• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

G²LM|LIC

  • About
    • History
    • Investigators
    • Team
  • Projects
    • GLM|LIC
      • Agricultural Labour Markets
      • Gender and Employment
      • Labour Markets in Low-Income Countries
      • Migration
      • Skill Training
    • G²LM|LIC
      • Fact & Policy
      • Fertility & Labour markets
      • Barriers to gender parity
      • The Future of Work
      • Policies & Welfare
    • COVID-19
  • Publications
    • Policy Briefs
    • Synthesis Papers
    • Working Papers
    • Published Articles
    • Datasets
  • Events
  • Evidence Finder
  • Jobs of the World
  • COVID-19
G²LM|LIC Working Paper No. 60

Migration and the Value of Social Networks

Migration
How do Labour Markets Equilibrate?

How do social networks influence the decision to migrate? Prior work suggests two distinct mechanisms that have historically been difficult to differentiate: as a conduit of information, and as a source of social and economic support. We disentangle these mechanisms using a massive ‘digital trace’ dataset that allows us to observe the migration decisions made by millions of individuals over several years, as well as the complete social network of each person in the months before and after migration. These data allow us to establish a new set of stylized facts about the relationship between social networks and migration. Our main analysis indicates that the average migrant derives more social capital from ‘interconnected’ networks that provide social support than from ‘extensive’ networks that efficiently transmit information.

G²LM|LIC Working Paper No. 60

Migration and the Value of Social Networks

  • Joshua Blumenstock
  • Guanghua Chi
  • Xu Tan
Download the PDF

Primary Sidebar

News from our Twitter Account

  • 📺 WATCH LIVE: Join us today, ⏰6:00–8:00 pm CEST in the online research meeting covering findings and research done… https://t.co/fbEEjqe9eE May 20, 2022 3:00 pm
  • Interested about evidence 📊 on how #COVID19 affected different areas of #labor #markets in developing countries? Jo… https://t.co/Dr19mPcwFT May 12, 2022 12:51 pm
  • Do not miss @caterina_vieira talking about Wealth as a Key feature of the Data and thus starting the Building Block… https://t.co/T80HcpKXTp May 3, 2022 4:59 pm
Twitter

Footer

IZA Logo

Established in 1998 in Bonn, Germany, IZA is an independent, non-profit research institution supported by the Deutsche Post Foundation with a focus on the analysis of global labour markets. It operates an international network of about 1,500 economists and researchers spanning across more than 50 countries.

Based on academic excellence and an ambitious publication strategy, IZA serves as a place of communication between academic science and political practice.

DFID Logo

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) leads the UK's work to end extreme poverty. We're ending the need for aid by creating jobs, unlocking the potential of girls and women, and helping to save lives when humanitarian emergencies hit.

FCDO is a ministerial department, supported by 12 agencies and public bodies.

© 2012–2022 | IZA – Institute of Labor Economics | Imprint