Happiness and the emigration decision

Artjoms Ivlevs ()

IZA World of Labor, 2014, No 96, 96

Abstract: Happy people are healthier and more creative, productive, and sociable. Because of these positive effects of happiness, it is in the interest of countries to attract and retain happy people. With respect to the decision to migrate, the central question becomes whether people who are happier and more satisfied with their lives are more or less likely to migrate. The evidence so far is mixed. Correlational studies find that prospective migrants are less happy than people who are not intending to migrate, while one study controlling for reverse causality suggests that the desire to migrate increases with life satisfaction.

Keywords: emigration decision; happiness; life satisfaction; happiness drain (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F22 J61 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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