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Too many migrants, too few services: a model of decision-making on immigration and integration with cultural distance

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  • Harrie Verbon
  • Lex Meijdam

Abstract

In this paper we model the demand for immigrants as a trade-off native voters face between having services, produced by unskilled and non-assimilated immigrants, and experiencing disutility due to the immigrant workers having a culture different from the native culture. Immigrants decide whether to integrate into the native culture. If they don’t, they produce services. Assimilated immigrants take on skilled jobs. At the political level natives choose the number of immigrants that can be allowed, given some fixed price for services. We show that, at the assumed price, it is never optimal for natives to have equilibrium or unemployment in the service sector. Market forces then lead to higher service prices, implying that the initially allowed number of immigrants is too large.
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  • Harrie Verbon & Lex Meijdam, 2008. "Too many migrants, too few services: a model of decision-making on immigration and integration with cultural distance," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 21(3), pages 665-677, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jopoec:v:21:y:2008:i:3:p:665-677
    DOI: 10.1007/s00148-006-0108-5
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    1. Anna Maria Mayda, 2006. "Who Is Against Immigration? A Cross-Country Investigation of Individual Attitudes toward Immigrants," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 88(3), pages 510-530, August.
    2. Bauer, Thomas K. & Lofstrom, Magnus & Zimmermann, Klaus F., 2000. "Immigration Policy, Assimilation of Immigrants and Natives' Sentiments towards Immigrants: Evidence from 12 OECD-Countries," IZA Discussion Papers 187, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
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    6. Edward P. Lazear, 1999. "Culture and Language," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 107(S6), pages 95-126, December.
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    8. Benhabib, Jess, 1996. "On the political economy of immigration," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(9), pages 1737-1743, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Natasha T. Duncan & Brigitte S. Waldorf, 2008. "Immigrant Assimilation:Do Neighborhoods Matter?," Working Papers 08-13, Purdue University, College of Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Economics.
    2. Lena Calahorrano & Oliver Lorz, 2011. "Aging, Factor Returns, and Immigration Policy," Scottish Journal of Political Economy, Scottish Economic Society, vol. 58(5), pages 589-606, November.
    3. Julia Beckhusen & Raymond J.G.M. Florax & Thomas de Graaff & Jacques Poot & Brigitte Waldorf, 2012. "Living and Working in Ethnic Enclaves: Language Proficiency of Immigrants in U.S. Metropolitan Areas," RF Berlin - CReAM Discussion Paper Series 1203, Rockwool Foundation Berlin (RF Berlin) - Centre for Research and Analysis of Migration (CReAM).
    4. Ciara Whelan & Patrick P. Walsh & Franco Mariuzzo, 2004. "EU merger control in differentiated product industries," Open Access publications 10197/138, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
    5. Junko Doi & Laixun Zhao, 2012. "Immigration Conflicts," Discussion Paper Series DP2012-29, Research Institute for Economics & Business Administration, Kobe University, revised Dec 2012.
    6. Duncan, Natasha T. & Waldorf, Brigitte S., 2008. "Immigrant Assimilation: Do Neighborhoods Matter?," Working papers 46026, Purdue University, Department of Agricultural Economics.
    7. Julia Beckhusen & Raymond J.G.M. Florax & Thomas Graaff & Jacques Poot & Brigitte Waldorf, 2013. "Living and working in ethnic enclaves: English Language proficiency of immigrants in US metropolitan areas," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 92(2), pages 305-328, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Immigration policy; Assimilation; F22; J61;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers

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