This paper examines whether the chances of job placements improve if unemployed persons are counselled by caseworkers who belong to the same social group, defined by gender, age, education, and nationality. Based on an unusually informative dataset, which links Swiss unemployed to their...

Child labor is often condemned as a form of exploitation. I explore how the notion of exploitation, as used in everyday language, can be made precise in economic models of child labor. Exploitation is defined relative to a specific social welfare function. I first show that under the standard...

As exemplified in the 1995 Mediterranean Declaration of the European Union, migration has become a major concern for European development policies. By enhancing socio-economic conditions through development cooperation, a reduction of South-North migration flows is envisaged. This new approach...

Germany has experienced a substantial influx of German immigrants from Eastern Europe after World War II and expects several million more as a consequence of the demise of socialism. This paper analyses the economic performance of ethnic German migrants to West Germany in comparison with native...

In the last 20 years, developed countries have struggled with what seemed to be an ever-rising tide of asylum seekers, a trend that has now gone into reverse. This paper examines what happened and why. How have oppression, violence and economic conditions in origin countries shaped worldwide...

Many people are sensitive to social esteem, and their pride is a source of pro--social behavior. We present a game-theoretic model in which sensitivity to esteem varies across players and may depend on context as well players' beliefs about their opponents. For example, the pride associated with...