This book, in its second edition, introduces readers to the economics of immigration, which is a booming field within economics. The main themes and objectives of the book are for readers to understand the decision to migrate, the impacts of immigration on markets and government budgets and the consequences of immigration policies in a global context. Our goal is for readers to be able to make informed economic arguments about key issues related to immigration around the world.
This book applies economic tools to the topic of immigration to answer questions like whether immigration raises or lowers the standard of living of people in a country. The book examines many other consequences of immigration as well, such as the effect on tax revenues and government expenditures, the effect on how and what firms decide to produce and the effect on income inequality, to name just a few. It also examines questions like what determines whether people choose to move and where they decide to go. It even examines how immigration affects the ethnic diversity of restaurants and financial markets.
Readers will learn how to apply economic tools to the topic of immigration. Immigration is frequently in the news as more people move around the world to work, to study and to join family members. The economics of immigration has important policy implications. Immigration policy is controversial in many countries. This book explains why this is so and equips the reader to understand and contribute to policy debates on this important topic.
Author(s): Cynthia Bansak, Nicole Simpson, Madeline Zavodny
Edition: 2
Publisher: Routledge
Year: 2020
Language: English
Pages: 449
City: London
Cover
Half Title
Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of contents
Illustrations
Preface
Part I Background on immigration
Chapter 1 Why study the economics of immigration?
Types of immigrants
Immigration is controversial
Immigration versus international trade
Immigration policy
Economics of immigration terminology
A basic model of immigration
A global overview of immigration
An overview of U.S. immigration
The rest of this book
What this book does not cover
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Chapter 2 Patterns of international migration
Where are immigrants from?
Where do immigrants go?
Immigrant destinations within countries
Measuring immigrant concentration and dispersion
Immigration to poor countries
Do immigrants stay? Return and repeat migration
Circular migration
The role of immigration policy
Refugees and asylum seekers
Unauthorized immigrants
Concluding thoughts
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Chapter 3 Determinants of immigration
Push and pull factors
The migration decision
Family decision-making
Uncertainty
The role of immigration policy
The gravity model of migration
Empirical evidence
The role of economic conditions in the origin
The role of economic conditions in the destination
The role of migration costs
The role of migrant networks
The role of immigration policy
Evidence for specific groups of immigrants
Determinants of immigrant destinations within countries
Determinants of return migration
Immigration paradigms
Conclusion
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Part II Immigrant selection and assimilation
Chapter 4 Selection in immigration
The Roy model
The direction of selection
Refugees and selection
Intermediate selection
Summing up the model
Implications for the returns to migration
Empirical evidence on selection
Measuring the return to skill
Global patterns of selection
Effects of migration costs and other factors
Effects of immigration policy
Selection among Mexico–U.S. immigrants
Selection on health
Selection in return migration
The Roy model and return migration
Empirical evidence on selection in return migration
Final thoughts on selection
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Chapter 5 Assimilation
Labor market assimilation
Cohort differences in assimilation
Gender issues in immigrants’ labor market assimilation
Accounting for return migration
Immigrant types and assimilation
Participation in public assistance programs
Location choice and enclaves
Education
Language
Marriage and fertility
Health
Naturalization
Final thoughts on assimilation
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Chapter 6 The second generation
Measuring intergenerational mobility
Intergenerational transmission and intergenerational elasticities
Intergenerational mobility among immigrants in the labor market
Transition matrices in Switzerland
Intergenerational transmission
Issues in measuring intergenerational mobility among immigrants
Intergenerational mobility in education
Language proficiency
Marriage and fertility
Ethnic identity
Final thoughts on the second generation
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Part III Labor market effects of immigration
Chapter 7 Labor market effects of immigration: theory
Immigration model
Immigration model with costs
Upward-sloping labor supply when immigrants and natives are perfect substitutes
Labor demand
Upward-sloping labor supply when immigrants and natives are complements
Unskilled and skilled labor
Elasticity of substitution between different types of workers
Physical capital
Open versus closed economy
Final thoughts on theoretical labor market effects
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Suggestions for further reading
Chapter 8 Labor market effects of immigration: evidence
Brief review of theory
Empirical approaches
Approach #1: Spatial correlations
Approach #2: Natural experiments
Approach #3: Skill cells
Approach #4: Structural models
Concluding remarks regarding wage effects
Other channels of labor market adjustment
Job upgrading by natives
Complementarities among highly educated workers
Changes in input and output mix
Productivity gains
Effects on previous immigrants
Concluding thoughts
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Part IV Other effects of immigration
Chapter 9 Effects on other markets in the destination
Housing
Prices of goods and services
Product diversity
International trade
Financial markets
Physical capital investment
Technology, innovation and self-employment
Income
Income inequality
Growth accounting
The Solow model
Final thoughts
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Chapter 10 Fiscal effects
Measuring the fiscal impact
Fiscal costs and benefits
Conceptual issues
Accounting methods
Estimates of the fiscal impact of immigration: United States
Static estimates
Dynamic estimates
State-level results
Estimates of the fiscal impact of immigration: OECD countries
U.S. immigrants’ participation in government-funded programs
Welfare
Education
Health care
Social Security
Final thoughts on fiscal effects
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Chapter 11 Effects on source countries
Labor market consequences of emigration for the source country
Emigration and human capital: brain drain or brain gain?
The extent of high-skilled emigration
Models of brain drain and brain gain
Channels of brain drain and brain gain
Growth accounting
Policy issues and responses to high-skilled emigration
Remittances
Reasons for remitting
Remittances in the labor market model
Evidence on the impact of remittances
Remittances and economic growth
Remittances and poverty
Remittances and development
Remittance policy
Impacts on political, economic and social institutions
Impact on political institutions
Impact on economic institutions
Impact on social institutions
Final thoughts on source countries
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Part V Frontiers in immigration research
Chapter 12 Frontiers in the economics of immigration
Environmental migration
Voting, electoral outcomes and attitudes toward immigration
Crime
Human trafficking
Education
Health
Fertility
Happiness
Final thoughts on frontiers
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Part VI Immigration policy
Chapter 13 U.S. immigration policy
The evolution of U.S. immigration policy
Shifting from national origins to preference categories
Addressing unauthorized immigration
Current immigration policy
Legal permanent resident visas
Temporary visas
Unauthorized immigration and enforcement
U.S. refugee/asylee policy
State and local policies
Failed attempts at federal immigration policy reform
Immigration initiatives in the Trump era
Final thoughts on U.S. immigration policy
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Internet resources
Chapter 14 Immigration policy around the world
Brief recap of U.S. immigration policy
Point-based systems
Canada
Australia
Other point-based systems
Drawbacks of a point system
European Union
Guest worker programs
Germany
Spain
Other countries
Refugee and asylee policies
Refugee crisis in Europe
Labor market outcomes of refugees
Legalization policies
Policies regarding immigrants after arrival
Introduction programs
Language training
Active labor market programs
Anti-discrimination policies
Final thoughts
Problems and discussion questions
Notes
Suggestions for further reading
Author index
Subject index
