High-skilled immigration and native task specialization in U.S. cities

《High-skilled immigration and native task specialization in U.S. cities》

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作者单位: Cornell Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, USA;Cornell Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, USA

摘要: This study examines the effect of high-skilled immigration on the occupational structure of native-born workers in U.S. cities. I find that increases in foreign college workers in STEM occupations, where they hold a comparative advantage over native-born workers, increase the specialization of college natives in social-intensive tasks. Consistent with the productivity effect of task specialization, I find no evidence of displacement effects but do find evidence of positive wage effects of foreign STEM flows on college natives, particularly for those in high-social occupations. Because migration flows are endogenous, I use a shift-share instrument to identify the effect of high-skilled immigration.