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1. How Globalization Has Impacted Labor

Author:
Seymour Spilerman
Publication Date:
12-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy at Columbia University
Abstract:
This essay outlines the features of globalization in the current era and indicates how conceptualizations of this process differ from the related formulations of the Annales School and of World Systems Analysis. The main theme of the paper is then developed, namely an assessment of the ways that globalization has impacted the organization of work and the structure of employment careers. This assessment is based on results from a variety of recent research studies, especially on findings from the Globalife project.
Topic:
Economics, Globalization, International Trade and Finance, Markets, and Political Economy

2. Transfers from Migrants to their Children: Evidence that Altruism and Cultural Factors Matter

Author:
Seymour Spilerman, François-Charles Wolff, and Claudine Attias-Donfut
Publication Date:
12-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy at Columbia University
Abstract:
This paper focuses on the determinants of financial inter vivos transfers by migrants living in France in 2003 to their adult children. From a theoretical viewpoint, such transfers may be explained either by altruism or by exchange. While parents would direct their assistance to their less well off children under altruism, support should be channeled to children who live nearby their parents under the exchange motive. We assess the relevance of these two motives using the French PRI survey. Unequal sharing is frequently observed and children are more likely to receive financial transfers when they are in poor circumstance, but not necessarily when living in proximity to parents. We also emphasize the role of cultural factors as determinants of the parental allocation among children. Muslim parents, in particular, are more likely to make transfers to sons than to daughters.
Topic:
Economics, International Political Economy, International Trade and Finance, Migration, and Political Economy
Political Geography:
France

3. Intergenerational Influences of Wealth in Mexico

Author:
Seymour Spilerman and Florencia Torche
Publication Date:
12-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy at Columbia University
Abstract:
Using the 2006 Mexican Social Mobility Survey, this research evaluates the influence of parental wealth on several outcomes of adult children, including educational attainment, consumption level, asset holdings, home ownership, and value of residence. Two mechanisms of parental influence on economic wellbeing are explored: an indirect effect mediated by parental investment in human capital, and the direct transfer of resources. Three main findings emerge from the analysis. First, parental wealth is a strong determinant of educational attainment, net of the standard indicators of advantage regularly used in stratification research, and the influence of wealth is stronger among the most disadvantaged children (those with low cultural capital, and residing in non-urban areas). Second, the mechanism of parental influence on adult children's economic wellbeing differs depending on the outcome: In the case of consumption level, the influence is largely indirect, mediated by parental investment in offspring's human capital, while the opposite is true for children's asset holdings, where a direct transfer of resources predominates. Third, while access to homeownership is only weakly stratified by parent's and children's resources, the value of the acquired home is significantly affected by parental wealth. These patterns of influence are similar to those found in Chile (Spilerman and Torche 2004, Torche and Spilerman 2006) and they highlight the critical impact of parental wealth in less developed countries.
Topic:
Demographics, Economics, Political Economy, Poverty, and Third World
Political Geography:
Latin America, Mexico, and United Arab Emirates