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Government ideology and international migration

Author

Listed:
  • Vincenzo Bove

    (Department of Politics and International Studies and CAGE (Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy), University of Warwick,)

  • Georgios Efthyvoulou

    (Department of Economics, University of Sheffield, UK)

  • Harry Pickard

    (Department of Economics, University of Sheffield, UK)

Abstract

We provide the first empirical evidence that differences in government ideology play an important role in the choice of cross-border migration destinations. In absence of first-hand experience, immigrants rely on information about the political landscape of the origin and host countries to form expectations about the context of reception in the host society. We use data on bilateral migration and government ideology for 36 OECD countries between 1990 and 2016. Our analysis shows that bilateral migration flows are higher when the government at the destination is more left-wing than the government at the origin, especially when we consider proximate countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Vincenzo Bove & Georgios Efthyvoulou & Harry Pickard, 2020. "Government ideology and international migration," Working Papers 2020004, The University of Sheffield, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:shf:wpaper:2020004
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    File URL: https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/economics/research/serps
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    international migration; migration choice; government ideology; OECD countries;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration

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