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Segregation and Fertility: the Case of the Roma in Serbia

Author

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  • Marianna Battaglia

    (University of Alicante, Department of Economics (FAE - Fundamentos del Análisis Económico))

  • Bastien Chabé-Ferret

    (UNIVERSITE CATHOLIQUE DE LOUVAIN, Institut de Recherches Economiques et Sociales (IRES))

  • Lara Lebedinski

    (Foundation for the Advancement of Economics and Institute of Economic Sciences, Belgrade)

Abstract

We study the effect of residential segregation on fertility for the socially excluded and marginalized Roma ethnic minority. Using original survey data we collected in Serbia, we investigate whether fertility differs between ethnically homogeneous and mixed neighborhoods. Our results show that Roma in less segregated areas tend to have significantly fewer children (around 0.9). Most of the difference arises from Roma in less segregated areas waiting substantially more after having a boy than their counterparts in more segregated areas. We account for the endogeneity of the level of segregation using (il)legal possibility to build in the area at the time of its creation as an instrument. We find that the true gap due to segregation is actually larger than that estimated by OLS (around 1.4). We finally provide evidence that exposure to the Serbian majority culture is the main mechanism at play, as opposed to differences in opportunity cost of time, migration patterns, family arrangements and returns to education.

Suggested Citation

  • Marianna Battaglia & Bastien Chabé-Ferret & Lara Lebedinski, 2017. "Segregation and Fertility: the Case of the Roma in Serbia," LIDAM Discussion Papers IRES 2017011, Université catholique de Louvain, Institut de Recherches Economiques et Sociales (IRES).
  • Handle: RePEc:ctl:louvir:2017011
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    1. Rauh, Christopher, 2018. "Decomposing Gaps Between Roma And Non-Roma In Romania," Journal of Demographic Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 84(2), pages 209-229, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    fertility; residential segregation; ethnic minority; culture;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • R23 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population
    • Z10 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - General

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