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on Economics of Human Migration |
| By: | Bijwaard, Govert (NIDI - Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute); Wahba, Jackline (University of Southampton) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the impact of unemployment on out-migration by distinguishing between return and onward migration and controlling for total earnings. We use Timing-of-Events models and control for the endogeneity of total earnings, unemployment and out-migration using administrative data from the Netherlands. Our findings suggest that unemployment triggers return migration more than onward migration. When total earnings are low unemployment increases the hazard of return migration. When total earnings are high the hazard rate of onward migration for unemployed immigrants increases. Thus, these findings highlight that out-migration is affected both by unemployment and by total earnings as well as by the interaction between the two. |
| Keywords: | migration dynamics, temporary migration, target savers, unemployment |
| JEL: | F22 J61 C41 |
| Date: | 2022–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp15148&r= |
| By: | Julio César Daly |
| Abstract: | This study evaluates the causal impact of the Venezuelan migration on the price level of goods and services in Colombian host cities. The inflow of migrants to a city have a demand shock through an increase in consumption levels, and a supply shock through a decrease in the production costs. I use an Enclave instrumental variable strategy, which exploits the tendency of migrants to settle in places with previous migrant networks. I find that the Venezuelan migration increases averages prices in the non-tradable sector and has no effect on the price of food, tradable goods, transport and energy sectors. I provide evidence that this result may be related to the effect migration has on the price of education and housing. My estimates suggests that a 1 percentage point increase in the migration rate is associated with an 0.913% average increase in the price of the nontradables. This result is consistent with a demand side shock. |
| Keywords: | Migration, Prices, Enclave, IV. |
| JEL: | F22 J15 J23 |
| Date: | 2021–03–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:col:000089:019102&r= |
| By: | Diego Marino Fages (University of Nottingham); Matias Morales (New York University) |
| Abstract: | Anti-immigrant sentiment is frequently motivated by the idea that migrants are a threat to the host country’s culture (Rapoport et al., 2020). We contribute to the discussion by investigating whether migrants adapt their social preferences (SPs) to those prevalent in their host country. For this, we rely on a global and experimentally validated survey to show that migrants’ preferences strongly correlate with their host population’s SPs and provide some evidence of a causal relationship. |
| Keywords: | Migration, Assimilation, Social Preferences |
| Date: | 2022–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:not:notcdx:2022-07&r= |
| By: | IGARASHI Akira; ONO Yoshikuni |
| Abstract: | The presence of native allies is important for the success of immigrants' social movements in East Asian countries, as the number of immigrants is relatively low. However, it remains unclear whether advocacy messages from natives or from immigrants are more effective in changing the attitudes of natives to support policies for immigrants. From the perspective of social identity theory, we hypothesized that the effectiveness of persuasive messages would vary depending on the group issuing the message. To test this, we conducted a survey experiment using a Japanese case of granting local voting rights to immigrants. Our results showed that Japanese support for granting immigrants local voting rights did not decrease when they heard an advocacy message from Japanese but decreased when it came from a Korean immigrant whose voting rights are highly relevant. These results suggest that advocacy messages from natives may lead to more support for immigrants. |
| Date: | 2022–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:dpaper:22008&r= |
| By: | Efendic, Adnan; Kovaéc, Dejan; Shapiro, Jacob N. |
| Abstract: | We investigate the long-term relationship between conflict-related migration and individual socioeconomic inequality. Looking at the post-conflict environment of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), a former Yugoslav state most heavily impacted by the conflicts of the early 1990s, the paper focuses on differences in educational performance and income between four groups: migrants, internally displaced persons, former external migrants, and those who did not move. The analysis leverages a municipality-representative survey (n≈6,000) that captured self-reported education and income outcomes as well as migration histories. We find that individuals with greater exposure to conflict had systematically worse educational performance and lower earnings two decades after the war. Former external migrants now living in BiH have better educational and economic outcomes than those who did not migrate, but these advantages are smaller for individuals who were forced to move. We recommend that policies intended to address migration-related discrepancies should be targeted on the basis of individual and family experiences caused by conflict. |
| Keywords: | conflict,education,forced migration,inequality |
| JEL: | D74 F22 K42 Z18 |
| Date: | 2022 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:iwhdps:112022&r= |
