Book Description

This PhD dissertation presents three empirical studies on the economics of international migration. Chapter 1 examines how the migration of a household member to the United States affects the welfare of the other members left behind in rural areas of Mexico. Using a panel household survey, I show that non-migrants are better-off in terms of consumption and leisure time because (i) remittances sent by migrant exceed his/her initial contribution to the househok income and because (ii) the out- migration of a farmer raises the productivity of agricultural labor for those staying behind in the farm. Chapter 2 addresses the methodological issues empirical economists confront when they seek to identify the causal impact of migration on members left behind at origin. I propose a new method that takes into account the intra- household selection of migrants, i.e. the decision of which family members migrate and which stay behind, a problem that has remained largely ignored in the literature. Chapter 3 examines the effect of immigrant inflows in Europe on the evolution of natives' attitudes towards redistribution and immigration policy over the last decade. I find that attitudes are not only shaped by non-economic preferences, e.g. racial prejudice or differential altruism, but that they are also importantly determined by concerns on how immigration may affect the labor market, i.e. wages, and the Welfare State's finances, i.e. net social benefits.