Ethnic Enclaves and Cultural Assimilation

This paper studies whether growing up in an ethnic enclave slows down immigrants’ cultural assimilation. To measure cultural behavior, I rely on individual-level administrative data on drug usage and focus on a culturally charged consumption: the usage of hormonal contraceptives by young immigrant women. To provide causal estimates of neighborhood influence, I exploit the quasi-random allocation of asylum seekers to government housing in the Netherlands between 1996 and 2012. While there is evidence of cultural assimilation over time, it is slow and cannot be accelerated by limiting the formation of ethnic enclaves. 

The Intergenerational (Im)mobility of Immigrants

This paper studies the influence of pre-migration social background on the long-term economic assimilation of immigrants. I use unique French survey data to trace family histories over three generations, before and after migration. While many immigrants experience an occupational downgrading at migration, their children benefit from the high socio-economic status their family had in the origin country. As a result, characteristics of immigrant grandparents are more predictive of their grandchildren’s achievements than are characteristics of native grandparents. While immigrants cannot fully transfer their human capital between labor markets, they can transmit it across generations.

The Effect of Exposure to Ethnic Minorities on Ethnic Preferences, with Sabina Albrecht (Queensland), Riccardo Ghidoni (Bologna), Elena Cettolin (Tilburg) and Sigrid Suetens (Tilburg)

We investigate the effect of exposure to ethnic minorities on the majority’s preferences with regard to that group using individual-level panel data from the Netherlands. The data combine ethnic preferences with administrative data on refugee facilities. The study period is marked by a sudden inflow of refugees in some neighborhoods. We find that individuals living close to refugee facilities developed a more positive attitude toward ethnic minorities and became less inclined to support anti-immigration parties. Preferences of individuals living farther away remained unchanged. An investigation of channels suggests that the local effect is due to contact between residents and refugees.

Work in Progress:

Cultural Assimilation over the Long-Run: Evidence from Third Generation Immigrants 

Employment Trajectories Following Motherhood: Changes over time in France and Germany, with Andreas Filser (IAB), Corinna Frodermann (IAB), Dana Muller (IAB) and Sander Wagner (Oxford)