On the move: Analyzing immigration determinants and immigrant outcomes

Abstract

Given the increased number of immigrants worldwide, the determinants of immigration and the social and economic integration of immigrants into the countries of destination are of particular importance. The contributions of this dissertation address the determinants of immigration by looking at the role of welfare generosity differences between the country of origin and the country of destination (chapter 2) and the role of family ties as determinants of mobility intentions (chapter 3) and immigrant outcomes by studying ethnic penalties in labor market outcomes of second generation immigrants (chapter 4). In chapter 2 I aim to deepen the insight into the relationship between welfare generosity and immigration by analyzing whether and to what extent welfare generosity affects the educational selectivity of out-migration. In the theoretical part, a selection equation is formulated. This equation shows that welfare generosity differences between the country of destination and the country of origin could negatively affect the educational selectivity of out-migration. In the empirical part, a merged data set on immigration between 15 OECD countries between the years 1985 and 2005 was used. A negative but weak effect is found when looking at the skilled selection ratio, i.e. high- and middle- over low-skilled. However, no effect was found when looking at the high-skilled selection ratio only. These findings suggest that other determinants, such as immigrant networks, may be of relatively higher importance for the selectivity of out-migration. In chapter 3 the role of family ties as determinants of mobility intentions are analyzed. A model of family mobility is presented and used to show under which conditions the household decides to stay, migrate, or cross-border commute. In an empirical analysis on mobility intentions in the border regions of Austria and Slovakia, I analyze the effect of family ties on individual mobility intentions. The findings of this chapter suggest that some family ties matter. Having a partner as well as the presence of children decrease mobility intentions. However, the results of the presence of children are less robust than those of having a partner. The partner’s characteristics, such as their educational level or experience and attitudes towards mobility, show only little effect. Chapter 4 sheds light on whether western and non-western second-generation immigrants are more prone to educational mismatches and unemployment than their native counterparts, looking at Dutch applied science graduates. Immigrants have been found to show worse labor market outcomes compared to natives. If this difference persists after controlling for other explanatory variables such as experience, grades or language differences, it is called an ethnic penalty. The findings of this chapter show that immigrants are more likely to experience educational mismatches and unemployment. After controlling for other variables that have been found to influence the incidence of educational mismatches, such as study programs, GPA or differences in resume building, an ethnic penalty persists.