Familial relations and labor market outcomes: the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon

Abstract

We analyze intra-family support among Palestinians living in Lebanon, using detailed household survey data from the refugee camps and Palestinian communities in Lebanon and latent class analysis technique. The study uncovers five latent classes of familial exchange. Two different theoretical models—the solidarity and reciprocal exchange—are used to examine the link between patterns of assistance and labor market conditions. Contrary to the solidarity account, we find no evidence of high familial assistance among the unemployed, or those excluded from the labor market, and this is true regardless of type of exchange. However, the camp population is more likely to engage in exchange relations than their non-camp counterparts. The married, loners, educated, employed, and those with stronger ties to relatives are more likely to be money exchangers. The findings are similar for care receivers, but age and gender figure prominently here. Some policy implications of the findings are discussed.