IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/wdevel/v40y2012i2p251-265.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Are Skilled Women More Migratory than Skilled Men?

Author

Listed:
  • Docquier, Frédéric
  • Marfouk, Abdeslam
  • Salomone, Sara
  • Sekkat, Khalid

Abstract

This paper empirically studies emigration patterns of skilled males and females. In the most relevant model accounting for interdependencies between women and men’s decisions, we derive the gendered responses to traditional push factors. Females and males do not respond with the same intensity to the traditional determinants of labor mobility and gender-specific characteristics of the population at origin. In addition, female willingness to follow their spouse is more pronounced with respect to the male one, other things being equal. Once such interdependencies are accounted for, our analysis reveals that skilled women are not more internationally migratory than skilled men. We thus reject the existence of a genetic or social gender gap in international skilled migration.

Suggested Citation

  • Docquier, Frédéric & Marfouk, Abdeslam & Salomone, Sara & Sekkat, Khalid, 2012. "Are Skilled Women More Migratory than Skilled Men?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(2), pages 251-265.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:40:y:2012:i:2:p:251-265
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2011.05.004
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X11001318
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.worlddev.2011.05.004?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alesina, Alberto & Devleeschauwer, Arnaud & Easterly, William & Kurlat, Sergio & Wacziarg, Romain, 2003. "Fractionalization," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 8(2), pages 155-194, June.
    2. Bauer, Thomas K. & Epstein, Gil S. & Gang, Ira N., 2002. "Herd Effects or Migration Networks? The Location Choice of Mexican Immigrants in the U.S," IZA Discussion Papers 551, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. B. Davis & P. Winters, 2001. "Gender, Networks and Mexico-US Migration," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(2), pages 1-26.
    4. Guillermina Jasso & Mark Rosenzweig, 1986. "Family reunification and the immigration multiplier: U.S. immigration law, origin-country conditions, and the reproduction of immigrants," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 23(3), pages 291-311, August.
    5. Alessandra Faggian & Philip McCann & Stephen Sheppard, 2007. "Some Evidence That Women Are More Mobile Than Men: Gender Differences In U.K. Graduate Migration Behavior," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(3), pages 517-539, August.
    6. Aycan Çelikaksoy & Helena Nielsen & Mette Verner, 2006. "Marriage migration: just another case of positive assortative matching?," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 4(3), pages 253-275, September.
    7. Coulombe Serge & Tremblay Jean-François, 2006. "Literacy and Growth," The B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics, De Gruyter, vol. 6(2), pages 1-34, August.
    8. Mayer, Thierry & Zignago, Soledad, 2006. "Notes on CEPII’s distances measures," MPRA Paper 26469, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Andrew R. Morrison & Maurice Schiff & Mirja Sjöblom, 2007. "The International Migration of Women," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6804, December.
    10. Gil S. Epstein & Ira N. Gang, 2006. "The Influence of Others on Migration Plans," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(4), pages 652-665, November.
    11. Stephen Knowles & Paula K. Lorgelly, 2002. "Are educational gender gaps a brake on economic development? Some cross-country empirical evidence," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 54(1), pages 118-149, January.
    12. Sara Curran & Estela Rivero-Fuentes, 2003. "Engendering migrant networks: The case of Mexican migration," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 40(2), pages 289-307, May.
    13. Abdeslam Marfouk, 2007. "Brain Drain in Developing Countries," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank Group, vol. 21(2), pages 193-218, June.
    14. Cobb-Clark, Deborah A, 1993. "Immigrant Selectivity and Wages: The Evidence for Women," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 83(4), pages 986-993, September.
    15. Dumont, Jean-Christophe & Martin, John P. & Spielvogel, Gilles, 2007. "Women on the Move: The Neglected Gender Dimension of the Brain Drain," IZA Discussion Papers 2920, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    16. Frédéric Docquier & B. Lindsay Lowell & Abdeslam Marfouk, 2009. "A Gendered Assessment of Highly Skilled Emigration," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 35(2), pages 297-321, June.
    17. Marcela Cerrutti & Douglas Massey, 2001. "On the auspices of female migration from Mexico to the United States," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 38(2), pages 187-200, May.
