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Local Social Capital and Geographical Mobility: Some Empirics and a Conjecture on the Nature of European Unemployment

Author

Listed:
  • David, Quentin

    (ECARES, Free University of Brussels)

  • Janiak, Alexandre

    (University of Chile)

  • Wasmer, Etienne

    (Sciences Po, Paris)

Abstract
European labor markets are characterized by the low geographical mobility of workers. The absence of mobility is a factor behind high unemployment when jobless people prefer to remain in their home region rather than to go prospecting in more dynamic areas. In this paper, we attempt to understand the determinants of mobility by introducing the concept of local social capital. Using data from a European household panel (ECHP), we provide various measures of social capital, which appears to be a strong factor of immobility. It is also a fairly large factor of unemployment when social capital is clearly local, while other types of social capital are found to have a positive effect on employability. We also find evidence of the reciprocal causality, that is, individuals born in another region have accumulated less local social capital. Finally, observing that individuals in the South of Europe appear to accumulate more local social capital, while in Northern Europe they tend to invest in more general types of social capital, we argue that part of the European unemployment puzzle can be better understood thanks to the concept of local social capital.

Suggested Citation

  • David, Quentin & Janiak, Alexandre & Wasmer, Etienne, 2008. "Local Social Capital and Geographical Mobility: Some Empirics and a Conjecture on the Nature of European Unemployment," IZA Discussion Papers 3669, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp3669
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Yogo, Urbain Thierry, 2011. "Social Network and Job Quality: Evidence from Cameroon," MPRA Paper 44936, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Stephen Machin & Kjell G. Salvanes & Panu Pelkonen, 2012. "Education And Mobility," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 10(2), pages 417-450, April.
    3. David, Quentin & Janiak, Alexandre & Wasmer, Etienne, 2010. "Local social capital and geographical mobility," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 191-204, September.
    4. David, Quentin & Janiak, Alexandre & Wasmer, Etienne, 2008. "Local Social Capital and Geographical Mobility: A Theory," IZA Discussion Papers 3668, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    geographical mobility; European unemployment; social capital;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J2 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • Z1 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics

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