| By: | Mette Foged (Mette Foged); Cynthia van der Werf (Cynthia van der Werf) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines whether proximity to language classes raises refugees’ language proficiency and improves their social and economic integration. Our identification strategy leverages the opening, closing and gradual expansion of local language training centers in Denmark, as well as the quasi-random assignment of the refugees to locations with varying proximity to a language training center. First, we show that refugees’ distance from the assigned language training center is as good as random. Second, we show that language skills decrease monotonically with commuting time such that a one-hour decrease in commuting time increases fluency in the Danish language by 4 to 6 percent relative to the sample mean. The exogenous variation in language proficiency generates substantial positive effects on post language training human capital acquisition and on the integration of the refugees in the local communities where they were initially placed, as measured by the lower exit rates from those same communities and lower mobility to the largest, most immigrant-dense, cities in Denmark. |
| Keywords: | refugee integration, language skills |
| JEL: | J24 J60 |
| Date: | 2022–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crm:wpaper:2210&r= |
| By: | Amaia Palencia-Esteban (University of Vigo) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes the effect of immigrants on the women-men gap in several labor market outcomes, focusing on their role as child caretakers and substitutes for women’s domestic work. We use administrative Spanish Social Security records from 1998 to 2008 and follow a spatial correlations approach with instrumental variables, based on the distribution of early migrants across provinces. We exploit the presence of children and its interaction with immigrants share to capture the home-care substitution effect. We find that one percentage point increase in the regional share of immigrants rises the women-men differential in employment probability by 0.6 points in families with children, while the effect equals 0.2 for the childless. The additional effect of 0.4 points on families with children is attributed to the impact of immigrants through the supply of childcare services. This effect also applies to the work intensity (days and hours worked) and labor earnings. Our results are largely driven by individuals below tertiary education. |
| Keywords: | D10, F22, J22, J31 |
| Date: | 2022–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:inq:inqwps:ecineq2022-610&r= |
| By: | Esteban J. Quiñones; Sabine Liebenehm; Rasadhika Sharma |
| Abstract: | The authors investigate the extent to which droughts impact migration responses of rural households in Thailand and Vietnam, as well as the role of underlying mechanisms such as risk aversion and socioeconomic status that may affect the response. |
| Keywords: | migration, droughts, Thailand, Vietnam, International |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mpr:mprres:ac2ba236e1b8428fbeb6d8b4366e5477&r= |
| By: | Hammer, Luisa; Hertweck, Matthias S. |
| Abstract: | EU Eastern Enlargement elicited a rise in (temporary) labour market oriented immi-gration to Germany starting in May 2011. Taking into account that not all immigrantsstay permanently and that outmigration flows are selective, this paper classifies recent EUimmigrants into 'new arrivals' and 'stayers' drawing on administrative social securitydata (2005-2017). This novel strategy allows us to separately identify their potentiallyopposing short- and medium-run effects on labour market outcomes in Germany. We finda transitory negative wage effect among German nationals, particularly at the bottom ofthe wage distribution; and a permanent positive effect on full-time employment. |
| Keywords: | EU Eastern Enlargement,immigration,wages,employment,Germany |
| JEL: | E24 F22 J31 J61 |
| Date: | 2022 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:bubdps:022022&r= |
| By: | Aizhamal Rakhmetova; Roman Hoffmann; Mariola Pytlikova |
| Abstract: | Despite an increasing number of studies, there is no scientific consensus on the extent and conditions under which environmental factors influence migration. In particular, little is known about the role played by financial resources that may facilitate or hinder migration under environmental stress. Empirical evidence shows that some households migrate in response to environmental hazards while others remain in place, potentially being trapped due to lack of resources, i.e. poverty constraints. However, little is known about how access to financial resources influences the decision of a household to stay or migrate. On one hand, financial resources can help to alleviate poverty constraints and to cover migration costs, thereby increasing migration (climate-driver mechanism); on the other hand, financial resources can also improve the adaptation capacities of households at the place they reside, and thus reduce migration responses to environmental changes (climate-inhibitor mechanism). To shed light on households’ migration decisions in response to climate shocks depending on their access to financial resources, we utilize rich micro-data from Indonesia and exploit two sources of variation in climate and cash transfers. Our results suggest that better access to financial resources facilitates the climateinhibitor mechanism for short-term rainfall shocks and natural disasters. At the same time, better accessibility to financial resources enhances the climate-driver mechanism for accumulated rainfall shocks and temperature anomalies. |
| Keywords: | climate change; migration; financial resources; adaptation; |
| Date: | 2022–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cer:papers:wp724&r= |
| By: | Vonnahme, Christina |
| Abstract: | The integration of foreign origin students in host countries' educational systems has mostly been studied based on cross-sectional data. In contrast, I use data from a national longitudinal education study to calculate achievement gaps in vocabulary, reading and math tests for foreign origin relative to native students over the school career in Germany for the years 2010 to 2018. In line with previous research, the raw gaps are substantial and can be explained to one to two thirds by school characteristics and the socio-economic background of the child. Taking a longitudinal perspective reveals that both raw and conditional gaps slightly decrease over several parts of the school career. However, the unexplained part of the decomposed gaps tends to increase as children grow older. The findings demonstrate that initial disadvantages of foreign origin students reduce rather than accumulate, but partly prevail until the end of school. |