    18. Mark Blackden & Sudharshan Canagarajah & Stephan Klasen & David Lawson, 2006. "Gender and Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa: Issues and Evidence," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2006-37, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ruxanda Berlinschi & Ani Harutyunyan, 2016. "Do migrants think differently? Evidence from East European and post-Soviet states," Working Papers of Department of Economics, Leuven 551444, KU Leuven, Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB), Department of Economics, Leuven.
    2. Thierry Baudassé & Rémi Bazillier, 2014. "Gender inequality and emigration: Push factor or selection process?," International Economics, CEPII research center, issue 139, pages 19-47.
    3. John V. Winters, 2017. "Do earnings by college major affect graduate migration?," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 59(3), pages 629-649, November.
    4. Edoardo Ferrucci & Francesco Lissoni & Ernest Miguelez, 2020. "Coming from afar and picking a man’s job:Women immigrant inventors in the United States," Working Papers hal-03098102, HAL.
    5. Frédéric Docquier & Hillel Rapoport, 2012. "Globalization, Brain Drain, and Development," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 50(3), pages 681-730, September.
    6. Lee, Taehoon & Peri, Giovanni & Viarengo, Martina, 2022. "The gender aspect of migrants’ assimilation in Europe," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    7. Schmid, Lena & Renner, Laura, 2020. "The Decision to Flee: Analyzing Gender-Specific Determinants of International Refugee Migration," VfS Annual Conference 2020 (Virtual Conference): Gender Economics 224596, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    8. Ruyssen, Ilse & Salomone, Sara, 2018. "Female migration: A way out of discrimination?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 224-241.
    9. Michel Beine & Sara Salomone, 2010. "Migration and Networks: Does Education Matter more than Gender?," CESifo Working Paper Series 3010, CESifo.
    10. Neumayer Eric & Plümper Thomas, 2021. "Women’s economic rights in developing countries and the gender gap in migration to Germany," IZA Journal of Development and Migration, Sciendo & Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 12(1), pages 1-23, January.
    11. Raul Ramos, 2019. "Migration aspirations among youth in the Middle East and North Africa region," Journal of Geographical Systems, Springer, vol. 21(4), pages 487-507, December.
    12. Chiara Falco, 2015. "Education and migration: empirical evidence from Ecuador," Working Papers 297, University of Milano-Bicocca, Department of Economics, revised Mar 2015.
    13. Naghsh Nejad, Maryam, 2013. "Institutionalized Inequality and Brain Drain: An Empirical Study of the Effects of Women's Rights on the Gender Gap in High-Skilled Migration," IZA Discussion Papers 7864, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Manchin, Miriam & Orazbayev, Sultan, 2018. "Social networks and the intention to migrate," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 360-374.
    15. Chort, Isabelle, 2014. "Mexican Migrants to the US: What Do Unrealized Migration Intentions Tell Us About Gender Inequalities?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 535-552.
    16. Sandra Pellet & Marine de Talancé, 2021. "Is there a gender gap in health among migrants in Russia?," Erudite Working Paper 2021-11, Erudite.
    17. Maryam Naghsh Nejad & Andrew T. Young, 2014. "Female Brain Drains and Women's Rights Gaps : A Gravity Model Analysis of Bilateral Migration Flows," Working Papers 14-10, Department of Economics, West Virginia University.
    18. Debora Pricila Birgier & Christer Lundh & Yitchak Haberfeld & Erik Elldér, 2022. "Movers and Stayers: A Study of Emigration from Sweden 1993–2014," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 38(5), pages 1033-1064, December.
    19. Xu, Xu & Sylwester, Kevin, 2016. "The effects of foreign direct investment on emigration: The roles of FDI source country, education, and gender," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 401-409.
    20. Edo, Anthony & Toubal, Farid, 2017. "Immigration and the gender wage gap," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 196-214.
    21. Shakya, Shishir & Basnet, Subuna & Paudel, Jayash, 2022. "Natural disasters and labor migration: Evidence from Nepal’s earthquake," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    22. Xu Xu & Kevin Sylwester, 2016. "Environmental Quality and International Migration," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 69(1), pages 157-180, February.
    23. Thierry Baudassé & Rémi Bazillier, 2011. "Gender Discrimination and Emigration: Push Factor Versus Screening Process Hypothesis," Working Papers halshs-00829499, HAL.
