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Migration, Economic Freedom, and Personal Freedom: An Empirical Analysis

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  • Richard J. Cebula

    (Jacksonville University)

  • J.R. Clark

    (University of Tennessee at Chattanooga)

Abstract

Economic freedom increases market efficiency, growth, development, and individual prosperity. This study empirically investigates whether higher levels of economic freedom, as well as higher levels of personal freedom, act like magnets for persons residing in a free society to move. In other words, do the prospects of both greater economic and personal freedom in any given state relative other states act to induce a greater influx of migrants? This empirical study of domestic migration between 2000 and 2008 finds clear evidence that migrants prefer to move to those states with greater economic freedom on the one hand and greater personal freedom on the other hand.
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Suggested Citation

  • Richard J. Cebula & J.R. Clark, 2011. "Migration, Economic Freedom, and Personal Freedom: An Empirical Analysis," Journal of Private Enterprise, The Association of Private Enterprise Education, vol. 27(Fall 2011), pages 43-62.
    • Handle: RePEc:jpe:journl:926
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Mulholland, Sean E. & Hernandez-Julian, Reynaldo, 2021. "Does Economic Freedom Lead to Selective Migration by Sex and Race?," Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, Mid-Continent Regional Science Association, vol. 53(1), July.
    2. Nair-Reichert, Usha, 2014. "Location Decisions of Undocumented Migrants in the United States," Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, Mid-Continent Regional Science Association, vol. 44(2).
    3. Bologna, Jamie, 2014. "A Spatial Analysis of Entrepreneurship and Institutional Quality: Evidence from U.S. Metropolitan Areas," Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, Mid-Continent Regional Science Association, vol. 44(2).
    4. Richard J. Cebula & Fabrizio Rossi, 2021. "Religiosity and corporate risk-taking: evidence from Italy," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 45(4), pages 751-763, October.
    5. Richard J. Cebula & Gigi M. Alexander, 2020. "Economic and Noneconomic Factors Influencing Geographic Differentials in Homelessness: An Exploratory State‐Level Analysis," American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 79(2), pages 511-540, March.
    6. Watkins, Tate & Yandle, Bruce, 2010. "Can Freedom and Knowledge Economy Indexes Explain Go-Getter Migration Patterns?," Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, Mid-Continent Regional Science Association, vol. 40(2), pages 1-12.
    7. Cebula, Richard & Nair-Reichert, Usha, 2014. "Access to Higher Public Education and Locational Choices of Undocumented Migrants," MPRA Paper 57277, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Jackson, Jeremy, 2018. "Prairie Prosperity: An Economic Guide for the State of North Dakota," Annals of Computational Economics, George Mason University, Mercatus Center, October.
    9. Richard Cebula & Christopher Duquette & Franklin Mixon, 2013. "Factors Influencing the State-Level Settlement Pattern of the Undocumented Immigrant Population in the United States," Atlantic Economic Journal, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 41(3), pages 203-213, September.
    10. Richard J. Cebula, 2016. "Give me sanctuary! The impact of personal freedom afforded by sanctuary cities on the 2010 undocumented immigrant settlement pattern within the U.S., 2SLS estimates," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 40(4), pages 792-802, October.
    11. Fullerton, Thomas M., Jr. & Walke, Adam G. & Villavicencio, Diana, 2015. "An Econometric Approach for Modeling Population Change in Doña Ana County, New Mexico," MPRA Paper 71141, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 28 Jan 2015.
    12. Richard J. Cebula & Maggie Foley & Joshua C. Hall, 2016. "Freedom and gross in-migration: an empirical study of the post-great recession experience," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 40(2), pages 402-420, April.
    13. Daniel Meierrieks & Laura Renner, 2017. "Stymied ambition: does a lack of economic freedom lead to migration?," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 30(3), pages 977-1005, July.
    14. Claudio Detotto & Bryan C. McCannon, 2017. "Economic freedom and public, non-market institutions: evidence from criminal prosecution," Economics of Governance, Springer, vol. 18(2), pages 107-128, May.
    15. Yankow, Jeffrey J., 2014. "A Longitudinal Analysis of the Impact of State Economic Freedom on Individual Wages," Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, Mid-Continent Regional Science Association, vol. 44(1).
    16. Khatiwada, Lila K., 2014. "Modeling and Explaining County-level Prosperity in the U.S," Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, Mid-Continent Regional Science Association, vol. 44(2).
    17. Murphy, Ryan H., 2016. "A Short Empirical Note on State Misery Indexes," Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy, Mid-Continent Regional Science Association, vol. 46(2), December.
    18. Zuo, Chengchao & Birkin, Mark, 2019. "Modelling the economic and demographic impacts of major transport infrastructure provision: A case study of UK regions," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 207-222.
    19. Alexander Cardazzi & Robert A. Lawson, 2023. "Economic freedom and one‐way truck rental prices: An empirical note," American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 82(4), pages 313-318, July.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Migration; Economic freedom; Freedom; Economic development;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H24 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Personal Income and Other Nonbusiness Taxes and Subsidies
    • H31 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - Household
    • J20 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - General
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • P14 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Property Rights

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