register
Magnus Lofstrom

Public Policy Institute of California, USA, and IZA, Germany

The new and innovative IZA World of Labor project is a promising venture, allowing researchers an opportunity to provide policymakers thoughtful, reliable, and concise policy-relevant information

IZA World of Labor role

Author, Topic spokesperson

Current position

Senior Fellow, January 2008–present, Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC), San Francisco, CA, USA

Research interest

Immigration, entrepreneurship, education, and economics of crime

Website

http://bit.ly/Lofstrom_IZApage

Positions/functions as a policy advisor

California State Controller’s Board of Economic Advisors, USA

Past positions

Assistant Professor of Economics, August 2002–2007, School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences, University of Texas at Dallas, USA

Qualifications

PhD Economics, University of California, San Diego, 1999

Selected publications

  • “Did the 2007 Legal Arizona Workers Act reduce the state’s unauthorized immigrant population?” Review of Economics and Statistics 96:2 (2014): 258–269 (with S. Bohn and S. Raphael).

  • “Why are some people more likely to become small-businesses owners than others: Entrepreneurship entry and industry-specific barriers.” Journal of Business Venturing 29:2 (2014): 232–251 (with T. Bates and S. Parker).

  • “Does self-employment increase the economic well-being of low-skilled workers?” Small Business Economics 40:4 (2013): 933–952.

  • “Immigrant assimilation and welfare participation: Do immigrants assimilate into or out-of welfare?” Journal of Human Resources 38:1 (2003): 74–98 (with J. Hansen).

  • “Labor market assimilation and the self-employment decision of immigrant entrepreneurs.” Journal of Population Economics 15:1 (2002): 83–114.

article(s)

  • Immigrants and entrepreneurship Updated

    Business ownership is higher among immigrants, but promoting self-employment is unlikely to improve outcomes for the less skilled

    Magnus LofstromChunbei Wang, June 2019
    Immigrants are widely perceived to be highly entrepreneurial, contributing to economic growth and innovation, and self-employment is often viewed as a means of enhancing labor market integration and success among immigrants. Accordingly, many countries have established special visas and entry requirements to attract immigrant entrepreneurs. Research supports some of these stances, but expectations may be too high. There is no strong evidence that self-employment is an effective tool of upward economic mobility among low-skilled immigrants. More broadly prioritizing high-skilled immigrants may prove to be more successful than focusing on entrepreneurship.
    MoreLess