Migration, Friendship Ties and Cultural Assimilation

26 Pages Posted: 18 Jan 2014

See all articles by Giovanni Facchini

Giovanni Facchini

Tinbergen Institute

Eleonora Patacchini

Einaudi Institute for Economics and Finance (EIEF) ; IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Max Friedrich Steinhardt

Free University of Berlin (FUB) - Department of Business and Economics; IZA Institute of Labor Economics; Centro Studi Luca D'Agliano (LdA); Hamburg Institute of International Economics (HWWI)

Abstract

Using novel information from the German Socio-Economic Panel for the period 1996-2011, we document that migrants with a German friend are more similar to natives than those without a local companion along several important dimensions, including engagement in social activities, concerns about the economy, interest in politics and broad policy issues like the environment, crime and xenophobia. When looking at the determinants of friendship acquisition, we find that the acquisition of a new job is the cause (rather than the product) of social network variations. Other factors driving the acquisition of a native friend include the number of years the migrant has spent in the country, the birth of a child, residential mobility and additional education in the host country.

Keywords: culture, migration, friendship formation, ethnic minorities

JEL Classification: A14, J15, J61

Suggested Citation

Facchini, Giovanni and Patacchini, Eleonora and Steinhardt, Max Friedrich, Migration, Friendship Ties and Cultural Assimilation. IZA Discussion Paper No. 7881, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2381133 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2381133

Giovanni Facchini (Contact Author)

Tinbergen Institute ( email )

Burg. Oudlaan 50
Rotterdam, 3062 PA
Netherlands

HOME PAGE: http://paople.few.eur.nl/facchini

Eleonora Patacchini

Einaudi Institute for Economics and Finance (EIEF) ( email )

Via Due Macelli, 73
Rome, 00187
Italy

IZA Institute of Labor Economics ( email )

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Max Friedrich Steinhardt

Free University of Berlin (FUB) - Department of Business and Economics ( email )

Boltzmannstrasse 20
D-14195 Berlin, 14195
Germany

IZA Institute of Labor Economics ( email )

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Centro Studi Luca D'Agliano (LdA) ( email )

Via P. Amedeo 34
Milano, 20122
Italy

HOME PAGE: http://https://sites.google.com/site/maxfriedrichsteinhardt/

Hamburg Institute of International Economics (HWWI) ( email )

Heimhuder Str.71
Hamburg, 20148
Germany
0049-40-340576-662 (Phone)
0049-(0)40-340576776 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://https://sites.google.com/site/maxfriedrichsteinhardt/

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