Migradollars and mortality: the effects of migration on infant survival in Mexico.
We apply multilevel methods to data from Mexico to examine how village migration patterns affect infant survival outcomes in origins. We argue that migration is a cumulative process with varying health effects at different stages of its progression, and test several related hypotheses. Findings suggest higher rates of infant mortality in communities experiencing intense U.S. migration. However, two factors diminish the disruptive effects of migration: migradollars, or migrant remittances to villages, and the institutionalization of migration over time. Mortality risks are low when remittances are high and decrease as migration becomes increasingly salient to livelihoods of communities. Together, the findings indicate eventual benefits to all infants, irrespective of household migration experience, as a result of the development of social and economic processes related to U.S. migration.
Kanaiaupuni
S M
SM
Center for Demography and Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison 53706, USA. skanaiau@ssc.wisc.edu
Donato
K M
KM
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D007223:Infant; D007226:Infant Mortality; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008423:Maternal Age; D008800:Mexico; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011897:Random Allocation; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012494:Sampling Studies; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States