Ethnic concentration and language fluency of immigrants in Germany

Studies that investigate the effect of the regional ethnic composition on immigrant outcomes have been complicated by the self-selection of ethnic minorities into specific neighbourhoods. We analyse the impact of own-ethnic concentration on the language proficiency of immigrants by exploiting the fact that the initial placement of guest-workers after WWII was determined by labour demanding firms and the federal labour administration and hence exogenous to immigrant workers. Combining several data sets, we find a small but robust and significant negative effect of ethnic concentration on immigrants’ language ability. Simulation results of a choice model in which location and learning decisions are taken simultaneously confirm the presence of the effect. Immigrants with high learning costs are inclined to move to ethnic enclaves, so that the share of German-speakers would increase only modestly even under the counterfactual scenario of a regionally equal distribution of immigrants across Germany

The Long-Term Effects of the Chernobyl Catastrophe on Subjective Well-Being and Mental Health

This paper assesses the long-term subjective well-being and mental health toll of the Chernobyl disaster of 1986 in the general Ukrainian population and estimates the monetary differential necessary to compensate victims of the catastrophe. The analysis is based on two nationally representative Ukrainian data sets and reveals that even 20 years after the accident subjective well-being is negatively associated with self-reported assessments of having been affected by the catastrophe. The causal long-term effect of the disaster on life satisfaction is established by exploiting variation in official radiation data which are linked to survey respondents through information on their place of living in 1986. We find higher depression and trauma rates as well as poorer subjective life expectancy among those stronger affected by Chernobyl. Expressed in monetary terms, the estimated amount of income required to compensate for the experienced utility loss amounts to an annual cost of seven percent of Ukraine's GDP.Chernobyl catastrophe, subjective well-being, mental health, instrumental variable

Ethnic concentration and language fluency of immigrants : quasi-experimental evidence from the guest-worker placement in Germany (Ethnische Konzentration und Sprachkompetenz von Einwanderern : quasi-experimentelle Befunde aus der Gastarbeiteranwerbung in Deutschland)

"The paper analyses the impact of regional own-ethnic concentration on the language proficiency of immigrants. It solves the endogeneity of immigrants' location choices by exploiting the fact that guest-workers in Germany after WWII were initially placed by firms and labor agencies. We find a robust negative effect of ethnic concentration on immigrants' language ability. Simulation results of a simultaneous location and learning choice model confirm the presence of the effect and show how immigrants with high learning cost select into ethnic enclaves. Under the counterfactual scenario of a regionally equal distribution of immigrants the share of German-speakers increases only modestly." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))Einwanderer, Beschäftigungspolitik, Arbeitskräftemangel, Wohnort, Einwanderungsland, Sprachkenntnisse, deutsche Sprache, ethnische Gruppe, Ballungsraum

Pension generosity and mental wellbeing: The effect of eradicating poverty at old-age

This paper exploits a unique shift in pension generosity to study the effect of eradicating old-age poverty on mental health. Based on a difference-in-differences set-up we show with two independent data sets from Ukraine that greater pension generosity improves subjective well-being and reduces the incidence of diagnosed depressions. Neither more available leisure time, nor higher consumption levels, nor enhanced physical health can explain the empirical mental health improvement. Instead, we suggest that the main channel for the mental health improvement is the reduced reliance on potentially stressful modes of income generation at old age, such as family household transfers, indebtedness and unpaid bills

Economic Migration, Networks and Human Capital Transferability from the New European Borderlands. A Comparison of Five Eastern European Countries.

In the paper we use a unique new data set which has been collected in late 2006 in Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine to investigate the determinants for short term migration and its destination and duration patterns. Special attention is paid to the role played by personal networks to Eastern and Western destinations as well as investments into the transferability of human capital made by migrants prior to their stay abroad. We find that many determinants and migration patterns are quite similar across the CIS countries under consideration but exhibit some surprising differences to standard results from the migration literature, e.g. the prevalence of older migrants and the low importance of children in the migration decision process. Networks and human capital transferability are the main explaining factors for the migration and destination decision, a result proofing robust after correcting for endogeneity. We expect that migration is likely to grow in importance for some countries at the European Borderlands, as networks develop and the costs of migration decrease. However, our analysis reveals that fears of brain drain have little substance as the educational background of migrants is rather low. As a considerable number of migrants have invested into destination country specific human capital prior to migration, this improved human capital endowment can benefit both, migrants and the society of sending countries, alike. --Migration,human capital transferability,migration networks,cross-country study

Temporary Labour Migration and Welfare at the New European Fringe : A Comparison of Five Eastern European Countries

This paper investigates patterns and determinants of temporary labour migration in Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine after EU enlargement in 2004. Migration incidence, destination choices and migration determinants differ between poorer and better-off countries. Although broadly in line with general results from the migration literature, we observe some peculiarities like the high share of older migrants and a modest role of family obligations in the migration decision process. We find no indication of a brain drain related to temporary migration in sending regions as the educational background of migrants is rather low. Migration is used as household insurance against unemployment and is associated with lower incidence of poverty. This finding remains robust when attempting to reduce the potential omitted variable bias with an instrumental variable approach.Temporary migration, welfare, Eastern Europe, cross-country study

Temporary Labour Migration and Welfare at the New European Fringe: A Comparison of Five Eastern European Countries

This paper investigates patterns and determinants of temporary labour migration in Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine after EU enlargement in 2004. Migration incidence, destination choices and migration determinants differ between poorer and better-off countries. Although broadly in line with general results from the migration literature, we observe some peculiarities like the high share of older migrants and a modest role of family obligations in the migration decision process. We find no indication of a brain drain related to temporary migration in sending regions as the educational background of migrants is rather low. Migration is used as household insurance against unemployment and is associated with lower incidence of poverty. This finding remains robust when attempting to reduce the potential omitted variable bias with an instrumental variable approach.temporary migration, welfare, Eastern Europe, cross-country study

Ethnic Concentration and Language Fluency of Immigrants in Germany

Studies that investigate the effect of the regional ethnic composition on immigrant outcomes have been complicated by the self-selection of ethnic minorities into specific neighbourhoods. We analyse the impact of own-ethnic concentration on the language proficiency of immigrants by exploiting the fact that the initial placement of guest-workers after WWII was determined by labour demanding firms and the federal labour administration and hence exogenous to immigrant workers. Combining several data sets, we find a small but robust and significant negative effect of ethnic concentration on immigrants' language ability. Simulation results of a choice model in which location and learning decisions are taken simultaneously confirm the presence of the effect. Immigrants with high learning costs are inclined to move to ethnic enclaves, so that the share of German-speakers would increase only modestly even under the counterfactual scenario of a regionally equal distribution of immigrants across Germany.enclave, ethnic concentration, language proficiency, immigrants, Instrumental variable, random utility model