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jaime2000 comments on Open thread for December 24-31, 2013 - Less Wrong Discussion
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I don't know your family, obviously, but my prior probability is that migration to America would be an incentive, not a deterrent. The reason bringing relatives from 3rd world countries is such an studied problem is that so many people want to come here.
I think your prior is off...not to mention that if they wanted to, they would have done it long ago.
In my experience, immigrants are a rather unusual group of humans with a unique personality profile - most people wouldn't voluntarily move to a new place where they don't know anyone.
(If you don't think it is that unusual to be willing to move, do keep in mind that America's culture is unusually individualistic.)
Among those who would leave their homeland, America has been a popular destination...but most people wouldn't leave their homeland.
It's not as though the majority of any third world country has left it.
My impression is that at least some of the incentives are for a few relatives to move to a first world country and send money back. Whole families leaving is a refugee response to violence rather than poverty. On the other hand, this is just an impression. Anyone have actual information?
To talk about this in a useful way, you'd probably have to isolate 3-7 distinct demographics of immigrants...for example, refugee populations are very different in terms of incentives and outcomes when compared to populations who come seeking degrees, who in turn are very different from those who come for the purpose of wealth and a higher quality of life.
My family is in the "education / science" demographic - lots of grad students, post-docs, and professors come to the US because of the better quality of education / more research opportunities. The US natural sciences in general have very high immigrant populations at every level.