An Econometric Analysis of Hispanic Migration in the United States

Abstract

This paper investigates the spatial redistribution pattern of Hispanics driven by internal migration tendencies in the United States, using American Community Survey (ACS) Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) data. We formulate three econometric models to study the internal migratory behaviour of Hispanics. More importantly, to uncover potential congestion and spillover effects, we introduce a novel variable into migration research, namely, the Neighbouring Hispanic Community. Our findings indicate that domestic migration of Hispanics leads to agglomeration of Hispanics, with the strongest agglomeration occurring in the states bordering the most concentrated states. While the congestion effect tends to weaken the agglomeration in the most concentrated states, the Hispanic-sparse states do not tend to receive Hispanics. The underlying force of potential dispersion is congestion and spillover from the highly concentrated states to their nearby states. Incorporating personal attributes into the analysis has provided some support for the spatial assimilation theory.