Tilly’s Trust Networks in Transnational Migration considers trust networks, the impact of which had not been studied on a large scale. Despite this, trust networks have had very significant effects on the economies of the US as well as foreign countries. In 2002, remittances to the Caribbean accounted for a fifth of the world total, and that is just counting official remittances. Many of these trust networks allow money and goods to bypass official channels which is one of the purposes for these networks.

The main reason for these networks derives from an immigrants purpose for migrating. One major reason to migrate to the US is for the economic opportunities. Once an immigrant earns money, he can send money back to family he might have left behind. This purpose of this money may be to take care of his family, or to elevate their standard of living. However, there must be a certain confidence that this hard earned money will be used for the purposes intended by the immigrant. There must be trust. Many other points are also placed within the network. These include the channels through which money and goods are moving, whether it be a family member, a friend, or official transportation services.

Once these networks are firmly established, so too are the roles of their participants. An immigrant will be working hard to send money and goods over to the homeland. The family member received this money and goods are often expected to take care of other family members, or use the money to build a house, repair a house. Sometimes this is used to show the society that they have become financially established.

Trust networks can also be passed onto the second generation. Children who grow up experiencing the workings of the network may be expected to uphold the network once they grow older. However, a network may sometimes be lost on the second generation. When a family becomes established in a new country, they may lose the need to maintain these social and economic ties.