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Do Oppositional Identities Reduce Employment for Ethnic Minorities?

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Author Info
Battu, Harminder () (University of Aberdeen)
Mwale, McDonald () (University of Aberdeen)
Zenou, Yves () (The Research Institute of Industrial Economics)

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Abstract

We develop a model in which non-white individuals are defined with respect to their social environment (family, friends, neighbors) and their attachments to their culture of origin (religion, language), and in which jobs are mainly found through social networks. We find that, depending on how strong they are linked to their culture of origin, non-whites choose to adopt "oppositional" identities since some individuals may identify with the dominant culture (status seekers) and others may reject that culture (conformists), even if it implies adverse labor market outcomes. We then test this model using a unique data set that contains extensive information on various issues surrounding ethnic identity and preferences in Britain. We find that the social environment of individuals has a strong influence on their identity choice. We also find that those non-whites who have preferences that accord with being a conformist do experience an employment penalty.

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Publisher Info
Paper provided by Research Institute of Industrial Economics in its series Working Paper Series with number 603.

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Length: 42 pages
Date of creation: 27 Nov 2003
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Handle: RePEc:hhs:iuiwop:0603

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Related research
Keywords: Ethnic Minorities Identity Social Networks White's Norm

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities and Races; Non-labor Discrimination

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:

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Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Battu, Harminder & Seaman, Paul & Zenou, Yves, 2004. "Job Contact Networks and the Ethnic Minorities," Working Paper Series 628, Research Institute of Industrial Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Harris Selod & Yves Zenou, 2004. "City-structure, job search and labor discrimination : theory and policy implications," Research Unit Working Papers 0403, Laboratoire d'Economie Appliquee, INRA. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Martin Kahanec & Mariapia Mendola, 2007. "Social Determinants of Labor Market Status of Ethnic Minorities in Britain," IZA Discussion Papers 3146, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. Delia Furtado, 2006. "Human Capital and Interethnic Marriage Decisions," Working papers 2006-03, University of Connecticut, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. Kenneth Clark & Stephen Drinkwater, 2005. "Dynamics and Diversity: Ethnic Employment Differences in England and Wales, 1991-2001," IZA Discussion Papers 1698, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  6. Lena Nekby & Magnus Rödin, 2007. "Acculturation Identity and Labor Market Outcomes," IZA Discussion Papers 2826, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  7. Antecol, Heather & Cobb-Clark, Deborah A., 2004. "Identity and Racial Harassment," IZA Discussion Papers 1149, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  8. Smith, Tony E. & Zenou, Yves, 2003. "Spatial Mismatch, Search Effort and Urban Spatial Structure," IZA Discussion Papers 692, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
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