
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Books
- Foreword.
- Gender, Migration and Domestic Work: Masculinities, male labour and fathering in the UK and USA. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan UK.
- Introduction. Policy Press.
- Lone Mothers Between Paid Work and Care. Routledge.
Edited books
- Family Life in an Age of Migration and Mobility: Global Perspectives through the Life Course. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Social Policy Review 24: Analysis and debate in social policy, 2012..
- In Defence of Welfare: The Impacts of the Comprehensive Sepnding Review. UK Social Policy Association.
- Social Policy Review 23: Analysis and Debate in Social Policy, 2011. Bristol: Policy Press.
- Social Policy Review 22: Analysis and debate in social policy, 2010. Bristol: Policy Press.
Journal articles
- Conditioning grandparent care-labour mobility at the care-migration systems nexus: Australia and the UK. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print), 1-20.
- The vulnerability of Central & Eastern European and Zimbabwean migrant home care workers’ wellbeing in the UK: the intersectional effects of migration and social care systems. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print), 1-20.
- “You still want to go lots of places”: Exploring walking interviews in research with older migrants. The Gerontologist. View this article in WRRO
- Analysing migrants' ageing in place as embodied practices of embedding through time : ‘Kilburn is not Kilburn any more’. Population, Space and Place, 27(3). View this article in WRRO
- Unsettling Events: Understanding Migrants’ Responses to Geopolitical Transformative Episodes through a Life-Course Lens. International Migration Review, 55(1), 227-253. View this article in WRRO
- The interplay between structural and systemic vulnerability during the COVID-19 pandemic : migrant agricultural workers in informal settlements in Southern Italy. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 47(9), 1903-1921. View this article in WRRO
- Introduction to the special issue "Transnational care : Families confronting borders". Journal of Family Research, 32(3), 393-414. View this article in WRRO
- Examining transnational care circulation trajectories within immobilizing regimes of migration : implications for proximate care. Journal of Family Research, 32(3), 514-536. View this article in WRRO
- Brexit and beyond: Transforming mobility and immobility. Central and Eastern European Migration Review, 9(1), 5-12. View this article in WRRO
- EU integration in the (post)-migrant-crisis context: learning new integration modes?. European Review, 28(2), 306-324. View this article in WRRO
- The social reproductive worlds of migrants. Journal of Family Studies, 24(1), 1-4. View this article in WRRO
- Marriage Migration Policy in South Korea: Social Investment beyond the Nation State. International Migration, 56(1), 23-38. View this article in WRRO
- Conditioning Family-life at the Intersection of Migration and Welfare: The Implications for ‘Brexit Families’. Journal of Social Policy, 46(4), 797-814. View this article in WRRO
- Social reproduction in Sicily’s agricultural sector: migration status and context of reception. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 43(15), 2573-2590. View this article in WRRO
- Situating transnational families' care-giving arrangements: the role of institutional contexts. GLOBAL NETWORKS-A JOURNAL OF TRANSNATIONAL AFFAIRS, 14(2), 210-229.
- Migrant Men's Fathering Narratives, Practices and Projects in National and Transnational Spaces: Recent Polish Male Migrants to London. INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, 52(1), 178-191.
- Fathers' time-bind and the outsourcing of "male" domestic work in Europe: the cases of the United Kingdom and Germany. Journal of International and Comparative Social Policy, 29(2), 109-121.
- Introduction: Domestic and Care Work at the Intersection of Welfare, Gender and Migration Regimes: Some European Experiences. Social Policy and Society, 9(3), 379-384.
- Domestic-Sector Work in the UK: Locating Men in the Configuration of Gendered Care and Migration Regimes. Social Policy and Society, 9(3), 443-454.
- Disabled men and fathering: Opportunities and constraints. Community, Work and Family, 13(2), 127-146.
- Migration and uneven development within an enlarged european union: Fathering, gender divisions and male migrant domestic services. European Urban and Regional Studies, 17(2), 197-215.
- Gendered Divisions in Domestic Work Time: The rise of the (migrant) handyman phenomenon. Time & Society, 19(2), 239-264.
- Men and domestic labor: A missing link in the global care chain. Men and Masculinities, 13(1), 126-149.
- Contextualizing rationality: Mature student carers and higher education in England. Feminist Economics, 15(1), 85-111.