    24. Elveren, Adem Yavuz & Toksöz, Gülay, 2017. "Why Don’t Highly Skilled Women Want to Return? Turkey’s Brain Drain from a Gender Perspective," MPRA Paper 80290, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Michel Beine & Sara Salomone, 2010. "Migration and Networks: Does Education Matter more than Gender?," CESifo Working Paper Series 3010, CESifo.
    2. Frédéric Docquier & B. Lindsay Lowell & Abdeslam Marfouk, 2009. "A Gendered Assessment of Highly Skilled Emigration," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 35(2), pages 297-321, June.
    3. Frederic, DOCQUIER & B. Lindsay, LOWELL & Abdeslam, MARFOUK, 2007. "A gendered assessment of the brain drain," Discussion Papers (ECON - Département des Sciences Economiques) 2007045, Université catholique de Louvain, Département des Sciences Economiques.
    4. Artuc, Erhan & Docquier, Frédéric & Özden, Çaglar & Parsons, Christopher, 2015. "A Global Assessment of Human Capital Mobility: The Role of Non-OECD Destinations," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 6-26.
    5. Ruyssen, Ilse & Salomone, Sara, 2018. "Female migration: A way out of discrimination?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 224-241.
    6. Mao-Mei Liu, 2013. "Migrant Networks and International Migration: Testing Weak Ties," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 50(4), pages 1243-1277, August.
    7. Beine, Michel & Docquier, Frédéric & Özden, Çaglar, 2011. "Diasporas," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(1), pages 30-41, May.
    8. Edoardo Ferrucci & Francesco Lissoni & Ernest Miguelez, 2020. "Coming from afar and picking a man’s job:Women immigrant inventors in the United States," Working Papers hal-03098102, HAL.
    9. Michel Beine & Frédéric Docquier & Çağlar Özden, 2010. "Diaspora Effects in International Migration: Key Questions and Methodological Issues," Swiss Journal of Economics and Statistics (SJES), Swiss Society of Economics and Statistics (SSES), vol. 146(IV), pages 639-659, December.
    10. Thierry Baudassé & Rémi Bazillier, 2014. "Gender inequality and emigration: Push factor or selection process?," International Economics, CEPII research center, issue 139, pages 19-47.
    11. Escamilla Guerrero, David & Lepistö, Miko & Minns, Chris, 2022. "Explaining gender differences in migrant sorting: evidence from Canada-US migration," Economic History Working Papers 117260, London School of Economics and Political Science, Department of Economic History.
    12. Michel BEINE & Frédéric DOCQUIER & Caglar,OZDEN, 2015. "Dissecting Network Externalities in International Migration," JODE - Journal of Demographic Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 81(4), pages 379-408, December.
    13. Stecklov, Guy & Carletto, Calogero & Azzarri, Carlo & Davis, Benjamin, 2008. "Agency, education and networks: Gender and international migration from Albania," ESA Working Papers 289030, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Agricultural Development Economics Division (ESA).
    14. David Croix & Frédéric Docquier & Maurice Schiff, 2014. "Brain Drain and Economic Performance in Small Island Developing States," Population Economics, in: Andrés Artal-Tur & Giovanni Peri & Francisco Requena-Silvente (ed.), The Socio-Economic Impact of Migration Flows, edition 127, pages 123-144, Springer.
    15. Peter Huber & Klaus Nowotny & Julia Bock-Schappelwein, 2010. "Qualification Structure, Over- and Under-qualification of the Foreign Born in Austria and the EU," WIFO Studies, WIFO, number 41226, October.
    16. Maryam Naghsh Nejad & Andrew T. Young, 2014. "Female Brain Drains and Women's Rights Gaps : A Gravity Model Analysis of Bilateral Migration Flows," Working Papers 14-10, Department of Economics, West Virginia University.
    17. Antman, Francisca M., 2018. "Women and Migration," IZA Discussion Papers 11282, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    18. Klaus Nowotny, 2011. "Welfare Magnets, Taxation and the Location Decisions of Migrants to the EU," ERSA conference papers ersa11p133, European Regional Science Association.
    19. Docquier, Frédéric & Marfouk, Abdeslam & Özden, Caglar & Parsons, Christopher, 2011. "Geographic, Gender and Skill Structure of International Migration," MPRA Paper 47917, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    20. Fernando Riosmena & Douglas S. Massey, 2012. "Pathways to El Norte: Origins, Destinations, and Characteristics of Mexican Migrants to the United States," International Migration Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(1), pages 3-36, March.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:40:y:2012:i:2:p:251-265. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: . General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/worlddev .

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/worlddev .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service hosted by the Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis . RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.