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Migration, Friendship Ties, and Cultural Assimilation
Author(s) -
Facchini Giovanni,
Patacchini Eleonora,
Steinhardt Max F.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
the scandinavian journal of economics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.725
H-Index - 64
eISSN - 1467-9442
pISSN - 0347-0520
DOI - 10.1111/sjoe.12096
Subject(s) - friendship , german , immigration , interpersonal ties , politics , assimilation (phonology) , sociology , variation (astronomy) , demographic economics , economics , political science , social psychology , geography , psychology , social science , linguistics , philosophy , physics , archaeology , astrophysics , law
We study immigrant assimilation by analyzing whether friendship with natives is a measure of cultural assimilation, and by investigating the formation of social ties. Using the German Socio‐Economic Panel, we find that immigrants with a German friend are more similar to natives than those without German friends, along several important dimensions, including concerns about the economy, an interest in politics, and a host of policy issues. Turning to friendship acquisition, we find that becoming employed, time spent in the host country, the birth of a child, residential mobility, and additional education acquired in the host country are significant drivers of social network variation.