Journal of Applied Econometrics · 1998 · 18 citations · 0 references
Human MigrationGlobal MigrationApplied EconometricsNon-parametric InfluenceInternal MigrationMigration (Business Information Systems)Forced MigrationEconomic AnalysisWestern GermanyPublic HealthMigration PolicyStatisticsEconomicsSemiparametric AnalysisPopulation MigrationMigration (Educational Migration)Econometric MethodInternational Population MovementEconometric ModelEast–west MigrationWage InflationSociologyUrban EconomicsBusinessEconometricsDemographyPopulation MovementImmigration
East–West migration in Germany peaked at the beginning of the 1990s although the average wage gap between Eastern and Western Germany continues to average about 25%. We analyse the propensity to migrate using microdata from the German Socioeconomic Panel. Fitting a parametric Generalized Linear Model (GLM) yields non-linear residual behavior. This finding is not compatible with classical Marshallian theory of migration and motivates the semiparametric analysis. We estimate a Generalized Partial Linear Model (GPLM) where some components of the index of explanatory variables enter non-parametrically. We find the estimate of the non-parametric influence in concordance with a number of alternative migration theories, including the recently proposed option-value-of-waiting theory. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.