This dissertation consists of three essays in Housing and Family Economics. In the first chapter, I analyze the interstate migration patterns of families and the effect of labor force attachment of women on joint migration decisions. I show that as the earned income of spouses become similar, the probability of migration falls substantially. This observation is robust in the sense that 1) it holds even after controlling for a rich set of factors that are strongly correlated with relative income, 2) it yields qualitatively similar results when I model the incidence of attrition as another exit, 3) it consistently disappears for the shorter distance moves. I also find that the negative relationship between income similarity of couples and interstate migration is especially strong for supposedly more settled families and couples that have similar labor market characteristics beyond income levels. In the second chapter, I quantify the contribution of women's labor force attachment to the declining trend in interstate migration. I first document that for families in which both spouses have similar incomes, the propensity to migrate is significantly lower than for families with unequal spousal earnings. I then construct a labor search model in which households make location, marriage, and divorce decisions. I calibrate the model to match aggregate U.S. statistics on mobility, marriage and labor flows and use it to quantify the effect of a fall in the gender wage gap on interstate migration. Narrowing the gender wage gap increases women's contribution to total family income; it induces a higher share of families with both spouses working and more couples with similar incomes. The model predicts that the observed change in the gender wage gap accounts for 35% of the drop in family migration since 1981. Finally, in the third chapter, I examine the effects of homeownership on individuals' unemployment durations in the USA. I take into account that an unemployment spell can terminate with a job or with a non-participation transition. The endogeneity of homeownership is addressed through the estimation of a full maximum likelihood function which jointly models the competing hazards and the probability of being a homeowner. Unobserved factors contributing to the probability of being a homeowner are allowed to be correlated with unobservable heterogeneity in the hazard rates. Tentative results suggest that unemployed homeowners are less likely to find a job which is especially stronger for outright owners. I also find that homeowners' nonparticipation hazard does not significantly differ from that of renters' although having a mortgage lowers the chance of exiting the labor force. / text

During the last fifty years the city of Benghazi in Libya has attracted huge streams of migrants from villages and small towns. This is due to the pull factors of jobs and social services in the city and to the push factors associated with the neglect of villages and small towns. This resulted in the city quickly increasing in size, leading to rapid population growth, culminating in many economic, social and demographic problems. However, little is known about Libyan migration especially in relation to the challenges posed by internal migration. Therefore, there is a need to examine the phenomena of internal migration and its effect on Benghazi, in order to provide planners and policy makers with up-to-date and relevant information to help them make appropriate decisions. The key aim of this study was to determine and critically evaluate the impact of internal migration on Benghazi using an interpretive approach. This was achieved by combining quantitative and qualitative methods. The empirical core of this thesis is based on field work data, including questionnaire interviews with 150 heads of household who had migrated to Benghazi; supplemented by 10 in-depth narrative studies with selected families; and semi structured interviews with key informants (policy makers) to investigate Government policy and the economic, social and demographic impact of internal migration on the city of Benghazi. The starting point of the theoretical basis of this study is based on theories developed by Ravenstein, Lee and Sjaastad. The research shows that there has been a high rate of migration flow to Benghazi over the last fifty years, and that the economic elements (job opportunities, higher incomes and more regular work) are the most important motives for migrating, in addition to social factors namely attending education and having access to health services. The research found that migration to Benghazi involved a bulk exodus of the whole family unit to take advantage of a better lifestyle in Benghazi. The thesis further reveals that these family streams of migrants have affected the social, economic and demographic situation of Benghazi. Despite the Libyan Government seeking to reduce streams of internal migrants, some of these policies have worked, others have not. There is thus difference between what was planned and what has actually been achieved on the ground, demonstrating the need for research such as this.

