Split Decisions : Family Finance When a Policy Discontinuity Allocates

Labor markets are increasingly global. Overseas work can enrich households but also split them geographically, with ambiguous net effects on decisions about work, investment, and education. These net effects, and their mechanisms, are poorly understood. This study investigates a policy discontinuity in the Philippines that resulted in quasi-random assignment of temporary, partial-household migration to high-wage jobs in Korea. This allows unusually reliable measurement of the reduced-form effect of these overseas jobs on migrant households. A purpose-built survey allows nonexperimental tests of different theoretical mechanisms for the reduced-form effect. The study also explores how reliably the reduced-form effect could be measured with standard observational estimators. It finds large effects on spending, borrowing, and human capital investment, but no effects on saving or entrepreneurship. Remittances appear to overwhelm household splitting as a causal mechanism.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Clemens, Michael A., Tiongson, Erwin R.
Language:	English en_US
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2012-12
Subjects:	ACCESS TO CAPITAL, ACCESS TO FINANCE, ACCOUNTING, ADOLESCENTS, AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITY, AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION, AGRICULTURAL SECTORS, AGRICULTURE, ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES, BANKS, BORROWING, BRIBES, CAPITAL INVESTMENT, CAPITAL INVESTMENTS, CAPITAL MARKET, CAPITAL MARKETS, CHILD DEVELOPMENT, CHILD HEALTH, CHILD LABOR, CONSTRAINTS ON INVESTMENTS, CONSUMER PRICE INDEX, CORRUPTION, CREDIT ACCESS, CREDIT CONSTRAINTS, CREDITS, DECISION MAKING, DEPOSITS, DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS, DEVELOPMENT POLICY, DISSEMINATION, DIVORCE, DURABLE GOODS, EARLY CHILDHOOD, EARNINGS, ECONOMETRICS, ECONOMIC ANALYSIS, ECONOMIC RESEARCH, ECONOMICS, ECONOMICS RESEARCH, EDUCATION LEVELS, EDUCATION SPENDING, EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, ELDERLY, EMPLOYERS, EMPLOYMENT, EMPOWERMENT, ENROLLMENT, ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITIES, ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITY, ENTREPRENEURS, EXCHANGE RATE, EXPENDITURE, EXPENDITURES, FAMILIES, FAMILY BUSINESS, FAMILY COMPOSITION, FAMILY FINANCE, FAMILY INCOME, FAMILY MEMBERS, FAMILY STRUCTURE, FINANCIAL SERVICES, GENDER, GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT, HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD, HEALTH FACILITIES, HOME IMPROVEMENT, HOUSEHOLD FINANCE, HOUSEHOLD INCOME, HOUSEHOLD INVESTMENT, HOUSEHOLD INVESTMENTS, HOUSEHOLD LEVEL, HOUSEHOLD SIZE, HOUSEHOLDS, HUMAN CAPITAL, IMPACT OF MIGRATION, INCOME MEASURES, INCOME TAX, INCOME TAX CREDIT, INFORMATION ON INVESTMENT, INTERNATIONAL BANK, INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION, INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION REVIEW, INVESTMENT DECISIONS, LABOR ECONOMICS, LABOR FORCE, LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION, LABOR FORCE SURVEY, LABOR MARKET, LABOR MARKETS, LABOR MIGRATION, LABOR RELATIONS, LABOR SUPPLY, LABOUR, LABOUR MARKET, LABOUR SUPPLY, LIQUIDITY, LIVING STANDARDS, LOTTERY, MEDICAL CARE, MICROFINANCE, MIGRANT, MIGRANT LABOR, MIGRANT REMITTANCES, MIGRANTS, MIGRATION, MOTHER, MUTUAL FUND, NATIONAL GOVERNMENT, NATIONAL POPULATION, NEW BUSINESS, NUMBER OF PEOPLE, OLD AGE, OPTIMIZATION, PERMANENT INCOME, PERSONALITY, PHYSICAL CAPITAL, POLICY DISCUSSIONS, POLICY RESEARCH, POLICY RESEARCH WORKING PAPER, POLITICAL ECONOMY, POSITIVE EFFECTS, PRODUCTION PROCESS, PRODUCTIVITY, PSYCHOLOGY, QUALITY OF LIFE, RECREATION, REMITTANCE, REMITTANCE MECHANISM, REMITTANCES, RESPECT, RETURN MIGRATION, ROLE OF GENDER, RURAL AREAS, SAVINGS, SAVINGS PRODUCT, SECONDARY SCHOOL, SEX, SIBLINGS, SMALL ENTERPRISES, SOCIAL NETWORKS, SOCIAL SCIENCE, SPOUSE, SPOUSES, TEMPORARY MIGRATION, TRANSPORTATION, UNEMPLOYED, VILLAGE, WAGES, WAR, WEALTH, WORK EXPERIENCE, WORKERS, YOUNG CHILDREN,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2012/12/17043015/split-decisions-family-finance-policy-discontinuity-allocates-overseas-work https://hdl.handle.net/10986/12181
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