The shaping of selection: Secondary migration, scale, and changing immigrant geographies

Abstract

AbstractThe internal migration and settlement patterns of immigrants have long been of interest in assessing immigrant outcomes. Here, I use U.S. census microdata from 1940, 1970, and 2000 to analyse the changing relationships between secondary migration, immigrant concentration, and earnings outcomes. By simultaneous estimation of models for those who undertake internal migration and those who do not, the endogenous switching regressions employed here relate individual and place characteristics to earnings outcomes through the mechanism of selective migration. Investigating how these relationships change over time and between generations, as well as the differing relevance of overall mobility versus intercounty migration, contributes to theoretical perspectives on spatial assimilation and secondary migration. The critical finding is that immigrant concentration at destination is positively associated with wage outcomes for movers, although remaining in immigrant concentrations can have negative effects. Effects are more significant for those undertaking larger scale moves and more consistent over time. Women and less educated individuals who move show diminished earnings disadvantages. These findings suggest that it is useful to think about migration as a strategy through which immigrants respond to vulnerability and that the advantages or disadvantages of immigrant context are related to selective migration. Additionally, the characteristics experienced by a previous immigrant generation in situ suggest that the salience of immigrant geography emerges over time, as metros with high immigrant wages and educational levels continue to attract immigrants and their offspring decades later.