The effect of geographic mobility on the socioeconomic achievement of young Hispanic men.

Abstract

This study examines Hispanic geographic mobility in the context of the socioeconomic life cycle. It incorporates rich information on family background and examines its effects on geographic mobility and social mobility as well as on socioeconomic achievement. The objective of the analysis is to expand micro level research on the role of internal migration in improving the economic status of Hispanics. This is done by focusing on how family background conditions the propensity to migrate during young adulthood, and in turn, how migration decisions affect economic achievement net of the effects of social origins. Specifically, using the National Longitudinal Survey of Labor Market Experience-Youth Cohort it observes the inter-labor market migration of Hispanic men in the transition to adulthood. The migration interval under study extends between 1979, when the youth are between 14 and 17 years old, to 1988, when they have reached young adulthood and range in age from 23 to 27 years. The analysis is approached by setting up a multiequation model of socioeconomic achievement with three main outcomes: educational attainment, migration behavior, and earnings. The principal findings indicate that (1) the probability of migration increases with level of education; (2) controlling for education, the family background factors that positively influence the likelihood of geographic mobility are Puerto Rican origin, third plus generation status, childhood poverty, growing up in a nonmetropolitan area, a history of family migration, and professional occupational aspirations; and (3) net of education and family background, internal migration does not significantly improve the earning of Hispanics, but it does decrease the probability of falling below poverty. Other important findings include (1) generational status, parental family income, parental socialization, cognitive ability, and achievement orientation play key roles in determining both education and earnings, and (2) current economic conditions in the local labor market strongly influence adults' economic status.