The Assimilation of Balkan and Middle Eastern Refugees in Sweden: A comparative study of how the country of origin affects the labour market outcome
2020 (English)Independent thesis Basic level (degree of Bachelor), 10 credits / 15 HE credits
Student thesis
Abstract [en]
This paper investigates the assimilation of Balkan and Middle Eastern refugees in Sweden. The aim of this report is to examine whether an immigrant from a country that has similarities with the host country regarding language, institutions and culture, will have an easier and faster assimilation process compared to an immigrant originating from a more distant country. With the use of regression and linear probability analyses, Balkan immigrants show faster assimilation in employment and earnings than the immigrants originating from the Middle East. By examining the genders separately, the Balkan males are seen to exhibit a much higher earnings assimilation rate than the Middle Eastern males, while the female rates portray less variation. The initial employment and earnings differentials, relative natives, however, tend to be larger for Balkan immigrants than Middle Eastern, for cohorts arriving before 1990. This trend changes to the opposite scenario after 1990, when Middle Eastern immigrant cohorts face larger disadvantages compared to Balkan groups. Less transferable skills and discrimination against Middle Eastern minority groups could potentially explain the results. Nonetheless, since both immigrant groups experience large disadvantages in earnings and employment at arrival in the country, reaching parity in earnings and employment rate with natives seems distant, regardless of gender and origin.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2020. , p. 35
Keywords [en]
Assimilation, Immigrants, Earnings, Employment, Balkan, Middle East, Sweden
National Category
Economics
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-96232OAI: oai:DiVA.org:lnu-96232DiVA, id: diva2:1441162
Subject / course
Economics
Educational program
Business Administration and Economics Programme, 240 credits
Supervisors
Examiners
2020-06-162020-06-152020-06-16Bibliographically approved