COUNTER-URBANIZATION IN SOCIETAL CONTEXT: LONG-DISTANCE MIGRATION TO THE HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS OF SCOTLAND∗

Abstract

Recent growth in long-distance migration by non-Scots to remote parts of the Scottish Highlands is evaluated in relation to key explanatory themes in counter-urbanization literature: rural-urban convergence, expansion of the affluent middle class, and changing residential preferences. A survey of in-migrants' motivations and livelihood adjustments reveals the primacy of quality of life considerations and a ‘satisficing’ approach to work, lifestyle and residential location. It is concluded that peripheral area counter-urbanization could be maintained without the context of societal affluence that spawned the movement in the 1960s.