Studies on mixed race and/or ethnicity families have tended to focus on the child’s struggle with identity. Although this topic is very important, in order to better understand how mixed families function as a whole, and how mixed children are socialised, my thesis explored the entire family, with a focus on the parents and kin. Specifically, I looked at the negotiations that take place between the Japanese mothers’ and British fathers’ differences, and the way in which culture, including customs, beliefs, and preferences, are then shared and transmitted to the mixed children. This qualitative, ethnographic study focused on twelve Japanese/British families in Edinburgh. Because socialisation and the transmission of culture tend to happen in the midst of doing mixed family, the following areas of the mixed families’ lives were explored: everyday lived culture, language choices, and food habits. When examining the foods eaten and the languages spoken by the mixed families, it seems that the mixed families are attempting to transmit both their linguistic and culinary heritages to their children, with their aspiration being to raise bilingual, bicultural children. In addition, this study explored the role that extended family and friends play in the lives of the mixed families as they attempt to form their new mixed family culture. The data collection was the result of 26 months of fieldwork consisting of participant observation at three local Japanese mother/toddler playgroups, interviews with both parents and extended family members, and home observations. Some major findings from the study were that, while mothers still tend to carry a heavier burden when it comes to everyday parenting, particularly in the domestic sphere, the fathers were also found to be involved in many aspects of everyday parenting. Additionally, both maternal and paternal kin were also found to offer the mixed families various types of support, with the most frequently mentioned types of support being practical and emotional. Further, mixed families were found to complicate this idea of ‘national culture’ because nationality is not tied to a culture. In this way, the transmission of culture becomes more fluid, allowing the British man to transmit “Japanese” customs and the Japanese woman to share her “British” interests with her children. Finally, while focusing on the intergenerational transmission of culture from parent to child, we find that children do indeed have agency in the transmission of culture, as they are the ones who ultimately decide whether their cultural heritage is a gift or a burden. The study thus offers a nuanced picture of mixed family lives in contemporary UK.

When a couple moves, the woman is often placed at a disadvantage. Moves are more often motivated by men’s career advancement opportunities, and men tend to gain more economically from moving. In this thesis, these patterns are examined with an eye on the role of sex segregation on the labor market. Results from the four studies indicate that there exist gender differences in couples’ migration patterns in Sweden. These differences cannot be completely explained by occupational sex segregation or by traditional gender ideologies. I. Compared to men, women are more willing to move for the sake of their partner’s employment opportunities. Further, fathers move for the sake of their own career more often than mothers. Gender differences in these patterns are greater among individuals with gender traditional attitudes, but also exist in more egalitarian relationships. II. In a couple, the man’s educational attainment affects couples’ mobility more than the woman’s. This is because highly educated men’s occupations have more career advancement opportunities and larger differences in wages between regions, whereas women’s occupations have higher geographic ubiquity. Both partners’ occupational characteristics have an equal impact on the couple’s mobility. III. When a couple moves, the man benefits more financially than the woman. This differential cannot be wholly explained by occupational differences. Some of the lag in women’s earnings development can be accounted for by childbearing following a move. Occupations’ with greater geographic ubiquity correlate with more positive financial outcomes for both men and women following a move. IV. At the start of co-residence, it is more common that the woman moves to the man than vice versa, and women generally move longer distances than men. Age differentails between partners explain part of these migration differences. Furthermore, men’s migration propensities and distance moved are more affected by labor market ties than women’s. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following paper was unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 1: Accepted.</p>

