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on Economics of Human Migration |
| By: | Berggren, Niclas (Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN)); Ljunge, Martin (Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN)); Nilsson, Therese (Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN)) |
| Abstract: | Tolerance – respecting individual choice and differences among people – is a prominent feature of modern European culture. That immigrants embrace this kind of liberal value is arguably important for integration, a central policy goal. We provide a rigorous study of what factors in the ancestral countries of second-generation immigrants – including formal and informal institutions – that predict their level of tolerance towards gay people. Using the epidemiological method allows us to rule out reverse causality. Out of the 46 factors examined, one emerges as very robust: a Muslim background. Tolerance is lower the larger the share of Muslims in the country from which the parents emigrated. An instrumental-variable analysis shows that the main mechanism is not through the individual being a Muslim but through the individual being highly religious. Two additional attitudes among people in the ancestral country (valuing children being tolerant and respectful, and valuing children taking responsibility), as well as impartial institutions in the ancestral country, predict higher individual tolerance. Our findings thus point to an important role for both formal- and informal-institutional background factors in shaping tolerance. |
| Keywords: | Tolerance; Integration; Liberal; Culture; Institutions; Religion |
| JEL: | F02 F22 Z13 Z18 |
| Date: | 2019–05–28 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:iuiwop:1282&r=all |
| By: | Wahba, Jackline (University of Southampton); Wang, Chuhong (University of Southampton) |
| Abstract: | We study the impact of adult children's internal migration on the health and subjective well-being of elderly parents left behind, distinguishing between the gender of the migrant children. To overcome migration endogeneity, we exploit novel and exogenous variation in children's astrological characteristics and apply instrumental variables methods. We find a positive effect of the migration of daughters on parents' health and life satisfaction, but no such beneficial effects when sons migrate. We further explore the mechanism through which this gender-biased migration effect may arise. Our findings have important implications for regions and countries that have high rates of female emigration. |
| Keywords: | migration, health, subjective well-being, gender, Chinese zodiac signs |
| JEL: | O15 I12 J14 J16 R23 |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12370&r=all |
| By: | David, Alexandra; Terstriep, Judith; Sospiro, Paolo; Scibè, Elisa |
| Abstract: | * From a macro-perspective, digital transformation regarded as a continuous process not only impacts our daily lives but also influences social phenomena such as migration processes. * Rather than a luxury item, for refugees' smartphones appear to open a "new window" to the outside world, which influence social behaviour. * Digital, real-time knowledge and information exchange help refugees to find orientation on their escape routes and within the receiving country and thus, are likely to affect migration processes. * Digital apps and social media in particular are important information and communication channels, which accelerate the circulation of information. However, they might also contribute to the creation of positive and negative myths about destination countries. |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:iatfor:062019&r=all |
| By: | Dany Bahar; Prithwiraj Choudhury; Hillel Rapoport |
| Abstract: | We investigate the relationship between the presence of migrant inventors and the dynamics of innovation in the migrants’ receiving countries. We find that countries are 25 to 50 percent more likely to gain advantage in patenting in certain technologies given a twofold increase in the number of foreign inventors from other nations that specialize in those same technologies. For the average country in our sample this number corresponds to only 25 inventors and a standard deviation of 135. We deal with endogeneity concerns by using historical migration networks to instrument for stocks of migrant inventors. Our results generalize the evidence of previous studies that show how migrant inventors “import” knowledge from their home countries which translate into higher patenting. We complement our results with micro-evidence showing that migrant inventors are more prevalent in the first bulk of patents of a country in a given technology, as compared to patents filed at later stages. We interpret these results as tangible evidence of migrants facilitating the technology-specific diffusion of knowledge across nations. |
| Keywords: | innovation, migration, patent, technology, knowledge |
| JEL: | O31 O33 F22 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7690&r=all |
| By: | Yuksel, Mutlu (Dalhousie University); Akbulut-Yuksel, Mevlude (Dalhousie University); Guven, Cahit (Deakin University) |
| Abstract: | This paper estimates the returns to English-speaking fluency on the socioeconomic outcomes of childhood immigrants. We further investigate whether Muslim childhood immigrants face additional hurdles in economic and social integration into the host country. Motivated by the critical age hypothesis, we identify the causal effects of English skills on socioeconomic outcomes by exploring the differences in the country of origin and age at arrival across childhood immigrants. We first document that all childhood immigrants who migrate from non-English-speaking countries at a younger age attain higher levels of English skills. We also find that acquiring better English-language skills improves the educational attainment and labor and marriage market prospects of non-Muslim childhood immigrants significantly and increases their participation in volunteer work. However, our results show that while a good command of English enhances the educational attainments of Muslim childhood immigrants, it shows no positive return in either the labor or marriage markets. Our results also show that progress in English fails to improve Muslim childhood immigrants' engagement in voluntary work, meaning that the opportunity for social cohesion is missed. |
| Keywords: | immigration, english proficiency, socioeconomic outcomes, Muslims |
| JEL: | J12 J13 J24 J31 J61 J62 |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12381&r=all |
| By: | Rus’an Nasrudin; Budy P. Resosudarmo |
