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Title: Social Networks and the Dynamics of Labor Market Outcomes: Evidence from Refugees

Citation Type: Miscellaneous

Publication Year: 2008

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Abstract: This paper examines the dynamic implications of social networks for the labor market out-comes of political refugees resettled in the U.S. Using a theoretical model of job informationtransmission within social networks, the paper shows that the relationship between the size of asocial network, the vintage of network members and labor market outcomes is non-monotonic.To test this prediction, I use an empirical strategy which exploits the fact that resettlementagencies distribute refugees across cities, precluding individuals from sorting into locations.The results indicate that an increase in the number of social network members resettled in thesame year or one year prior leads to a deterioration of labor market outcomes, while a greaternumber of long-tenured network members improves the probability of employment and raisesthe hourly wage for newly arrived refugees.

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Authors: Beaman, Lori A.

Publisher: University of California, Berkeley

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Labor Force and Occupational Structure, Migration and Immigration

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