O presente trabalho visa analisar o impacto que a condição de migração dos pais exerce sobre a alocação do tempo dos filhos entre 10 e 14 anos no Estado de São Paulo. A atenção volta-se especialmente para a verificação empírica da probabilidade de a criança estudar/trabalhar, separando a amostra do estudo de acordo com as diferentes possibilidades de combinação das condições de migração dos pais da criança. No primeiro capítulo é apresentada uma revisão da literatura econômica referente ao trabalho infantil, com ênfase nos resultados obtidos no caso brasileiro. A seguir é mostrado como os fatores de curto e longo prazos da migração familiar podem interferir na alocação do tempo das crianças entre escola e trabalho. Para distinguir os impactos de curto e longo prazos da migração dos pais sobre a probabilidade de a criança estudar/trabalhar, os pais migrantes foram separados de acordo com o tempo de residência no Estado de São Paulo em: migrantes há menos de dez anos, que podem ter origem em outra Unidade da Federação, ou serem paulistas retornados e, ainda, migrantes de outros Estados que residem há pelo menos dez anos no local de destino. Essa distinção foi utilizada para analisar o diferencial de rendimentos de pais e mães migrantes em relação aos não migrantes através da aplicação da decomposição de Oaxaca, apresentada no capítulo 2. A constatação da seletividade positiva ou negativa de cada um dos três grupos de pais/mães migrantes em relação a pais/mães paulistas não migrantes auxiliou a análise de como a diferença de rendimentos colabora para a explicação das discrepâncias das probabilidades de estudar/trabalhar de seus respectivos filhos. No capítulo 3, antes do cálculo do probit bivariado para obter as probabilidades previstas de a criança estudar/trabalhar, a amostra dos filhos de 10 a 14 anos é separada de acordo com as possíveis combinações de pais e mães, segundo o tempo de residência no Estado de São Paulo. O probit bivariado para meninos e meninas é calculado para cada tipo de família e, com base nas probabilidades previstas obtidas, aplica-se a decomposição entre características observáveis e não observáveis da diferença das probabilidades de estudar/trabalhar entre os filhos de migrantes e não migrantes. De maneira genérica, os resultados encontrados mostram que a migração dos pais amplia as chances de seus filhos ofertarem trabalho no curto prazo, enquanto no longo prazo, dada a seletividade positiva dos adultos, os filhos de migrantes têm menor probabilidade de trabalhar. Este resultado aponta que durante o período de adaptação dos pais ao mercado de trabalho do local de destino, as chances de a família fazer uso da mão-de-obra de seus filhos têm uma leve ampliação. Por outro lado, os resultados indicam que a migração não interfere de maneira positiva sobre a probabilidade de a criança estudar, independentemente do tempo de residência de seus pais no local de destino. Como os filhos de migrantes apresentam probabilidade de estudar sistematicamente inferior à dos filhos dos não migrantes, o deslocamento geográfico para o Estado de São Paulo não pode ser visto como um processo que contribui para a redução da pobreza intergeracional. / The present work analyzes the impact of different parents migration condition over their children of 10-14 years time allocation in São Paulo State. The attention is especially turned toward the empirical approach of child probability to study/work following the sample segregation in accordance with different possible combinations of parent’s migration condition. In the first chapter a revision of economic literature of child labor is presented, with emphasis for the results gotten in the Brazilian case. To follow it is shown as the determinants of short and long terms of family migration can influence in child time allocation between school and work. To distinguish the impacts from short and long terms of parent’s migration on child probability to study/work, the father and mother migrants conditions was split up according with their time of residence in São Paulo State: migrants less than ten years (who can be born in another State or a returned) and migrants that live at least ten years in destination place. This distinction works as a base to differential wage calculation between the migrants and non-migrants parents carry through the application of Oaxaca decomposition in chapter 2. The evidence of positive or negative selectivity to each one of the three groups of fathers/mothers migrants in relation to non-migrants parents helps the analysis of how the wage differential contribute to explain the discrepancies of study/work probabilities between their children. In chapter 3, before bivariate probit calculation, the sample of the children of 10-14 years is separate in accordance with the possible combinations of fathers and mothers according to time of residence in São Paulo State. The bivariate probit for boys and girls is calculated for each type of family and based on the predict probabilities of study/work the difference between migrants and non-migrants children is decomposed in observed and not observed characteristics. The general results show that in short term the parents migration increase the chances of children work, while in the long term the migrants children have less probability to work, due to their parents positive selection. On the other hand, migrant conditions are not significant to explain the child study probability, independent of their parent’s time residence in destination place. Because the study probability of migrants children are continually lesser than non migrants child it is not possible to affirm that migration is a process that contributes for the reduction of intergerational poverty in São Paulo State.

