Download or read book Three Essays on Social Networks in Labor Markets written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This dissertation consists of three essays examining the important role of job connections, references, and word of mouth information in labor markets. The first essay examines the importance of job connections for internal migrants. In this chapter, I develop a theoretical model where labor market networks provide labor market information with less noise than information obtained in the formal market. This model predicts lower initial wages and greater wage growth after migration for migrants without contacts. I then use data from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth (NLSY) to examine whether migrants who used social connections when finding their first job assimilate faster in the new region. Consistent with the theoretical model, I find that migrants who did not use social connections take longer to assimilate in the new region. The second essay models how screening workers through social networks impacts labor mobility in markets with adverse selection. When there is asymmetric information in labor markets, worker mobility is constrained by adverse selection in the market for experienced workers.