Diego Battiston es Profesor Asistente en University of Edinburgh (Reino Unido) e Investigador del Centre for Economic Performance's at London School of Economics (LSE). Tiene un PhD en Economía por la LSE y se especializa en economía laboral, economía organizacional y desarrollo económico. Sus investigaciones han sido publicadas en revistas académicas como Review of Economic Studies y Latin American Journal of Economics, entre otros.

Abstract: This paper shows that brief social interactions can have a large impact on economic outcomes when they occur in high-stakes decision contexts. I study this question using a high frequency and detailed geolocalized dataset of matched immigrants-ships from the age of mass migration. Individuals exogenously travelling with (previously unrelated) higher quality shipmates end up being employed in higher quality jobs at destination. Several findings suggest that shipmates provide access and/or information about employment opportunities. Firstly, immigrants' sector of employment and place of residence are affected by those of their shipmates' contacts. Secondly, the baseline effects are stronger for individuals travelling alone and with fewer connections at destination. Thirdly, immigrants are affected more strongly by shipmates who share their language. These findings underline the sizeable effects of even brief social connections, provided that they occur during critical life junctures.

Autor: Diego Battiston

Organiza: Instituto de Investigaciones Económicas, Departamento de Economía y Revista Económica

Contacto: iie@econo.unlp.edu.ar