Self-Selection, Earnings, and Out-Migration: A Longitudinal Study of Immigrants to Germany

Amelie Constant and Douglas S. Massey ()
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Douglas S. Massey: Princeton University

No 672, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: In this paper we seek to deepen understanding of out-migration as a social and economic process and to investigate whether cross-sectional earnings assimilation results suffer from selection bias. To model the process of out-migration we conduct a detailed event history analysis of men and women immigrants in Germany. Our 14-year longitudinal study reveals that emigrants are negatively selected with respect to occupational prestige and to stable full time employment. Our results show no selectivity with respect to human capital, earnings, or gender. The likelihood of return migration is strongly determined by the range and nature of social attachments to Germany and origin countries, and grows higher toward retirement. This selective emigration, however, does not appear to distort cross-sectional estimates of earnings assimilation.

Keywords: event history; immigrant assimilation; return migration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C4 J2 J61 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 81 pages
Date: 2002-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-his, nep-lab and nep-mic
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

Published - published in: Journal of Population Economics, 16 (4), 2003, 631-653

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Journal Article: Self-selection, earnings, and out-migration: A longitudinal study of immigrants to Germany (2003)
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