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U.S. internal Migration and Occupational Attainment: Assessing Absolute and Relative Outcomes by Region and Race

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  • Chenoa Flippen

Abstract

This paper investigates the occupational implications of contemporary migration flows by region and race. Even though the expectation of a positive link between geographic and social mobility is a central tenet in the stratification literature, empirical assessments are rare and have produced inconsistent results. Our analysis departs from traditional frameworks by integrating both absolute and relative notions of occupational standing for evaluating migration outcomes, comparing migrants against non-migrant peers both at origin and destination. Results document that for whites, migration is associated with higher occupational attainment both in absolute and relative terms, irrespective of the regional direction of the move. For blacks, on the other hand, absolute occupational gains are markedly absent for migration to the South, which is instead characterized by significant improvement in relative terms. The differences in absolute and relative gains by race and direction of the move helps contextualize the considerable black over representation in north–south migration and highlight the implications of current internal mobility for racial stratification. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

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  • Chenoa Flippen, 2014. "U.S. internal Migration and Occupational Attainment: Assessing Absolute and Relative Outcomes by Region and Race," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 33(1), pages 31-61, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:poprpr:v:33:y:2014:i:1:p:31-61
    DOI: 10.1007/s11113-013-9308-3
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    1. Main Al-Dalahmeh & Imran Sarihasan & Krisztina Dajnoki, 2021. "The Influence of Gender and Educational Attainment Differences on International Migrants’ Occupational Status in OECD Countries," Economies, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-13, September.
    2. Marcel Erlinghagen & Christoph Kern & Petra Stein, 2019. "Internal Migration, Social Stratification and Dynamic Effects on Subjective Well Being," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 1046, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    3. Yanwei Lin & Qi Zhang & Wen Chen & Jingrong Shi & Siqi Han & Xiaolei Song & Yong Xu & Li Ling, 2016. "Association between Social Integration and Health among Internal Migrants in ZhongShan, China," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(2), pages 1-15, February.
    4. Francisco Perales, 2017. "Dynamics of job satisfaction around internal migrations: a panel analysis of young people in Britain and Australia," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 59(3), pages 577-601, November.
    5. Kyle Anne Nelson & Christine Marston, 2020. "Refugee Migration Histories in a Meatpacking Town: Blurring the Line Between Primary and Secondary Migration," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 77-91, March.

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