Wealth Heterogeneity and the Income Elasticity of Migration
研究了收入冲击如何影响从贫穷国家向外的国际移民流动，发现农业收入增长总体上增加移民，但效应取决于财富分布，尤其在土地持有者多的村庄更明显。
How do income shocks affect international migration flows from poor countries? Income growth not only increases the opportunity cost of migration but also eases liquidity constraints. I develop a method to separate these countervailing individual effects and identify the overall income elasticity of migration. Using new administrative and census data from Indonesia, I find that positive agricultural income shocks increase labor emigration flows, particularly in villages with relatively more small landholders. However, in the most developed rural areas, persistent income shocks reduce emigration. Overall, the findings highlight the important role of wealth heterogeneity in shaping migration flows as incomes rise.