From Attitudes to Moral Frameworks: Migration and Recognition in Spain

Joan Tahull Fort
joan.tahull@udl.cat
Universitat de Lleida, España

Abstract:

This article analyzes migration in Spain as a moral framework in which coexistence, distributive justice, and interpersonal recognition are interpreted, rather than assumed as a set of individual attitudes. To this end, we analyze five discussion groups conducted by the Social Science Research Center (Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas—CIS) in 2025 to examine how migration spontaneously emerged as a framework for making sense of society. The findings show that participants turned to the migration phenomenon without being prompted by the moderator, as a central reference point to articulate their moral judgments on social organization and functioning. In a context shaped by migratory flows, discourses stem from experiences of cultural proximity and coexistence, which inform their recognition and reciprocity criteria. This study identifies a system of moral frameworks articulated around biography, individual differentiation, daily coexistence, reciprocity, and shared experiences. The findings suggest that migration functions as a relational discursive device rather than as an ideological category. Additionally, we observe a generational pattern: the central role of migration as an interpretive framework becomes more prominent with age, becoming integrated more and more in biographical and historical accounts.

Keywords: migration, social coexistence, social recognition, identity and social inclusion.