| Abstract: | This paper provides new evidence on how a relatively open internal migration policy can influence migrant assimilation outcomes. We revisit the findings of previous studies on international labour migration in developing countries by investigating the economic consequences of moving people from rural areas to four Indonesian cities in which international migration is relatively free. The empirical investigation uses cross-sectional and individual-level panel data techniques. The results suggest that Indonesian migrants do not experience earnings penalties following their arrival in urban areas but have persistently higher earnings than their urban non-migrant counterparts. However, the higher earnings are accompanied by a worrying decline in migrant mental health. The finding of persistently higher earnings contrasts with the results of studies in countries such as China and Vietnam, which have more restrictive policies for rural–urban migration. We argue that economic assimilation can be highly successful in developing economies if the internal migration regime is relatively open, yet it creates an adverse mental health consequence. |
| Keywords: | Indonesia, rural–urban migration, migration policy, mental health of internal migrants |
| JEL: | O15 R23 R28 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pas:papers:2019-04&r=all |
| By: | LIU Yang |
| Abstract: | Job satisfaction has been modeled as the utility obtained from comparing current jobs to alternatives in economic literature. However, little attention has been paid to migrant workers. Using two measurements of relative wages and sample selection models, this study provides empirical evidence that migrants' job satisfaction in host countries could be affected by their personal or average relative wages in home countries. Furthermore, contrary to previous results regarding native workers, the direct effects of education, a firm's size, and permanent employment contracts on migrants' job satisfaction are negative. This is explained by different employment alternatives outside the firm for migrants and native workers. |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:dpaper:19033&r=all |
| By: | Bill Cochrane (University of Waikato); Jacques Poot (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam) |
| Abstract: | This paper provides a survey of the international evidence regarding the impact of immigration on local housing markets. A theoretical framework highlights the complexity of the housing market and the importance of distinguishing between the ownership and use of the stock of dwellings vis-à-vis the residential real estate market. Evidence from eight countries (Canada, France, Italy, New Zealand, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom and United States) and from meta-analysis shows that immigration will lead to higher house prices and rents, and lower housing affordability. On average, a one percent increase in immigration in a city may be expected to raise rents by one-half to one percent and the effect on prices is about double that. However, there is a large variance around this average which is related inter alia to the time frame and spatial scale of the analysis, as well as to local economic conditions. Additionally, the housing impact of immigration will depend on the demographic and economic composition of the immigrant flow, on macroeconomic conditions and expectations, on the institutional factors that influence the price elasticity of the supply of new dwellings, and on how the native born react to immigration. The tendency of the native born to move out of city wards where migrants settle can lead to relative house price declines in these areas. Overall, immigration has been only a minor contributor to the sharply rising house prices in many fast-growing agglomerations in recent decades. |
| Keywords: | immigration; housing; real estate; homeownership |
| JEL: | F22 J61 L85 R21 R23 |
| Date: | 2019–06–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wai:econwp:19/07&r=all |
| By: | Kaz Miyagiwa; Yoshiyasu Ono |
| Abstract: | We examine the effect of immigration on the host-country economy in the dynamic model that can deal with secular unemployment. Immigration has contrasting effects, depending on the economic state of the host country. If it suffers from unemployment, an influx of immigrants worsens unemployment and decreases consumption by natives. If instead the host country has full employment, immigration boosts native consumption while maintaining full employment, provided that immigrants are not too numerous. An influx of too many immigrants however can trigger stagnation. We also find that immigrants’ remittances are harmful to natives under full employment but beneficial under secular stagnation. |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dpr:wpaper:1054r&r=all |
| By: | Michael Amior; Alan Manning |
| Abstract: | Britain suffers from persistent spatial disparities in employment rates. This paper develops an integrated framework for analyzing two forces expected to equalize economic opportunity across areas: commuting and migration. Our framework is applicable to any level of spatial aggregation, and we use it to assess their contribution to labor market adjustment across British wards (or neighborhoods). Commuting offers only limited insurance against local shocks, because commutes are typically short and shocks are heavily correlated spatially. Analogously, migration fails to fully equalize opportunity because of strong temporal correlation in local demand shocks. |
| Keywords: | spatial inequality, commuting, migration |
| JEL: | J21 J61 J64 R23 |
| Date: | 2019–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1623&r=all |
| By: | Mark R. Rosenzweig; Christopher R. Udry |
| Abstract: | The livelihoods of the majority of the world's poor depend on agriculture. They face substantial risk from fluctuations in weather conditions. Better risk, credit and savings markets can improve productivity and welfare in rural areas but entail high administrative costs. We consider a classic public good with benefits that theoretically exceed those of perfect insurance contracts – improving the skill of long-run weather forecasts. We use an equilibrium model of agricultural production and labor migration, and a variety of Indian panel datasets to assess quantitatively the effects of improvements in seasonal forecasts of monsoon weather. We find that in areas where the forecast is accurate (has “skill”) that investment, migration and rural wages respond to forecasts. We calculate that if such skill were pervasive across India, the total value of an accurate forecast for farmers and wage workers is in the tens of billions of rupees. |
| JEL: | O1 Q12 |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:25894&r=all |