Cohort: SOMET 39

Topic of the thesis: Paths of Inclusion and Exclusion: Labor Market Integration of Second-Generation Migrants in Europe

Abstract: Integration into the European labor market is a topic of crucial social and academic interest and has therefore been extensively studied in the sociological literature. Europe has long been affected by migration phenomena, and second-generation migrants now constitute a significant demographic segment. Studying their integration within the European context allows one to observe the overall integration of people with a migrant background, but within a deeper contradiction. This contradiction involves the coexistence, on the one hand, of a process of socialization within the European context that brings second generations increasingly closer to the native population, and, on the other, an ethnicization process that ties them back to the first generation of migrants. The question therefore is where second-generation migrants are positioned on this continuum.
Despite extensive research on the employment outcomes of first-generation migrants, less is known about the experiences of the second generations, who continue to face significant challenges despite being born and educated in their host countries.
This research explores the different forms and shades of second-generation migrants' ethnic penalty, namely a general occupational disadvantage faced by foreign workers that persists even after accounting for individual characteristics, across different European labor markets.
The dissertation consists of three interrelated papers, each addressing a specific dimension of second-generation migrants' occupational integration. The first paper investigates whether second generations reproduce the labor market patterns of the first generation or whether they are able to surpass them through educational attainment. Drawing on segmented assimilation theory, which emphasizes both the context of reception and individual-level resources, we explore cross-national differences in occupational outcomes across Continental and Mediterranean countries, assessing whether education functions as an equalizer or if persistent cross-country heterogeneity remains.
The second paper shifts from a national to a regional perspective, arguing that migrants integrate not in abstract national contexts, but in specific sub-national regions. This paper examines how the regional context of assimilation, as conceptualized by Portes and Rumbaut (2001), shapes occupational outcomes for both first- and second-generation migrants. Using multilevel modelling, we observe how regional labor market structures, co-ethnic community presence, and the local perception of migrants shape different integration patterns.
The third paper explores the role of socialization as a key mechanism in long-term employment trajectories of second-generation migrants. Focusing on Germany, it models how parental class background, educational attainment, and homophily within friendship networks affect employment outcomes over time. By adopting a life-course perspective, the paper investigates how early peer networks and social background contribute to cumulative disadvantages in labor market integration across early adulthood.

Research interests: migration, labor market, social stratification, occupational integration

Graduated from: Università di Trento

Degrees obtained: BA in Sociology; MA in Global and Local Studies

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