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Selectivity of Migration and the Educational Disadvantages of Second-Generation Immigrants in Ten Host Societies

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  • Herman G. van de Werfhorst

    (University of Amsterdam)

  • Anthony Heath

    (University of Oxford)

Abstract

Selectivity of migration varies significantly between ethnic/origin country groups, and between the destination countries which these groups have migrated to. Yet, little comparative research has measured empirically how selective different migrant groups are in multiple destination countries, nor has research studied whether the selectivity of migration is related to the magnitude of ethnic inequalities among the children of migrants in Western societies. We present an empirical measure of educational selectivity of migrants from many different origin countries having migrated to ten different destination countries. We examine whether selective migration of a particular ethnic group in a particular destination country is related to the gap between their children’s and native children’s educational outcomes. We find that the disadvantage in educational outcomes between the second generation and their peers from majority populations is smaller for ethnic groups that are more positively selected in terms of educational attainment. We also find some evidence that the effect of selective migration is moderated by the integration policies or tracking arrangements in the educational system in the destination country.

Suggested Citation

  • Herman G. van de Werfhorst & Anthony Heath, 2019. "Selectivity of Migration and the Educational Disadvantages of Second-Generation Immigrants in Ten Host Societies," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 35(2), pages 347-378, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:eurpop:v:35:y:2019:i:2:d:10.1007_s10680-018-9484-2
    DOI: 10.1007/s10680-018-9484-2
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    Cited by:

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    2. Elisa Brini & Anna Zamberlan & Paolo Barbieri, 2022. "Culture portability from origin to destination country: The gender division of domestic work among migrants in Italy," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 47(20), pages 577-614.
    3. Bayrakdar, Sait & Guveli, Ayse, 2019. "The educational consequences of migration for women and men. Migrant and Europe-born Turkish origin people compared to non-migrants in Turkey," ISER Working Paper Series 2019-08, Institute for Social and Economic Research.
    4. Bonin Holger, 2023. "Social Investment in Immigrants: Why and How?," Intereconomics: Review of European Economic Policy, Sciendo, vol. 58(5), pages 249-253, September.
    5. Rachel Sparkman & Kathryn Harker Tillman, 2024. "Household Income by Nativity Status and Race/Ethnicity Across Metropolitan and Regional Contexts," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 43(1), pages 1-31, February.
    6. Lindsey Macmillan & Abigail McKnight, 2022. "Understanding recent patterns in intergenerational social mobility: differences by gender, ethnicity, education, and their intersections," CEPEO Working Paper Series 22-07, UCL Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, revised Jun 2022.
    7. Hebsaker, Michael & Neidhöfer, Guido & Pfeiffer, Friedhelm, 2021. "Intergenerational mobility and self-selection on unobserved skills: New evidence," Journal for Labour Market Research, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 55, pages 1-8.
    8. Renee Luthra & Lucinda Platt, 2021. "Are UK immigrants selected on education, skills, health and social networks?," RF Berlin - CReAM Discussion Paper Series 2103, Rockwool Foundation Berlin (RF Berlin) - Centre for Research and Analysis of Migration (CReAM).
    9. Heisig, Jan Paul & Schaeffer, Merlin, 2020. "The Educational System and the Ethnic Skills Gap among the Working-Age Population: An Analysis of 16 Western Immigration Countries," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 6, pages 1-1.

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