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Social ties for labor market access - Lessons from the migration of East German inventors

Author

Listed:
  • Dorner, Matthias

    (Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Nuremberg, Germany ; Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition)

  • Harhoff, Dietmar

    (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München ; Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition)

  • Hinz, Tina

    (Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg)

  • Hoisl, Karin

    (Copenhagen Business School ; Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition ; University of Mannheim)

  • Bender, Stefan

    (Deutsche Bundesbank - Research Data and Service Centre)

Abstract

"We study the impact of social ties on the migration of inventors from East to West Germany, using the fall of the Iron Curtain and German reunification as a natural experiment. We identify East German inventors via their patenting track records prior to 1990 and their social security records in the German labor market after reunification. Modeling inventor migration to West German regions after 1990, we find that Western regions with stronger historically determined social ties across the former East-West border attracted more inventors after the fall of the Iron Curtain than regions without such ties. However, mobility decisions made by inventors with outstanding patenting track records (star inventors) were not impacted by social ties. We conclude that social ties support labor market access for migrant inventors and determine regional choices while dependence on these ties is substantially reduced for star performers." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku)

Suggested Citation

  • Dorner, Matthias & Harhoff, Dietmar & Hinz, Tina & Hoisl, Karin & Bender, Stefan, 2016. "Social ties for labor market access - Lessons from the migration of East German inventors," IAB-Discussion Paper 201641, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany].
    • Handle: RePEc:iab:iabdpa:201641
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Bundesrepublik Deutschland ; DDR ; Ostdeutschland ; Westdeutschland ; Auswirkungen ; Erfindung ; Abwanderung ; Integrierte Erwerbsbiografien ; Patente ; regionale Herkunft ; regionaler Arbeitsmarkt ; soziale Beziehungen ; staatlicher Zusammenschluss ; Wanderungsmotivation ; Wissenschaftler ; Zielgebiet ; Arbeitsproduktivität ; 1980-2012;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J60 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - General
    • O30 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - General
    • P20 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist and Transition Economies - - - General
    • R23 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population

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