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Immigrants' Contribution to Innovativeness: Evidence from a Non-Selective Immigration Country

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  • Katharina Candel-Haug
  • Alexander Cuntz
  • Oliver Falck

Abstract

The economic consequences of migration are hotly debated and a main topic of recent political movements across Europe. We analyze Polish immigration in the context of the 2004 enlargement of the European Union and find a positive and significant spillover effect of the immigrants on the number of local inventors in German counties in 2001-2010. For causal identification, we exploit a historical episode in the Polish migration history to Germany before the fall of the Iron Curtain and construct a shift-share instrument. Our results differ from findings for high-skilled migration to the United States, which is particularly interesting as Polish immigration to Germany was not based on selection by qualification in our period of analysis.

Suggested Citation

  • Katharina Candel-Haug & Alexander Cuntz & Oliver Falck, 2018. "Immigrants' Contribution to Innovativeness: Evidence from a Non-Selective Immigration Country," WIPO Economic Research Working Papers 52, World Intellectual Property Organization - Economics and Statistics Division.
    • Handle: RePEc:wip:wpaper:52
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Migration; Innovation;

    JEL classification:

    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives

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