Family Attachment and the Decision to Move by Race

21 Pages Posted: 30 Jan 2006

See all articles by Antonio Spilimbergo

Antonio Spilimbergo

International Monetary Fund (IMF) - Research Department; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - The William Davidson Institute

Luis Ubeda

Charles III University of Madrid

Date Written: May 2002

Abstract

Blacks in the United States have a lower geographic mobility rates than whites even though they have several characteristics that are usually associated with high rates of mobility: high unemployment, low rate of home ownership, low marriage rate and settlement in areas where unemployment is high. This paper tests the relevance of family ties in explaining mobility by using proxies that are constructed using data from the University of Michigan's Panel Study of Income Dynamics, covering the period 1977-88. The results are robust to different specifications and estimation techniques, and explain the puzzle of the role played by the nuclear and the extended family in the decision to move.

Keywords: internal migration, panel data, family

JEL Classification: J61, E24, R23

Suggested Citation

Spilimbergo, Antonio and Ubeda Rives, Luis Antonio, Family Attachment and the Decision to Move by Race (May 2002). IMF Working Paper No. 02/83, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=879612

Antonio Spilimbergo (Contact Author)

International Monetary Fund (IMF) - Research Department ( email )

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Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

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University of Michigan at Ann Arbor - The William Davidson Institute ( email )

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Luis Antonio Ubeda Rives

Charles III University of Madrid ( email )

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