Lina Aldén

Ethnic Segregation, Tipping Behavior, and Native Residential Mobility

We study tipping behavior in residential mobility of the native population in Sweden between 1990 and 2007. Using regression discontinuity methods, we find that the native population growth in a neighborhood discontinuously drops once the share of non-European immigrants exceeds the identified tipping point. Native tipping behavior can be ascribed to both native flight and native avoidance. Natives with a high level of educational attainment and the highest labor earnings are more likely to move from neighborhoods that have tipped. We conclude that tipping behavior is likely to be associated with ethnic as well as to socio-economic segregation in Sweden.

Effect of Registered Partnership on Labor Earnings and Fertility for Same-Sex Couples: Evidence From Swedish Register Data

The expansion of legal rights to same-sex couples is afoot in a number of Western countries. The effects of this rollout are not only important in their own right but can also provide a window on the institution of marriage and the rights bundled therein. In this article, using Swedish longitudinal register data covering 1994–2007, we study the impact of the extension of rights to same-sex couples on labor earnings and fertility. In 1994, registered partnership for same-sex couples was introduced, which conferred almost all rights and obligations of marriage—a notable exception being joint legal parenting, by default or election. The latter was added in the 2002 adoption act. We find registered partnership to be important to both gays and lesbians but for different reasons. For gays, resource pooling emerges as the main function of registered partnerships. For lesbians, registered partnership appears to be an important vehicle for family formation, especially after the 2002 adoption act. In contrast to heterosexual couples (included for comparison), we find no evidence of household specialization among lesbians. The lack of specialization is noteworthy given similar fertility effects of registered partnership (after 2002) and the fact that lesbian couples were less assortatively matched (on education) than heterosexual couples—children and unequal earnings power being two factors commonly believed to promote specialization.

Discrimination in the Credit Market? Access to Financial Capital Among Self‐Employed Immigrants

We present results from a unique combination of survey and register data regarding access to financial capital conducted among immigrants who are self‐employed in private firms in Swedens retail, trade, and service sectors. This study is the first to examine discrimination against self‐employed immigrants in the credit market of a developed economy outside the US. The results demonstrate that non‐European immigrants consider access to financial capital a more serious impediment to their self‐employment activities than do native Swedes and European immigrants. Self‐employed non‐European immigrants report more discrimination by banks, suppliers, and customers than do natives and immigrants from European countries. Immigrant‐owned firms apply for bank loans to a larger extent than do firms owned by natives. Non‐European immigrants especially are more likely than natives to have a loan denied, and they are also charged higher interest rates on their bank loans than natives. The results are robust to various different robustness checks. The occurrence of ethnic discrimination in the market for bank loans is put forward as an explanation for these results. Limited or lack of access to financial capital is a major obstacle to self‐employment among certain immigrant groups. This obstacle may be one explanation for the high exit rates from self‐employment among immigrants, a finding that has been documented in several countries including Sweden.