Br. Chiswick et Pw. Miller, THE ENDOGENEITY BETWEEN LANGUAGE AND EARNINGS - INTERNATIONAL ANALYSES, Journal of labor economics, 13(2), 1995, pp. 246-288
This study is concerned with the determinants of dominant language flu
ency, its effects on earnings, and its endogeneity with earnings among
immigrants. Dominant language fluency is hypothesized to be a functio
n of three fundamental variables: exposure to the language, efficiency
in second language acquisition, and economic benefits from language f
luency. Conceptual variables with empirical counterparts are developed
. Earnings are hypothesized to be a function of language skills, among
other variables. Ordinary least squares, instrumental variables, and
sample selection bias techniques are used to estimate the equations fo
r Australia. Comparisons are made with analyses for the United States,
Canada, and Israel.