O presente trabalho visa analisar o impacto que a condição de migração dos pais exerce sobre a alocação do tempo dos filhos entre 10 e 14 anos no Estado de São Paulo. A atenção volta-se especialmente para a verificação empírica da probabilidade de a criança estudar/trabalhar, separando a amostra do estudo de acordo com as diferentes possibilidades de combinação das condições de migração dos pais da criança. No primeiro capítulo é apresentada uma revisão da literatura econômica referente ao trabalho infantil, com ênfase nos resultados obtidos no caso brasileiro. A seguir é mostrado como os fatores de curto e longo prazos da migração familiar podem interferir na alocação do tempo das crianças entre escola e trabalho. Para distinguir os impactos de curto e longo prazos da migração dos pais sobre a probabilidade de a criança estudar/trabalhar, os pais migrantes foram separados de acordo com o tempo de residência no Estado de São Paulo em: migrantes há menos de dez anos, que podem ter origem em outra Unidade da Federação, ou serem paulistas retornados e, ainda, migrantes de outros Estados que residem há pelo menos dez anos no local de destino. Essa distinção foi utilizada para analisar o diferencial de rendimentos de pais e mães migrantes em relação aos não migrantes através da aplicação da decomposição de Oaxaca, apresentada no capítulo 2. A constatação da seletividade positiva ou negativa de cada um dos três grupos de pais/mães migrantes em relação a pais/mães paulistas não migrantes auxiliou a análise de como a diferença de rendimentos colabora para a explicação das discrepâncias das probabilidades de estudar/trabalhar de seus respectivos filhos. No capítulo 3, antes do cálculo do probit bivariado para obter as probabilidades previstas de a criança estudar/trabalhar, a amostra dos filhos de 10 a 14 anos é separada de acordo com as possíveis combinações de pais e mães, segundo o tempo de residência no Estado de São Paulo. O probit bivariado para meninos e meninas é calculado para cada tipo de família e, com base nas probabilidades previstas obtidas, aplica-se a decomposição entre características observáveis e não observáveis da diferença das probabilidades de estudar/trabalhar entre os filhos de migrantes e não migrantes. De maneira genérica, os resultados encontrados mostram que a migração dos pais amplia as chances de seus filhos ofertarem trabalho no curto prazo, enquanto no longo prazo, dada a seletividade positiva dos adultos, os filhos de migrantes têm menor probabilidade de trabalhar. Este resultado aponta que durante o período de adaptação dos pais ao mercado de trabalho do local de destino, as chances de a família fazer uso da mão-de-obra de seus filhos têm uma leve ampliação. Por outro lado, os resultados indicam que a migração não interfere de maneira positiva sobre a probabilidade de a criança estudar, independentemente do tempo de residência de seus pais no local de destino. Como os filhos de migrantes apresentam probabilidade de estudar sistematicamente inferior à dos filhos dos não migrantes, o deslocamento geográfico para o Estado de São Paulo não pode ser visto como um processo que contribui para a redução da pobreza intergeracional. / The present work analyzes the impact of different parents migration condition over their children of 10-14 years time allocation in São Paulo State. The attention is especially turned toward the empirical approach of child probability to study/work following the sample segregation in accordance with different possible combinations of parent’s migration condition. In the first chapter a revision of economic literature of child labor is presented, with emphasis for the results gotten in the Brazilian case. To follow it is shown as the determinants of short and long terms of family migration can influence in child time allocation between school and work. To distinguish the impacts from short and long terms of parent’s migration on child probability to study/work, the father and mother migrants conditions was split up according with their time of residence in São Paulo State: migrants less than ten years (who can be born in another State or a returned) and migrants that live at least ten years in destination place. This distinction works as a base to differential wage calculation between the migrants and non-migrants parents carry through the application of Oaxaca decomposition in chapter 2. The evidence of positive or negative selectivity to each one of the three groups of fathers/mothers migrants in relation to non-migrants parents helps the analysis of how the wage differential contribute to explain the discrepancies of study/work probabilities between their children. In chapter 3, before bivariate probit calculation, the sample of the children of 10-14 years is separate in accordance with the possible combinations of fathers and mothers according to time of residence in São Paulo State. The bivariate probit for boys and girls is calculated for each type of family and based on the predict probabilities of study/work the difference between migrants and non-migrants children is decomposed in observed and not observed characteristics. The general results show that in short term the parents migration increase the chances of children work, while in the long term the migrants children have less probability to work, due to their parents positive selection. On the other hand, migrant conditions are not significant to explain the child study probability, independent of their parent’s time residence in destination place. Because the study probability of migrants children are continually lesser than non migrants child it is not possible to affirm that migration is a process that contributes for the reduction of intergerational poverty in São Paulo State.

Family reunification is a unique research field currently impacted by shifting policies andattitudes on integration. In Sweden, family connections constitute the largest immigrationcategory, yet the wait for family reunification has not yet been examined within academia.Thus, the aim of this thesis is to explore former asylum seekers’ experiences of waiting forfamily reunification in Sweden. Taking place at all stages of the migratory process, elementswithin waiting include time perception, power relations, expectations, future, hope,uncertainty and activity. Forming the theoretical framework of this thesis, six semi-structuredinterviews with former asylum seekers from Syria are analyzed in relation to waiting andmigration. The findings suggest that waiting stretches across legal statuses and entailsdifferent perceptions of time, differing from the linear bureaucratic model provided by theSwedish Migration Agency. Family reunification is the future goal of the informants’ wait,asylum being a temporal marker on the way there. The wait encompasses a power relation inwhich several actors in Sweden and abroad affect expectations, outcome and duration of thewait. Uncertainty in terms of duration and outcome affect informants’ well-being negatively.With distrust in the procedures of the Swedish Migration Agency, the process is experiencedas unjust, especially when others receive decisions ahead of time. While passivity constitutesparts of the wait, activity in terms of physical action such as going to work and mentalmonitoring of one’s case are present. Finally, waiting for family reunification is a highlyaffective form of waiting entailing emotions and care, influencing the relation to the family inwaiting abroad.

