Econ of Immigration Final
What type of three-year visa does the US issue to high-skilled specialty-occupation immigrants?
H1B
Which of the following are true about DACA? Select all that apply.
- DACA does not include legal permanent residency - DACA does allow beneficiaries to receive a work permit
Who would be the winners if a country with a system based mainly on family preferences, like the United States, were to switch to a point system. Select all that apply.
- High-skilled immigrants (assuming that points are awarded on the basis of skill) - firms that demand high-skilled immigrants
Discuss the benefits if a country with a system based mainly on family preferences, like the United States, were to switch to a point system. Select all that apply.
- The system can be adjusted to meet demand in certain sectors and to account for changes in labor market conditions. - A country with a point system can adjust the system to target the number of new immigrants admitted each year. - New immigrants would be more educated.
Which of the following are the main channels through which brain gain may occur? Select all that apply.
- human capital channel - transfer channel - institutional channel - productivity channel
What are some of the assumptions of the spatial correlation approach to measuring the effect of immigration? Select all that apply.
- it assumes that changes in the immigrant share are exogenous, or that immigration is a supply "shock" to the labor market. - it assumes that industries and occupations remain fixed in areas experiencing immigration. - it assumes that natives do not respond to immigration by moving out of an area.
what are the most common types of models for discrimination?
- taste-based - statistical - attention/screening - pollution
In Card (1990), what was the percentage increase in the Cuban workforce in Miami with the Mariel boatlift arrivers?
20%
In Yang (2011) Migrant Remittances, the Mexican migrants send % of their income as remittances, and migrants from El Salvador around %.
31.1, 37.7
List one country that uses a point-based immigration system.
Canada, Australia, New Zealand
What dataset does Card (1990) use in his Mariel Boatlift paper?
Current Population Survey
In Azoulay, Pierre, Benjamin F. Jones, J. Daniel Kim, and Javier Miranda. 2022. "Immigration and Entrepreneurship in the United States." a) immigrants start firms at higher rates than natives b) immigrants start more firms at every size, compared to natives c) neither a or b are true d) both a & b are true
D
According to Brell, Dustmann, and Preston (2020), refugee migrants arrive with less locally applicable human capital and thus start with lower wages.
True
T or F: In Brell, Dustmann, and Preston (2020), they imply that refugees' health is on average worse than of economic migrants, who are generally positively selected on health.
True
what types of discrimination did we study?
employer, employee, customer, government
T or F: Repaying migration costs cannot be a financial motivation for remittances.
false
relative mobility
means that you are in a higher percentage of the income distribution compared to your parents.
absolute mobility
means that you make more than your parents (inflation adjusted
Altruism models posit that :
migrants' desire to help family left behind is a strong and common motivation for remittances
The target-saving model posits that :
migration occurs in order to accumulate financial assets or fund a specific investment or purchase
The consumption-smoothing model posits that
migration takes place to diversify household earnings and ensure a steady source of income.
The Oaxaca decomposition separates the differences in wages into
the differences based on the groups' personal characteristics, which are not considered discrimination, and two measures of discrimination: their return to different skills and overall discrimination
T or F: E-Verify is likely to reduce unauthorized immigration.
true
T or F: Economic growth may affect the level of remittances.
true
T or F: In Yang (2011) Migrant Remittances, the results show that remittances are small in size and sent frequently, despite the non-trivial fees associated with each transfer.
true
T or F: The EU has a relatively open immigration policy for citizens of other EU countries, but a relatively closed policy for non-EU immigrants.
true
T or F: the discrimination coefficient d can be both positive and negative.
true (ex: people will pay more for authentic dining experience from immigrants as opposed to natives)
what reasons, other than discrimination, exist for differences in wages?
- preferences of workers, for example different labor supply elasticities - job characteristics which warrant a compensating differential in wages - personal characteristics of workers, for example different educational attainment or work experience
How are firms likely to respond to immigration of high-skilled workers? Select all that apply.
- Because the capital may make workers more productive, high-skilled workers may see their wages increase. - Firms may focus their investments on high-tech capital, which may have complementarities with high-skilled workers.
Discuss the costs if a country with a system based mainly on family preferences, like the United States, were to switch to a point system. Select all that apply.
