Out-Migration and Destination Places: Race, National Origin, and Generation Differences

Mary M. Kritz, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Douglas T. Gurak, Cornell University

In this paper, we examine whether U.S. ethno-racial differences in the foreign- and native-born populations make a difference for county internal migration and move distances. We also look at whether race cleavages within national origin groups condition county migration and move distances. We estimated Heckman selection models that predicted county migration and move distances for 3 populations – the total population, the foreign- and native-born populations, and 13 Western Hemisphere foreign-born groups. We used data from confidential use microdata samples, 2007-2011 ACS. The answers to the study questions differed depending on the study populations and ethno-racial specifications. Findings for the distance models were more consistent across the sample specifications than those for migration. Blacks in both the foreign- and native-born models consistently moved shorter distances than their white counterparts. This finding indicates that race remains a factor that blacks take into account in deciding where to settle.