The effect of recent technological change on US immigration policy

Bjoern Brey

Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 2024, vol. 227, issue C

Abstract: Does technological change shape immigration policy in the United States? I argue that if technological change tilts the composition of workers towards manual employment, this leads to a more restrictive immigration policy. A theoretical model and empirical evidence analyzing voting on immigration bills in the House of Representatives supports this. Policy makers representing districts exposed to manual-biased technological change are more likely to support restricting low-skill immigration. Results are confirmed using specific automation technologies: IT capital and industrial robot adoption. The analysis is completed by (i) additional results on trade policy and political polarization, (ii) further stylized evidence on the mechanism.

Keywords: Political economy; Immigration policy; Voting; Technological change (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D72 F22 K37 O33 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Related works:
Working Paper: The Effect of Recent Technological Change on US Immigration Policy (2022)
Working Paper: The Effect of Recent Technological Change on US Immigration Policy (2021)
Working Paper: The effect of recent technological change on US immigration policy (2021)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:227:y:2024:i:c:s0167268124003731

DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2024.106759

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