Why Families Flee: A Study Of Family Migration Patterns From the Northern Triangle of Central America

The past decade has witnessed an unprecedented increase in migrant families from the Northern Triangle, the region of Central America comprised of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. The mass influx in family migration has important consequences for destination countries like the United States and Mexico as well as the countries which they leave behind. This study aims to answer the question of how family migration patterns in the Northern Triangle of Central America have changed in the past decade and why. I outline the migration decisions of families through a qualitative and quantitative lens. I use newspapers and NGO reports to outline the plethora of factors which inhibit economic, social, and political progress in the region. Understanding the complex dynamics in the Triangle inform the logistic regression which provides data on the relationships between intentions to migrate and crime victimization, gender, household economic status, and household location. I used the LAPOP AmericasBarometer survey for the years 2012 and 2018 for all three countries to determine how patterns have changed and offer possible rationale for the shifts. The results indicate that crime victimization is less related to migration intentions relative to household income, gender, and rural status. This research may change the way we view migrant families from the Northern Triangle and inform policy solutions to what is now viewed as a humanitarian crisis