- The widening participation agenda: The marginal place of care. Gender and Education, 20(6), 623-637.
- Working mothers and the welfare state. religion and the politics of work-family policies in western Europe and the united states. WEST EUR POLIT, 30(5), 1225-1226.
- New Labour and Reconciling Work and Family Life: Making It Fathers' Business?. Social Policy and Society, 5(02), 167-175.
- A system-thinking approach for migration studies: an introduction. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 1-19.
Chapters
- Transnational families in the era of global mobility, Handbook of Migration and Globalisation (pp. 387-401).
- The EU integration project through the lens of the Balkan-route ‘migrant crisis’, Migration, EU Integration and the Balkan Route (pp. 12-33). Routledge
- Welfare/migration regimes and care chains, Handbook on Migration and Ageing (pp. 67-75).
- Key developments and future prospects in the study of transnational families, Research Handbook on the Sociology of the Family (pp. 439-451).
- Transnational Families: Opportunities and Constraints for Caring Across Borders In Kapella O, Schneider N & Rost H (Ed.), Familie Bildung Migration View this article in WRRO
- Migrants and Asylum Seekers In Alcock P (Ed.), Students Companion to Social Policy, 5th Edition
- Transnational families, care and wellbeing, Handbook of Migration and Health (pp. 477-497). View this article in WRRO
- Conclusions, Family Life in an Age of Migration and Mobility (pp. 337-350). Palgrave Macmillan UK
- Introduction: Family Life in an Age of Migration and Mobility: Introducing a Global and Family Life-Course Perspective, Family Life in an Age of Migration and Mobility (pp. 1-18). Palgrave Macmillan UK
- Marriage Migration Policy as a Social Reproduction System: The South Korean Experience, Family Life in an Age of Migration and Mobility (pp. 137-161). Palgrave Macmillan UK
- Migrant men and fathering: the circulation of fatherly care within the families of recent Polish male migrants in London In Baldassar L & Merla L (Ed.), Transnational Familes, Migration and the Circulation of Care: understanding mobility and absence in family life Routledge View this article in WRRO
- Getting tough on the family-migration route: a blurring of the 'them' and 'us' in anti-immigration rhetoric In Foster L (Ed.), In Defence of Welfare 2 Policy Press
- Polish Male Migrants in London: The Circulation of Fatherly Care, Transnational Families, Migration and the Circulation of Care (pp. 201-216). Routledge
- Mexican Gardeners in the USA, GENDER, MIGRATION AND DOMESTIC WORK: MASCULINITIES, MALE LABOUR AND FATHERING IN THE UK AND USA (pp. 122-+).
- Researching Men in the Relationship between Gender, Migration and Domestic Work, Gender, Migration and Domestic Work (pp. 35-64). Palgrave Macmillan UK
- Gender, Migration and Domestic Work: An Introduction, Gender, Migration and Domestic Work (pp. 1-19). Palgrave Macmillan UK
- Gender Identity and Work: Migrant Domestic Work and Masculinity, Gender, Migration and Domestic Work (pp. 149-177). Palgrave Macmillan UK
- Connecting Men in the International Division of Domestic Work: The New ‘Father Time-Bind’, Global Divisions between Men and Gender Inequalities, Gender, Migration and Domestic Work (pp. 94-121). Palgrave Macmillan UK
- Migrants and Male Domestic Work in the UK: The Rise of the ‘Polish Handyman’, Gender, Migration and Domestic Work (pp. 65-93). Palgrave Macmillan UK
- Globalization, Migration and Domestic Work: Gendering the Debate, Gender, Migration and Domestic Work (pp. 20-34). Palgrave Macmillan UK
- Symposium on the coalition government, Social Policy Review 23: Analysis and Debate in Social Policy, 2011 (pp. 1-6).
- Transnational families in the era of global mobility (pp. 431-443). Edward Elgar Publishing
- Transnational Families, The Wiley Blackwell Companion to the Sociology of Families (pp. 155-175). John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
- Transnational Families, Migration and the Circulation of Care In Baldassar L & Merla L (Ed.) Routledge
Book reviews
- Disabled fathers. Disability, Pregnancy & Parenthood International, 62.
- Citizenship in an enlarging Europe: from dream to awakening. J GENDER STUD, 16(3), 300-301.
- The politics of sexual harassment: A comparative study of the United States, the European Union, and Germany. SOC POLICY ADMIN, 40(5), 565-567.
