AUTHOR=Sanderson Matthew R. , Kentor Jeffrey D. 

TITLE=International Migration and Development: A Dyadic Analysis of the Americas, 1970–2010

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Sociology

VOLUME=Volume 5 - 2020

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sociology/articles/10.3389/fsoc.2020.00015

DOI=10.3389/fsoc.2020.00015

ISSN=2297-7775

ABSTRACT=This paper assesses the migration-development nexus from a new, relational perspective, providing a closer test of existing theories of cross-national dynamics, including migration and development.  Using bilateral data, we assess the relationship between migration (im)balances and wage differentials between pairs of countries in the Americas, from 1970-2010.  The analysis reveals a positive feedback between international migration and cross-national inequalities.  Migration responds strongly to wage gaps, which motivate more uni-directional, or imbalanced migration flows in country-pairs.  This relationship is particularly strong in contiguous countries.  Similarly, wage gaps respond to migration imbalances, which increase per capita income differences in country-pairs, although the effect of migration on wage differentials is smaller than the effect of wage differentials on migration.  Together, the results suggest that the migration-development nexus is characterized by a strong internal momentum.