New from IMR: Immigration Policies and Immigrant Integration across Space and Time
July 26, 2016
The Summer 2016 edition of the International Migration Review (IMR) is now available online and in print through paid or institutional subscription. This edition includes a series of papers on immigration policies viewed from the perspectives of the state, church, and non-governmental actors. Other articles explore the ongoing challenges immigrants face in terms of employer stereotypes and cultural recognition during the integration process. The edition also includes eight new book reviews which are always made open access (freely available) for three years from the date of publication.
Some highlights from the Summer 2016 edition include:
The Reverse Gender Gap in Ethnic Discrimination: Employer Stereotypes of Men and Women with Arabic Names
By Mahmood Arai, Moa Bursell, and Lena Nekby
In this paper, the authors examine whether stereotypes of men and women with Arabic names result in labor-market discrimination in Sweden. Previous research on the subject suggests that there is an economic penalty attached to having a Middle Eastern-sounding name, with some immigrants even changing their names to avoid employment discrimination. This study tests how much work experience is needed to eliminate the potential disadvantage of having an Arabic name on a job application. In a field experiment setup, Swedish employers were first sent curriculum vitaes (CVs) of equal merit with a mix of Swedish and Arabic names as a control, and were then sent Arabic-named CVs enhanced with more relevant work experience than the Swedish-named CVs. Contrary to what is often assumed about the interaction of gender and ethnicity, the results indicate a “reverse gender gap” in employer stereotypes, with enhanced CVs for Arabic-named female applicants resulting in a higher “callback” success rate, while enhanced CVs with Arabic male names were subject to stronger discrimination.
Alternative Approaches to the Governance of Transnational Labor Recruitment
By Patricia Pittman
As globalization advances, the governance challenges relating to the recruitment of labor across borders have also grown. Labor recruitment is conducted by a number of actors including placement firms, staffing agencies, and private and public employers which often take advantage of vulnerable individuals seeking work abroad. While some states have implemented recruitment regulations to help mitigate this problem, a combination of jurisdictional constraints and economic interests have limited states’ capacity and political will to take action. A variety of other strategies are emerging led by international organizations, non-governmental organizations, labor unions, and corporate trade groups. This paper reviews the strengths and weaknesses of strategies led by each of these different types of actors and explores potential synergies among them. The author’s analysis of these efforts reveals several innovations which merit further research, including the use of public registries with mandatory reporting mechanisms, the development of a public/private certification mechanism , and the application of new technologies to help monitor human rights abuses.
A full list of articles in the Summer 2016 issue is provided below:
ISSUE INFORMATION
IMMIGRATION POLICIES: STATE, CHURCH, AND NON-GOVERNMENTAL ACTORS
Alternative Approaches to the Governance of Transnational Labor Recruitment
Patricia Pittman
The Politics of Migration, Church, and State: A Case Study of the Catholic Church in Ireland
Breda Gray
Sorting or Shaping? The Gendered Economic Outcomes of Immigration Policy in Canada
Jennifer Elrick and Naomi Lightman
IMMIGRANT INTEGRATION ACROSS SPACE AND TIME
The Reverse Gender Gap in Ethnic Discrimination: Employer Stereotypes of Men and Women with Arabic Names
Mahmood Arai, Moa Bursell, and Lena Nekby
Does Cultural Recognition Obstruct Immigrant Integration? Evidence from Two Historic Case Studies
Melanie Kolbe
Migration, Household Tasks, and Gender: Evidence from the Republic of Georgia
Karine Torosyan, Theodore P. Gerber, and Pilar Goñalons-Pons
The Fertility of Married Immigrant Women to Canada
Alícia Adserà and Ana Ferrer
Negative Assimilation: How Immigrants Experience Economic Mobility in Japan
Ayumi Takenaka, Makiko Nakamuro, and Kenji Ishida
BOOK REVIEWS (Open Access)
Rhythms of Race: Cuban Musicians and the Making of Latino New York City and Miami, 1940–1960. By Christina D. Abreu. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2015
Andrés Espinoza Agurto
The Road to Citizenship: What Naturalization Means for Immigrants in the United States. By Sofya Aptekar. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2015
Sarah Allen Gershon
Mobile Selves: Race, Migration, and Belonging in Peru and the U.S. By Ulla Berg. New York and London: New York University Press, 2015
Kristin Skrabut
Making a Global Immigrant Neighborhood: Brooklyn’s Sunset Park. By Tarry Hum. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2014
Filip Stabrowski