Nation of Immigrants
Who's crossing the border: New data on undocumented immigrants to the United States
John Weeks, Justin Stoler & Piotr Jankowski
Population, Space and Place, January/February 2011, Pages 1-26
Abstract:
The majority of undocumented immigrants to the United States enter through the southern border and most are from Mexico. Researchers in the US have been able to create estimates of how many unauthorised immigrants come from each country, but there has been little research on the geographical origins of immigrants from within Mexico. In this research we make use of a unique unduplicated file of people detained at or near the border by the US Border Patrol during the years 1999 to 2006. By focusing especially on the population aged 20-34, we are able to create a migration propensity index, which is the ratio of detainees from each state in Mexico to the population aged 20-34 in that state. The analysis of this index confirms the few other sources of information suggesting that migration from Mexico to the US is increasingly occurring from the more southern, indigenous states. A multiple regression analysis of the migration propensity index and state-level variables finds that the death rate from accidents and violence among men aged 20-34 is the single most important predictor of a state's migration propensity index. This is related to a variety of factors indicating that migrants come from states with the poorest economic infrastructure. We discuss the implications of these shifts for both receiving and sending communities.
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Economy-Wide Effects of Reducing Illegal Immigrants in U.S. Employment
Peter Dixon, Martin Johnson & Maureen Rimmer
Contemporary Economic Policy, January 2011, Pages 14-30
Abstract:
We use an economy-wide model to analyze the effects of three broad programs to reduce illegal immigrants in U.S. employment: tighter border security; taxes on employers; and vigorous prosecution of employers. After looking at macroeconomic industry and occupational effects, we decompose the welfare effect for legal residents into six parts covering changes in: producer surplus and illegal wage rates; skilled employment opportunities for natives; aggregate capital; aggregate legal employment; the terms of trade; and public expenditure. The type of program matters. Our analysis suggests a prima facie case in favor of taxes on employers.
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Immigration and international prices: An initial assessment
Marios Zachariadis
Economics Letters, February 2011, Pages 83-85
Abstract:
Using prices from a number of cities across the world during 1990-2006, this paper shows that there exists a negative impact of immigration on prices. The estimated absolute elasticity of prices with respect to immigration is around 14% across specifications.
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Yinon Cohen, Yitchak Haberfeld & Irena Kogan
Israel Affairs, January 2011, Pages 7-20
Abstract:
Drawing on Israeli, German and US census data, we compare the educational levels of Jewish immigrants (and their non-Jewish family members) from the Former Soviet Union (FSU) arriving in Israel, Germany, and the US during 1990-2000. The comparison of educational levels among immigrants arriving in the three countries can be viewed as a 'natural experiment' in immigrants' destination options, whereby immigrants could choose two countries with practically no visa restriction (Israel and Germany) and one country (USA) with visa requirements. Drawing on Borjas' theory of self-selection, the paper discusses the relative attractiveness of the three countries to various types of immigrants, expecting highly educated immigrants to prefer destinations where returns on skills are higher. The findings support theoretical expectations: highly educated migrants were more likely to move to the US, where the labour market is more flexible and returns on skills are higher than in Israel or Germany.
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Israeli-born emigrants: Size, destinations and selectivity
Yinon Cohen
International Journal of Comparative Sociology, February 2011, Pages 45-62
Abstract:
This article addresses two issues regarding Israeli emigrants. First, it focuses on their number and distribution in various destination countries; second, it deals with patterns of self-selection among emigrants, namely, the skill level of Israelis who select themselves to leave Israel for various destination countries. The findings suggest that Israeli emigration has increased in the past two decades, but that most of the increase was in the 1990s, and was due to the emigration of foreign-born Israelis, rather than the emigration of native-born Israelis. Based on the DIOC (Database on immigrants in OECD countries) about 164,000 Israeli-born emigrants, aged 15 years and over, resided in 25 OECD countries in 2000, suggesting that relative to other countries, the share of Israeli-born residing outside Israel is not high. Two-thirds of Israeli-born emigrants were in the US, and 85 percent in the Anglo-Saxon countries. The selectivity of Israeli emigrants, measured by education and occupation, is most positive in the Anglo-Saxon countries, especially the US, where the returns on skills are the highest. By contrast, the least skilled Israeli emigrants choose Scandinavian countries, where the labor markets are relatively rigid, and returns on skills tend to be the lowest. These findings are consistent with migration selectivity theory, which anticipates that high-skilled immigrants will choose destinations where their skills will be generously compensated. Finally, the results suggests that the educational selectivity of Israeli emigrants to the Anglo-Saxon countries (but not to Scandinavian countries) has improved in the late 1990s compared to the early 1990s.
