What is the impact of migration on migrants and their children’s life chances? Are their opportunities equal to those of local populations at destination? Do they improve with respect to non-migrants in origin countries? These questions are at the heart of migration studies. Yet, our answers to them are partial because, first, most empirical and theoretical work on migrant integration focuses on South-North migration, even though that comprises only a third of total international migration flows. Second, studies on migrant integration are often focused on comparing migrants with local populations at destination. They hence fail to capture the counterfactual of what might have happened in the absence of migration or if the migrant had moved elsewhere.
To address these gaps, the GLAM project studied migration flows originating in South America, where 70% of migration is intra-regional. The project included a case study and a comparative study of South Americans in Southern and Northern destinations, focusing on educational and labour market outcomes—key indicators of long-term life chances. Using individual, household, and neighbourhood census data, I selected specific migrant populations to explore these issues.
Case Study: the education of migrant-origin children in Argentina. The case study examined indicators of educational access and attainment for children of migrants in Argentina. It found that migrant-origin children, especially from Bolivia and Paraguay, performed better than Argentine-origin children—particularly when their parents had low education levels. However, when parents had higher education, children of migrants either achieved equally or faced disadvantages compared to Argentine children. Previous research suggests that the outperformance of migrant-origin children might be due to greater motivation and aspirations. However, migrants with higher cultural capital, such as better-educated parents, often struggle to fully transmit that capital, due to a lack of compensatory class resources like stable income, which are crucial for educational success. The study also shows that migrant-origin children born in Argentina had better educational outcomes than those born abroad, reflecting the role of time in the integration process.
Comparative Study 1: the education of Bolivian-origin youth in Argentina vs. their peers in Bolivia. Through the study of various indicators of access to education & educational attainment, the study reveals that Bolivian-origin youth born in Argentina and living with their (generally low-educated) parents occupied an intermediate position: they tended to do worse than Bolivians in Bolivia, with migrant-origin men being the most negatively affected, yet better than native Argentines. “Dissimilation” from origin appears to be related to greater educational expansion in Bolivia, to which Bolivian-origin children in Argentina were not exposed to. Conversely, “assimilation” to destination exceeded expectations, as observed for other migrant groups too. Assuming that next to being an asset, better education is an extra tool that allows the acquisition of other types of assets, such as a better job or higher income, we can delineate two perspectives on migration outcomes. The first perspective is more negative: migration to another country does not seem to have improved children’s life chances. The other is more positive and hopeful, highlighting the capacity of migrant-origin children to acquire human capital tools that facilitate better navigation of the system.
Comparative Study 2: labour market outcomes of migrants in Argentina and Spain. The second comparative study examined the labour market outcomes of Bolivian and Peruvian migrants in Argentina and Spain, and how this varied relative to non-migrants. Among other findings, I show that migration boosts activity rates among women in Spain; in Argentina, this effect is only observed for Peruvians. A higher proportion of women at work has the capacity of influencing gender roles, especially for nationalities where traditional roles predominate. I also found differences in terms of occupational status. While Peruvian migrant men have better occupational status than non-migrants, the opposite is observed for Peruvian women and Bolivians—especially those with higher education. Although migration means for many the possibility to send remittances, the depreciation of class status may also have long-term consequences for life chances. These findings provide new insights to the outcomes of migration.
