Abortion restriction laws and mobility of scientists

Research Summary We track the enactment of targeted regulation of abortion providers (TRAP) laws in the United States and analyze 4.98 million person‐year mobility records for 535,568 biomedical scientists from 1990 to 2018. Our estimations reveal a 0.8–1.6 percentage‐point increase in scientists' relocation probability after states enacted abortion‐restrictive laws, with substantially stronger effects among junior scientists (1.6–3.9 percentage points). Anti‐abortion states also became less likely to be chosen as relocation destinations, particularly by higher‐quality scientists. These responses appear driven by ideological misalignment and research‐related concerns in fields affected by abortion‐related regulation. We further find that states that have adopted TRAP laws experienced declines in scientific research quality, federal research funding, and patenting in relevant technological fields and among local firms. Managerial Summary Social policies influence the location choices of creative talent, with further implications for organizational and regional innovations. Research scientists are an important part of the regional innovation ecosystem, whose work is intricately related to innovation activities in firms. In a large‐scale study of 4.98 million records of half a million biomedical scientists from 1990 to 2018, we reveal that restrictive policies, such as restrictions on abortion providers, deter high‐quality scientific talent from relocating to certain regions. Our analysis highlights that ideological (mis)alignment and research‐opportunity‐related concerns, rather than practical concerns like access to abortion services, heighten the effect of abortion‐restriction laws on the observed mobility patterns, underscoring the broader implications of policy choices in the sociopolitical environment on where scientific talent chooses to live and work.