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Individual Attitudes towards Immigration in Aging Populations

Author

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  • Rana Comertpay

    (CREA, Université du Luxembourg)

  • Andreas Irmen

    (CREA, Université du Luxembourg)

  • Anastasia Litina

    (University of Ioannina, Greece)

Abstract

This research empirically establishes the hypothesis that the process of population aging in a society as a whole affects the attitudes of its members towards immigration. Hence, an aging social environment exerts an effect on the attitudes of individuals towards immigration after accounting for their age and other individual characteristics. We test this hypothesis in a multilevel analysis of individuals living in 25 European OECD countries over the period 2002-2017. Our measure of “societal population aging” is the old-age dependency ratio. “Attitudes” are taken from immigration related questions in eight consecutive rounds of the European Social Survey. For these attitudes we find non-linear, U-shaped relationships. Hence, the effect of societal population aging on individual attitudes towards immigration is negative in young societies and positive in old ones.

Suggested Citation

  • Rana Comertpay & Andreas Irmen & Anastasia Litina, 2019. "Individual Attitudes towards Immigration in Aging Populations," DEM Discussion Paper Series 19-04, Department of Economics at the University of Luxembourg.
    • Handle: RePEc:luc:wpaper:19-04
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    File URL: https://hdl.handle.net/10993/42610
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Tito Boeri, 2010. "Immigration to the Land of Redistribution," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 77(308), pages 651-687, October.
    2. David E. Bloom & David Canning & Günther Fink & Jocelyn E. Finlay, 2008. "Demographic Change, Institutional Settings, and Labor Supply," PGDA Working Papers 4208, Program on the Global Demography of Aging.
    3. Artjoms Ivļevs, 2012. "Ageing, Local Birth Rates and Attitudes towards Immigration: Evidence from a Transition Economy," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 46(7), pages 947-959, November.
    4. Sides, John & Citrin, Jack, 2007. "European Opinion About Immigration: The Role of Identities, Interests and Information," British Journal of Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 37(3), pages 477-504, July.
    5. Jo Thori Lind & Halvor Mehlum, 2010. "With or Without U? The Appropriate Test for a U‐Shaped Relationship," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 72(1), pages 109-118, February.
    6. Lena Calahorrano, 2013. "Population Aging and Individual Attitudes toward Immigration: Disentangling Age, Cohort and Time Effects," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(2), pages 342-353, May.
    7. Schotte,Simone Raphaela & Winkler,Hernan Jorge, 2016. "Why are the elderly more averse to immigration when they are more likely to benefit ? evidence across countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7554, The World Bank.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Population Aging; Attitudes; Immigration; Culture.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics
    • Z1 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics

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