Template-type: ReDif-Paper 1.0
Author-Name: Fouarge, Didier
Author-workplace-name: ROA / Dynamics of the labour market, RS: GSBE DUHR, RS: GSBE Theme Data-Driven Decision-Making, RS: GSBE Theme Learning and Work
Author-Name: Özer, Merve Nezihe
Author-workplace-name: General Economics 0 (Onderwijs), RS: GSBE DUHR
Author-Name: Seegers, Philipp
Author-workplace-name: Macro, International & Labour Economics, RS: GSBE DUHR
Title: Personality traits, migration intentions, and cultural distance
Abstract: Personality traits are influential in individual decision-making but have been overlooked in economic models of migration. This paper investigates the relation between Big Five personality traits and individuals’ migration intentions among alternative destinations that vary in their culture distance. We hypothesize that Big Five personality traits may alter individuals’ migration decision and destination choice through their influence on perceived psychic costs and benefits of migration. We test our hypotheses using the Fachkraft survey conducted among university students in Germany. We find that extraversion and openness are positively associated with migration intentions, while agreeableness, conscientiousness, and emotional stability negatively relate to migration intentions. We show that openness positively and extraversion negatively relate to the willingness to move to culturally distant countries even when we control for geographic distance and economic differences between countries. Using language as a cultural distance indicator provides evidence that extravert individuals are less likely to prefer linguistically distant countries while agreeable individuals are more inclined to consider such countries as alternative destinations.  
Classification-JEL: d91,j61,z10
Series: ROA Research Memoranda
Creation-Date: 20180101
Number: 007
File-URL: https://cris.maastrichtuniversity.nl/ws/files/31511853/ROA_RM_2018_7.pdf
File-Format: application/pdf
File-Size: 709921
Handle: Repec:unm:umaror:2018007
DOI: 10.26481/umaror.2018007