- Defining admission categories and awarding points to those categories may be subjective. - Applicants cannot be selected based on unobservable qualities (such as their work ethic and the quality and relevance of their skills) that may affect their success in the host country - A point system may not be flexible enough to deal with short-term labor shortages, particularly if it is difficult to change how points are awarded.
What would be the likely economic effects if the United States began requiring all employers to use the E-Verify system? Select all that apply.
- Documented workers benefit from E-verify requirements if they would otherwise compete with undocumented workers for jobs. - Workers who are complements to unauthorized workers might be losers because demand for complementary workers may fall. - Undocumented workers will have a tougher time finding a job
How can international migration increase human capital levels in sending countries? Select all that apply.
- Emigration may lead people left behind in the source country to increase their own human capital in an effort to migrate themselves - source countries may benefit from emigrants returning, which may raise the average level of human capital - source countries may benefit from emigrants sending remittances that allow people there to acquire more human capital
Ortega and Peri (2014) find that a 10 percentage-point difference in the immigrant share leads to a 100 percent increase in income per person (on average). Per capita GDP in Japan in 2013: $38,528 (http://unstats.un.org/unsd/snaama/selcountry.asp). Using this estimate, how much would per capita GDP increase if Japan increased their immigrant share by 1 percentage point?
- If Japan increased their immigrant share by 1 percentage point, per capita GDP would increase to $42,380.
How can integration policies affect immigrants and natives in the destination country? Select all that apply.
- Integration policies are designed to help ease the transition into the labor market and improve labor market outcomes. - Immigrants can benefit by gaining the skills and language needed to succeed in the destination country. - Natives benefit as immigrants contribute more to society and rely less on public services.
What are the likely effects of DACA on beneficiaries? Select all that apply.
- It may make them more likely to acquire additional human capital since having a work permit allows them to access better jobs - The ability to work legally may cause some DACA beneficiaries to leave school earlier than they otherwise would have - It should make beneficiaries more likely to remain in the U.S. instead of returning to their origin country than they otherwise would be. - Allows beneficiaries to receive a work permit and therefore is likely to increase their labor force participation and earnings.
Who would be the losers if a country with a system based mainly on family preferences, like the United States, were to switch to a point system. Select all that apply.
- Low-skilled immigrants (assuming that points are awarded on the basis of skill) - firms that demand low-skilled immigrants.
How are refugees different from other types of immigrants? Select all that apply.
- Most migrants leave their home countries voluntarily, whereas refugees leave involuntarily—they flee because of the threat of persecution and cannot return safely to their homes. - Refugees tend to have worse labor market outcomes than other types of migrants because of their lack of education, skills and proficiency in the host country's language. - Refugees are often traumatized and have significant health issues arising from their experiences back home and in refugee camps. - Refugees have an incentive to thrive in their new country. The alternative of returning home is bleak: the situation in their home country is bad enough to motivate many of them to try to succeed in their new country.
Why might unauthorized immigration be a net plus to the U.S. Social Security system? Select all that apply.
- People cannot receive Social Security benefits unless they have contributed to the system for 40 quarters and have a Social Security Number (SSN), which requires they be legally authorized to work in the U.S. Unauthorized immigrants therefore cannot (in most cases) ever receive Social Security benefits, regardless of how much they contributed to the system. - Contributions that cannot be matched with a worker because of an invalid SSN go into the Earnings Suspense File, which totals in the hundreds of billions of dollars.
How are different native-born workers affected by immigration? Select all that apply.
- Some groups of natives are better able than others to move to different areas or different sectors in response to inflows of competing immigrant workers. - Research found a sizable negative impact on wages of U.S.-born workers who did not complete high school
What were the long-run implications of the major shift in immigration policy in the United States in 1965? Select all that apply.
- The new law led to sizable increases in the number of immigrants - The new law led to an increase in immigration from Asia.
Which of the following apply to the major shift in immigration policy in the United States in 1965? Select all that apply.
- The new law repealed the national origins quota system. - The new law was called the Hart-Cellar Act. - The new law set up a preference category system that prioritized family ties. - The new law opened the doors to immigrants from Asia, Africa and the rest of world.