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Benjamin Cheung, Maciej Chudek & Steven Heine
Psychological Science, February 2011, Pages 147-152
Abstract:
Though recent adult immigrants often seem less acculturated to their new society than people who immigrated as children, it is not clear whether this difference is driven by duration of exposure or exposure during a sensitive developmental period. In a study aimed at disambiguating these influences, community and student samples of Hong Kong immigrants to Vancouver, Canada, completed the Vancouver Index of Acculturation, a measure that assesses respondents' identification with their mainstream and heritage cultures. A longer duration of exposure was found to be associated with greater identification with Canadian culture only at younger ages of immigration, but not at later ages of immigration. Conversely, identification with Chinese culture was unaffected by either age of immigration or length of exposure to Canadian culture. These findings provide evidence for a sensitive period for acculturation: People are better able to identify with a host culture the longer their exposure to it, but only if this exposure occurs when they are relatively young.
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Ethnic Context and Immigration Policy Preferences Among Latinos and Anglos
Rene Rocha et al.
Social Science Quarterly, March 2011, Pages 1-19
Objective: We examine how the immigration policy preferences of Anglos and Latinos vary according to ethnic context. Specifically, we hypothesize that immigration policy attitudes are a product of both Latino immigrant and Latino native born group size. In contrast to previous work, which found that Latinos and Anglos react to contextual forces in an identical manner, we argue that Latino group size produces opposite reactions for Anglos and Latinos.
Methods: These hypotheses are tested using an original state-wide survey of Anglos and Latinos in Texas conducted during 2006, which is supplemented with data from the 2000 Census.
Results: Our findings show that residing in a heavily Latino area produces more liberal immigration attitudes among Latinos and more conservative attitudes among Anglos. However, this result is driven not by the size of the foreign-born Latino population, but by the size of the native-born Latino population.
Conclusion: Anti-immigrant sentiments among Anglos appear to result, at least in part, from ethnic concerns.
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Craig Stewart, Margaret Pitts & Helena Osborne
Journal of Language and Social Psychology, March 2011, Pages 8-27
Abstract:
Using an intergroup communication framework, this article examines how a newspaper in southeastern Virginia discursively constructs the "illegal immigrant" as a metonym for Latino immigrants. This mixed methods study traces the development of this newspaper discourse about illegal immigrants from1994 to 2006 using quantitative lexical analysis. It then shows how two local news events further instantiate an illegal immigrant metonymy influencing perceptions of Latinos, subsequent media discourse about immigration, and local immigration policies using critical discourse analysis. The quantitative findings suggest that news discourse focusing on (illegal) immigration tended to use lexical items low in optimism and commonality, consistent with out-group negativity. The qualitative findings show how two incidents involving "illegal immigrants" attached negative stereotypes to this category, which then potentially influenced perceptions of Latinos more broadly. This analysis shows some of the ways that media discourse influences perceived intergroup threats at the local and national levels.
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Neighborhood Immigration and Native Out-Migration
Kyle Crowder, Matthew Hall & Stewart Tolnay
American Sociological Review, February 2011, Pages 25-47
Abstract:
This study combines data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics with data from four censuses to examine the effects of foreign-born populations in the immediate and surrounding neighborhoods of residence on native-born black and white householders' residential mobility decisions. We find that the likelihood of out-mobility for native householders is significantly and positively associated with the relative size of, and increases in, the immigrant population in a neighborhood. Consistent with theoretical arguments related to the distance dependence of mobility, large concentrations of immigrants in surrounding areas reduce native out-mobility, presumably by reducing the attractiveness of the most likely mobility destinations. A sizable share of local immigration effects can be explained by the mobility-related characteristics of native-born individuals living in immigrant-populated areas, but the racial composition of a neighborhood (for native whites) and local housing-market conditions (for native blacks) are also important mediating factors. We discuss the implications of these patterns for processes of neighborhood change and broader patterns of residential segregation.
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Mildred Maldonado-Molina, Jennifer Reingle, Wesley Jennings & Guillermo Prado
Addictive Behaviors, April 2011, Pages 381-388
Objective: To evaluate the risk factors associated with the initiation of driving under the influence (DUI) among Hispanics in a longitudinal and nationally-representative sample of adolescents and young adults. Specifically, this study tests the effect of demographic variables, individual-level risk factors, and eco-processes (e.g., peer drug use, parental involvement) during adolescence on DUI among Hispanic young adults.
Methods: Data were derived from 1,734 Hispanic adolescents surveyed for the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Survey logistic regression procedures were used to examine the effects of nativity status on DUI initiation, to evaluate the independent effect of each risk factor (demographic, individual-level, and eco-processes), and to identify whether and to what extent these factors are associated with the initiation of DUI.
Results: The overall prevalence of DUI initiation was 18.3%. Differences were observed in the rates of DUI initiation by nativity status: first-generation immigrants reported the lowest rates of DUI initiation (15.4%) when compared with second-generation US-born Hispanic youth (17.4%) and third-generation and beyond US-born Hispanic youth (21.5%). US-born Hispanic youth were also more likely to report higher frequency of alcohol use (t= 3.46, p=.001) and marijuana use (t= 2.34, p=.021) compared to immigrant adolescents. After adjusting for a number of risk factors, men (OR=2.86), marijuana users (OR=1.98), and those who reported feeling safe in their neighborhoods (OR=2.02) were at an increased risk DUI initiation.