Lo scopo di questa ricerca è quello di analizzare l'impatto della migrazione sulle relazioni familiari degli immigrati turchi in Italia e il modo in cui i legami con il paese d’origine possono influenzare le loro esperienze migratorie e i loro piani futuri. Questi aspetti sono stati analizzati in uno studio qualitativo ed esplorativo, attraverso 38 interviste a migranti turchi attualmente residenti nel Nord Italia e identificati con la tecnica del campionamento snowball. L'intervista semi-strutturata è stato il principale strumento di ricerca e, di conseguenza, ha rappresentato la principale fonte di dati primari di questa ricerca. Le relazioni familiari e le esperienze migratorie hanno costituito il focus delle interviste; le domande sono state delineate intorno ad alcuni argomenti ritenuti cruciali come la storia della famiglia, la loro scelta migratoria, il confronto tra "qui" e "là", l'esperienza migratoria e i cambiamenti che questa produce a livello di relazioni familiari, le difficoltà e le reti di comunità. Analizzando una comunità poca studiata in Italia come quella turca, in una prospettiva di relazioni familiari, questa ricerca vuole fornire un contributo originale sia allo studio della migrazione turca sia agli studi familiari in generale. / This research seeks to analyse the impact of migration on family relations of Turkish immigrants in Italy, and the way ties with the country of origin can affect their migration experiences and future plans. These aspects have been analysed in a qualitative study, exploratory in nature, through 38 interviews with Turkish migrants identified by snowballing who are currently residing in Northern Italy. The semi–structured interview is the main research instrument and consequently, it provides the main sources of primary data for this research. The main focus of the interviews was on family relations and the migration experiences; interview questions were outlined around a few major topics such as the history of the family, their migration choice, the comparison between ‘here’ and ‘there’, the migration experience, the changes that it produces at the level of family relations, the difficulties and community networks. By considering such an understudied community in Italy as the Turkish –within a perspective of family relations– this research seeks to provide an original contribution both to the study of the Turkish migration and to family studies in general.

This thesis consists of three papers studying the economic situation of immigrants in Sweden in terms of wage earnings, labor participation and family internal migration. Paper [I] (http://www.econ.umu.se/ues/ues622.html) studies the determinants of the wage earnings for immigrants from different countries, and secondly whether their wage earnings converge to those of comparable native-born Swedes. The study is based on a longitudinal dataset, and the data refers to 1991 and 1995, respectively. The empirical results indicate that immigrants in Sweden are heterogeneous, and different income determinants, such as education, cohortspecific factors and time of residence, affect different groups of immigrants in different ways. Even after 20 years of residence, almost none of the groups appear to reach the same level of earnings as natives. In particular, the earnings of immigrants from typical refugee-sending countries tend to be much lower. Paper [II] (http://www.econ.umu.se/ues/ues623.html) examines whether the transition probability from employment to non-employment among married immigrant women is consistent with the Family Investment Hypothesis (FIH). A dynamic random effects model is used and the estimations are based on a longitudinal database covering the period 1990-1996. The results indicate that the relationship between the transition probability from employment to nonemployment and the family’s time of residence in Sweden, considered here as an indication of the husband’s need for host country-specific human capital, does not seem to be consistent with the interpretation of the FIH. Further, when immigrant women married to native-born Swedes are used as a comparison group, the corresponding relationship is similar despite the fact that this group should not need to apply family investment strategy. Paper [III] (http://www.econ.umu.se/ues/ues624.html) uses a longitudinal dataset from the years 1995 and 2000, respectively, this study examines whether migration within the host country of Sweden generates higher total annual income for (two-earner) immigrant families. The empirical findings indicate that internal migration generates a positive outcome in terms of higher family income for newly arrived refugee-immigrant families. Further, with the length of residence in the host country, the monetary gain accruing from internal migration decreases. On the other hand, I could not find similar results for immigrant families from the Nordic countries, Europe and Asia.

Foreign-born women who migrate to a partner implies a particular vulnerability towards intimate partner violence. This is due to reasons including migration law related dependency. Little research has been made on intimate partner violence amongst this specific migrant group. This scoping review aims to investigate experiences of intimate partner violence amongst women who, as a result of their migration status, stand in a dependent position in relation to their partner. Searches were made in two databases. The initial searches resulted in 625 articles, these were all reviewed by their titles. 213 articles were reviewed by abstracts and 27 were reviewed by full text. Three articles were conducted by examining references of the articles. This resulted in 17 articles being included in this scoping review. Key findings include the women's double exposure in relation to: physical abuse, their financial situation, mental abuse, social isolation, latent abuse and exploitation. Findings also include consequences of the violence: Emotional consequences and coping. To avoid generalization and instead focus on the diversity of migration experiences this study presents an intersectional perspective on migrant women's experiences of intimate partner violence. This study analyzes how multiple factors of disadvantage including gender, class, ethnicity and migration status all intersect and create a complex and unique exposure when it comes to intimate partner violence.