Miami is a large gateway city for many Cuban immigrants—Census data (http://www.census.gov/quickfacts/) indicate that 58 percent of Miami's population is foreign born. According to www.zillow.com, the median house price in Miami was $276,500 in December 2014. Saiz (2007) finds that an immigrant inflow equal to 1 percent of the population of a large "gateway" U.S. city leads to a 1 percent increase in rental and house prices in that city. Thus, a 1 percent increase in the population of Miami will lead to
- a $2,765 increase in house prices there, ceteris paribus.
Consider two countries, one is a destination country one is the country of origin and there are no barriers to migration. Suppose the destination country enters a severe recession. How will this affect the labor market in the destination country relative to the pre-recession predicted outcomes? Select all that apply.
- a recession in the destination country increases labor supply in the of country of origin - a recession in the destination country does not change labor demand in the country of origin
Consider two countries, one is a destination country one is the country of origin and there are no barriers to migration. Suppose the destination country enters a severe recession. How will this affect the labor market in the destination country relative to the pre-recession predicted outcomes? Select all that apply.
- a recession in the destination country reduces labor demand in the destination country - a recession in the destination country reduces labor supply in the destination country
Why would high- and low-skilled immigration be related? Select all that apply
- better opportunities may attract both groups - High-skilled migration may be correlated with low-skilled migration since high-skilled migrants may bring low-skilled family members with them - networks in the receiving country may reduce migration costs for both high- and low-skilled migrants alike
what served as identification in difference-in-differences model (Mariotti)
- change in policy in Malawi allowing men to migrate to South Africa for mining jobs - district more or less exposed to migration - increase in the amount of schooling/investment in HC in areas that sent migrants to SA observable 20 years after the policy change.
Pollution Model
- combination of statistical and taste-based discrimination - "prestige" of job is polluted by entrants that are different from the current group
Dinkelman and Mariotti (2016), study circular migration between Malawi and South Africa and its long-run impact on the origin. For their identification in the difference-in-difference estimation, they utilize the following sources of variation/shocks
- elimination of labor quotas in 1967, leading to a three-fold increase in migration from Malawi to South African mines - a ban on new recruiting and recall of mine workers, following a plane crash in 1974 - using cohorts who were too old for primary school, between districts with and without access to mine recruiting stations - using cohorts who were age-eligible for primary school, between districts with and without access to mine recruiting stations
Which of the following are examples of fiscal benefits of immigration? Select all that apply.
- lower the per capita costs of pure public goods, such as national defense - tax revenues
According to Pinotti (2020) "The Effect of Immigrant Legalization on Crime", undocumented migrants in Italy are more likely to be
- male - single - less educated compared to documented migrants
What are the reasons people send remittances? Select all that apply.
- migration takes place to diversify household earnings and ensure a steady source of income - migrants' desire to help family left behind - migration occurs in order to accumulate financial assets or fund a specific investment or purchase - migrants may also remit for insurance purposes
Which of the following are examples of fiscal costs of immigration? Select all that apply.
- public education - subsidized health insurance - welfare and government-funded retirement benefit programs
What types of policies could countries implement to reduce the fiscal costs associated with low-skilled immigrants? Select all that apply.
- putting restrictions on the number of types of visas - limiting benefits to immigrants in the country for a certain time period - requiring naturalization to be eligible for benefits - instituting temporary work programs that would discourage long-term migration spells
According to Brell, Dustmann, and Preston (2020), refugee migrants face unique incentives/circumstances after migration:
- starting with lower wages, lowers the opportunity cost of investment in human capital (foregone wages), hence they see higher return on investment, steep assimilation early on - facing uncertainty that they may not get asylum, or may want to return home, hence slower assimilation - may have experienced trauma, mental health issues, hence less productive
What immigration policies could help meet the rise in relative demand for skilled labor in the U.S.? Select all that apply.
- the U.S. could restrict unskilled workers from entering by not granting temporary work visas to them - the U.S. could move to a point-based system (as in Canada) that allows skilled foreigners to enter if they have high levels of education
What are some of the issues with natural experiments? Select all that apply.
- the location of people in different areas is not random - it is difficult to find a valid control group - inflows might be not truly exogenous
Consider two countries, one is a destination country one is the country of origin and there are no barriers to migration. Suppose the destination country enters a severe recession. How will this affect the wages in the labor market of the destination country relative to the pre-recession predicted wages?