Conclusions: Findings provide support for the "immigrant paradox": immigrant youth reported lower rates of DUI initiation and other high-risk behaviors when compared with US-born Hispanic youth.
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Explaining low mortality among US immigrants relative to native-born Americans: The role of smoking
Laura Blue & Andrew Fenelon
International Journal of Epidemiology, forthcoming
Background: In many developed countries, immigrants live longer-that is, have lower death rates at most or all ages-than native-born residents. This article tests whether different levels of smoking-related mortality can explain part of the 'healthy immigrant effect' in the USA, as well as part of the related 'Hispanic paradox': the tendency for US Hispanics to outlive non-Hispanic Whites.
Methods: With data from vital statistics and the national census, we calculate lung cancer death rates in 2000 for four US subpopulations: foreign-born, native-born, Hispanic and non-Hispanic White. We then use three different methods-the Peto-Lopez method, the Preston-Glei-Wilmoth method and a novel method developed in this article-to generate three alternative estimates of smoking-related mortality for each of the four subpopulations, extrapolating from lung cancer death rates. We then measure the contribution of smoking-related mortality to disparities in all-cause mortality.
Results: Taking estimates from any of the three methods, we find that smoking explains >50% of the difference in life expectancy at 50 years between foreign- and native-born men, and >70% of the difference between foreign- and native-born women; smoking explains >75% of the difference in life expectancy at 50 years between US Hispanic and non-Hispanic White men, and close to 75% of the Hispanic advantage among women.
Conclusions: Low smoking-related mortality was the main reason for immigrants' and Hispanics' longevity advantage in the USA in 2000.
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Ethnic identity and labour market outcomes of immigrants in Europe
Alberto Bisin et al.
Economic Policy, January 2011, Pages 57-92
Abstract:
We study the relationship between ethnic identity and labour market outcomes of non-EU immigrants in Europe. Using the European Social Survey, we find that there is a penalty to be paid for immigrants with a strong identity. Being a first generation immigrant leads to a penalty of about 17% while second-generation immigrants have a probability of being employed that is not statistically different from that of natives. However, when they have a strong identity, second-generation immigrants have a lower chance of finding a job than natives. Our analysis also reveals that the relationship between ethnic identity and employment prospects may depend on the type of integration and labour market policies implemented in the country where the immigrant lives. More flexible labour markets help immigrants to access the labour market but do not protect those who have a strong ethnic identity.
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John Logan & Julia Rivera Drew
International Journal of Comparative Sociology, February 2011, Pages 25-44
Abstract:
Women immigrating to the United States from the Former Soviet Union (FSU) were expected to incorporate seamlessly into the US labor force because of their strong educational and professional backgrounds. Using 2000 Census data, we find that FSU women were less successful than both FSU men and other non-Hispanic white female immigrants. After controlling for other factors, FSU women were more likely to rely on public assistance and less likely to be employed. If employed, they worked in less prestigious occupations and earned much less. These findings draw attention to the particular difficulties of incorporation of this wave of relatively advantaged immigrants.
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Employment Concentration and Job Quality for Low-Skilled Latino Immigrants
Cathy Yang Liu
Journal of Urban Affairs, forthcoming
Abstract:
This article examines the formation, determination, and quality of employment concentration for low-skilled Latino immigrants. Comparative evidence is drawn from the three metropolitan areas of Chicago, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC. Using 2000 Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS), gender-specific ethnic niches where Latino immigrants disproportionately concentrate are identified and niche effects on wage earnings are analyzed. This study finds that while ethnic niches are evident in all three cities, they are most prevalent among women and newly arrived immigrants, and in the emerging gateway of Washington, D.C. Niche employment is almost uniformly characterized by earnings disadvantage as compared to non-niche employment, with lower returns premium on workers' human capital and work experience, especially for men. Niche effects on earnings vary across metropolitan areas in accordance with their economic structure as well as with the size and profile of immigrants.
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Daniel Geschke, Kai Sassenberg, Georg Ruhrmann & Denise Sommer
Journal of Media Psychology, Fall 2010, Pages 99-104
Abstract:
Media coverage contributes to the perpetuation of stereotypes and prejudice. So far, research has focused on biased content rather than style in reporting about minorities. One such stylistic dimension is the so-called linguistic intergroup bias: The tendency to describe positive behavior of members of one's own group and negative behavior of other groups' members in a more abstract way (compared to the same behavior of the respective other group). Recipients of communication biased in this way judge the described individuals in line with abstract descriptions (i.e., own-group members more positively than members of other groups). The current study demonstrates that linguistically biased news reports about minorities lead to higher levels of prejudice. Hence, media coverage does not only affect attitudes about minorities by what is reported, but also by how it is presented.