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Social Networks in Determing Employment and Wages: Patterns, Dynamics, and Inequality

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  • Jackson, Matthew O.
  • Calvo, Antoni

Abstract

We develop a model where agents obtain information about job opportunities through an explicitly modeled network of social contacts. We show that an improvement in the employment status of either an agent's direct or indirect contacts leads to an increase in the agent's employment probability and expected wages, in the sense of first order stochastic dominance. A similar effect results from an increase in the network contacts of an agent. In terms of dynamics and patterns, we show that employment is positively correlated across time and agents, and the same is true for wages. Moreover, unemployment exhibits persistence in the sense of duration dependence: the probability of obtaining a job decreases in the length of time that an agent has been unemployed. Finally, we examine inequality between two groups. If staying in the labor market is costly (in opportunity costs, education costs, or skills maintenance) and one group starts with a worse employment status or a smaller network, then that group's drop-out rate will be higher and their employment prospects and wages will be persistently below that of the other group.
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Suggested Citation

  • Jackson, Matthew O. & Calvo, Antoni, 2002. "Social Networks in Determing Employment and Wages: Patterns, Dynamics, and Inequality," Working Papers 1149, California Institute of Technology, Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences.
  • Handle: RePEc:clt:sswopa:1149
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    2. Patrick Bayer & Stephen L. Ross & Giorgio Topa, 2008. "Place of Work and Place of Residence: Informal Hiring Networks and Labor Market Outcomes," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 116(6), pages 1150-1196, December.
    3. Khwaja, Asim Ijaz & Mian, Atif & Qamar, Abid, 2011. "Bank Credit and Business Networks," Working Paper Series rwp11-017, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.
    4. Krauth, Brian V., 2004. "A dynamic model of job networking and social influences on employment," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 28(6), pages 1185-1204, March.
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    8. Gobillon, Laurent & Magnac, Thierry & Selod, Harris, 2007. "The Effect of Location on Finding a Job in the Greater Paris Area," IZA Discussion Papers 2848, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    9. Tassier, Troy & Menczer, Filippo, 2008. "Social network structure, segregation, and equality in a labor market with referral hiring," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 66(3-4), pages 514-528, June.
    10. Carayol, Nicolas & Roux, Pascale, 2005. "Self-organizing Innovation Networks: When do Small Worlds Emerge?," European Journal of Economic and Social Systems, Lavoisier, vol. 18(2), pages 307-332.
    11. Amparo Urbano, 2011. "SEA Presidential address: Group connectivity and cooperation," SERIEs: Journal of the Spanish Economic Association, Springer;Spanish Economic Association, vol. 2(2), pages 139-158, June.
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • A14 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Sociology of Economics
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J70 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination - - - General

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