- wages in the destination country may increase or decrease - a recession in destination country reduces labor demand in destination country. Wages in destination country fall. The reduction in wages reduces migration, so labor supply falls in destination country. With a decrease in both the supply and demand for labor, the change in wages is indeterminate.
In Bertrand and Mulluinathan "Are Emily and Greg more employable than Lakisha and Jamal? A field experiment on labor market discrimination", the average callback rate for white names females in administrative jobs was [____].
10.46
According to Pinotti (2020) "The Effect of Immigrant Legalization on Crime", the fraction of re-arrested Romanians and Bulgarians who were previously imprisoned drops to **** % after they gain legal status in the EU
2.3%
Bo and Jacks (2012), find that import variety grew between 1988 and 2007, and they relate this growth to immigration. When evaluating the import prices and how they relate to economic welfare, they approximate that a representative Canadian consumer would be wiling to give up [____]% of their real income in order to gain access to new imported varieties. Correct!
22
Bo and Jacks (2012), find that import variety grew between 1988 and 2007, and they relate this growth to immigration. When evaluating the economic welfare, they approximate that the overall gain is %, and that enhanced immigration flows may be responsible for % of this variety growth and its attendant welfare gains.
28, 25
In Dinkelman and Mariotti (2016), circular migration between Malawi and South Africa is estimated to increase human capital in the long run by
4.8-6.9 percent
Bo and Jacks (2012), find that import variety grew by [____]% between 1988 and 2007, and they relate this growth to immigration.
76%
A test is given to job candidates and ranges from 400 to 1000 points. Immigrants average 700 and natives 800. The firm decided to weigh the individual test score T at 40%. Use the Wi,G = alpha Ti + (1- alpha)G. *This equation will give the wage in cents. The wage offered to an immigrant who scored 950 would be $[____].
8
A test is given to job candidates and ranges from 400 to 1000 points. Immigrants average 700 and natives 800. The firm decided to weigh the individual test score T at 40%. Use the Wi,G = alpha Ti + (1- alpha)G. *This equation will give the wage in cents. The wage offered to a native who scored 950 would be $[____].
8.60
Which cities does Card (1990) use as comparison cities to Miami?
Atlanta, Los Angeles, Houston, Tampa-St. Petersburg
T or F: The Cuban migrants arriving in 1980, Mariel boatlift, to Miami were mostly skilled.
False
In Brell, Dustmann, and Preston (2020), the refugee migrant experience example describes a terrifying journey through Mexico on top of a freight train? What is the train known as?
La Bestia
T or F: In Bertrand and Mulluinathan "Are Emily and Greg more employable than Lakisha and Jamal? A field experiment on labor market discrimination", white names receive 50% more callbacks for interviews.
True
T or F: If two groups of workers have different elasticities of labor supply, the group with more inelastic labor supply will require a higher wage to be incentivized to join the labor market and thus have fewer workers hired than the group with a more elastic labor supply.
True (more inelastic group would get fewer people hired period. Firms will hire more workers from the group with a responsive labor supply)
Pollution Theory (Claudia Goldin)
discrimination exists because the presence of immigrants pollutes the prestige of the job for natives, since immigrants as a group are judged as lower ability
Which types of taste-based discrimination would be competed away in a profit-maximizing competitive market? i.e., wouldn't last over time
employer
T or F: Immigration systems treat refugees the same as other migrants.
false
T or F: In Yang (2011) Migrant Remittances, the results show that remittances are improving only consumption and not investment in countries of origin.
false
t or f: EU citizens need a blue card to migrate across the member states of the European Union.
false
T or F: In Brell, Dustmann, and Preston (2020), the stages of the refugee experience are flight, journey, final destination.
false (missing intermediate destination)
according to the pollution theory, what could help in reducing discrimination
more transparent credentials
Using the blue card criteria at http://www.apply.eu/, would you meet the conditions?
no
Based on the model of statistical discrimination, if you are an immigrant, viewed as a member of a group that usually has lower educational attainment and English proficiency, and you are in fact a genius with flawless English, in the labor market your wage offer will be
reduced because of your group's low average