| Keywords: | Integration,achievement gaps,educational performance,immigrants |
| JEL: | I24 J15 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:rwirep:932&r= |
| By: | Doran, Kirk (University of Notre Dame); Gelber, Alexander (University of Pennsylvania); Isen, Adam (U.S. Department of the Treasury) |
| Abstract: | We compare winning and losing firms in lotteries for H-1B visas, matching administrative data on these lotteries to administrative tax data on U.S. firms and to approved U.S. patents. Winning one additional H-1B visa crowds out about 1.5 other workers at the firm. Additional H-1Bs have insignificant and at most modest effects on firm innovation. More general evidence from the universe of U.S. firms and the universe of H-1B visas using alternative estimation strategies is consistent with these results. Firms that hire H-1Bs grow faster and innovate more because they are different in other ways from firms that do not. |
| Keywords: | immigration, highly skilled workforce, innovation, employment |
| JEL: | J00 J08 J15 J23 J24 J48 |
| Date: | 2022–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp15146&r= |
| By: | Olovsson, Conny (Research Department, Central Bank of Sweden); Walentin, Karl (Research Department, Central Bank of Sweden); Westermark, Andreas (Research Department, Central Bank of Sweden) |
| Abstract: | International immigration flows are large, volatile and have recently increased. This paper is the first to study the dynamic effects of immigration shocks on the economy within a search and matching framework. Since the microdata indicates that some of the key macroeconomic effects of immigration are largest in the short run, a steady state analysis would be insufficient. To construct a quantitatively relevant general equilibrium framework, we use extensive Swedish microdata. We then study the effect of a large immigration shock on various macroeconomic aggregates. Due to compositional effects, there is a substantial negative effect on GDP per capita and the employment rate on impact that then decreases over time. |
| Keywords: | Immigration; dynamics; search and matching |
| JEL: | J21 J31 J61 |
| Date: | 2021–10–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:rbnkwp:0405&r= |
| By: | Siddique, Abu; Islam, Asad; Mozumder, Tanvir Ahmed; Rahman, Tabassum; Shatil, Tanvir |
| Abstract: | Forced displacement is a major driver of mental disorders among refugees worldwide. Poor mental health of adult refugees, particularly mothers, is also considered a risk factor for the psychological well-being and development of their children. In this study, we experimentally examine the extent to which a multifaceted psychosocial program improves the mental well-being of refugee mothers, and facilitates growth and development among children under the age of two. In partnership with BRAC, we ran a cluster randomized controlled trial on 3,500 Rohingya mother-child dyads in refugee camps in Bangladesh. Participants were given weekly psychosocial support for a year that includes psychoeducation and parenting support for mothers and play activities for both mothers and children. The intervention was largely successful and led to: (i) reductions in the psychological trauma and depression severity of mothers and children, (ii) improvements in communication, gross-motor, problem-solving, and social skills of children, and (iii) reductions in stunting, underweight, and wasting among children in the treatment group. The intervention also caused the mental health of children to be more aligned with the mental health of their mothers, implying policies targeting the mental well-being of displaced mothers can be an important stepping stone to developing psychological resilience among their children, which can help them grow into well-rounded, healthy adults. |
| Date: | 2022–03–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:b4fc7&r= |
| By: | Jaiswal, Sreeja; Bensch, Gunther; Navalkar, Aniket; Jayaraman, T. |
| Abstract: | Railways are a key infrastructure that facilitates trade and regional integration with potential consequences on local development and the environment in hitherto backward regions. In this article, we study the medium- to long-term socio-economic and environmental infrastructure impacts for the case of the Konkan Railway, which is one of the biggest railway construction endeavours in independent India. We employ a quasi-experimental mixed-methods design to explore the impact of the Konkan Railway on population, workforce composition and land cover types using census and satellite data. We find that the Konkan Railway led to an increase in the female-to-male sex ratio and a negative effect on the share of male workers among the working population. In combination with qualitative evidence, this suggests that the railway access has reinforced the pre-existing pattern of high levels of male migration. We also find an increase in population and the workforce participation rate without disparate workforce effects across sectors suggesting that the railway had moderate effects across the local economies. In terms of land use, the analysis could not substantiate concerns regarding substantive loss of forest cover induced by the railways. The findings encourage policy makers - in assessing the effects of transport infrastructure - to take into consideration the impact on migration, labour mobility and labour market outcomes in sending and receiving regions. |
| Keywords: | Infrastructure,railway access,migration,impact evaluation,mixed methods,India |
| JEL: | N75 O18 O40 R11 R41 |
| Date: | 2022 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:rwirep:936&r= |