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This article identifies a number of challenges that the social sciences will have to play a broader role in formulating international migration policies. This new role is subject to two major processes: globalization & the universal acceptance of human rights. Both processes affect policy options, albeit from different perspectives. Recent findings confirm that there is no direct link between poverty & South-North migration, despite the fact that many policy recommendations are based on this premise. The article suggests that the contradiction between policy recommendations & research findings is due to the weight of economic theory in migration policy. Yet economics does not take into account the complex nature of social, political, & cultural factors that also influence migrant motivations & migration processes. Recent efforts to formulate multidisciplinary theories should help devise more effective policies. Channels of communication will need to be improved between knowledge producers & policymakers. The article also recommends distinguishing between a conceptual & an instrumental use of knowledge. Adapted from the source document.