Information Frictions, Belief Updating and Internal Migration: Evidence from Ghana and Uganda

Sarah Frohnweiler (), Bernd Beber () and Cara Ebert ()
Additional contact information
Sarah Frohnweiler: RWI
Bernd Beber: RWI
Cara Ebert: RWI

No 15826, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Information frictions about the benefits of migration can lead to inefficient migration choices. We study the effects of a randomly assigned information treatment about regional income differentials in Ghana and Uganda to learn about participants' belief updating and subsequent changes in migration intentions and destination preferences. Participants react to the provided information by correcting their destination preferences towards regions with higher incomes, whereas their intent to migrate changes less. Participants' belief updating follows an asymmetric process restricted to individuals who initially underestimated regional differentials. The results suggest that income differentials matter for where to and less whether to migrate.

Keywords: income differentials; migration decision; belief updating (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J31 J68 O15 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 58 pages
Date: 2022-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr, nep-exp, nep-lma, nep-mig and nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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