- Welfare and families in Europe. JOURNAL OF SOCIAL POLICY, 35, 325-326.
- The gender division of welfare. The impact of the British and German welfare states. JOURNAL OF EUROPEAN SOCIAL POLICY, 11(3), 281-281.
- Single mothers in an international context: Mothers or workers?. WOMENS STUDIES INTERNATIONAL FORUM, 21(1), 127-128.
- Women and the European labour markets - vanDoorneHuiskes,A, vanHoof,J, Roelofs,E. JOURNAL OF EUROPEAN SOCIAL POLICY, 7(2), 163-165.
- Women of the European Union. The politics of work and daily life - GarciaRamon,MD, Monk,J. JOURNAL OF EUROPEAN SOCIAL POLICY, 7(2), 163-165.
- FAREWELL TO THE FAMILY - PUBLIC-POLICY AND FAMILY BREAKDOWN IN BRITAIN AND THE USA - MORGAN,P. JOURNAL OF SOCIAL POLICY, 24, 467-469.
Reports
- British Medical Association's Cohort Study of 2006 Medical Graduates: Longitudinal Analysis of Career Trajectories View this article in WRRO
- Disabled Fathers: towards a research agenda
Website content
- 'Not one of you any longer': EU Nationals' Brexit uncertainty and mistrust..
- Foreword.
- Research group
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Majella co-founded the Migration Research Group in the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Sheffield, within which she is now Director of the CDT in New Horizons in Borders and Bordering.
- Grants
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2022-2025 Economic and Social Research Council
PI on the Storying Life Courses for Intersectional Inclusion: Ethnicity and Wellbeing Across Time and Place project (Funded value = £1,114,718)
2021-2026 Economic and Social Research Council
Co-I in the Centre for Care (Funded value = £8,219,677)
2020-23 European Commission H2020
Co-I on the EMpowerment and Integration of Migrant Youth (MIMY) project, leading the University of Sheffield team (Award = €2,999,998; PI = Prof Birte Nienaber, University of Luxembourg)
2019-23 European Commission H2020
Co-I on the Migration, Integration and Governance Research Centre (MIGREC) capacity-building project (Award = €799,919; PI = Prof Natalija Perisic, University of Belgrade).
2019-20 Worldwide Universities Network
PI on the research collaboration Migrants’ decision-making in the context of shifting migration regimes (Award = £31,640).
2017-21 Economic and Social Research Council
Co-I on the Sustainable Care Programme, co-leading the work package - Care ‘in’ and ‘out of’ place: towards sustainable well-being in mobile and diverse contexts. (Award = £2.54 million; PI = Prof Sue Yeandle).
2017-19 Noble Foundation
Co-I on the project Modern Poland: Migration and Transformations (Award = £29,760; PI = Prof Louise Ryan).
2016-19 European Commission
University of Sheffield PI on the MIGRATE Jean Monnet project (Award = €374,371 Euro; Project Co-ordinator = SEERC, Thessaloniki).
2016 British Medical Association
PI on the project Analysis of the BMA Cohort Study of 2006 Medical Graduates (Award = £38,720)
2016 World Universities Network
Co-I on the project Hidden Voices: Exploring the health experiences of children who migrate (Award = £20,000; PI = Dr Jill Thompson).
2013-14 White Rose University Consortium
PI on the Research Network Migration and Economic Crisis: the experiences of Brits at home and abroad (Award = £10724)
2008-9 Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
PI on the project Situating men within global care chains: the migrant handyman phenomenon (Award = £98,000)
2005-7 Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
Co-I on the Seminar Series Gender, work and life in the new global economy (Award = £15,000; PI = Prof. Diane Perrons).
- Teaching activities
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Majella is Director of the Centre for Doctoral Training in New Horizons in Borders and Bordering.
- Postgraduate Supervision
Majella has a strong track record in successful PhD supervision. Topics previously and currently supervised include: transnational care networks, young unaccompanied asylum seekers and transitions to adulthood, Roma and experiences of European citizenship, women’s experiences of trafficking, UK asylum and refugee policy, migrant care workers in Saudi Arabia, diaspora engagement in development, rural-urban migration and return migration in China and care workers’ wellbeing. Majella is interested in supervising PhDs relating to the research areas listed on her Research page.