Globalization, Brain Drain and Development

This paper reviews four decades of economics research on the brain drain, with a focus on recent contributions and on development issues. We …rst assess the magnitude, intensity and determinants of the brain drain, showing that brain drain (or high-skill) migration is becoming the dominant pattern of international migration and a major aspect of globalization. We then use a stylized growth model to analyze the various channels through which a brain drain a¤ects the sending countries and review the evidence on these channels. The recent empirical literature shows that high-skill emigration need not deplete a country’s human capital stock and can generate positive network externalities. Three case studies are also considered: the African medical brain drain, the recent exodus of European scientists to the United States, and the role of the Indian diaspora in the development of India’s IT sector. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of the analysis for education, immigration, and international taxation policies in a global context. We thank three anonymous referees and the editors, Janet Currie and Roger Gordon, for their very helpful suggestions. The paper also bene…ted from interaction with seminar participants at Bar-Ilan University, Tel-Aviv University, Université Catholique de Louvain, Paris 1, Cergy-Pontoise, and the World Bank. Frédéric Docquier acknowledges …nancial support from the Belgian Frenchspeaking Community (convention ARC 09/14-019 on “Geographical Mobility of Factors”) and from the Marie-Curie research and training network TOM (Transnationality of migrants). Hillel Rapoport acknowledges support from the Adar Foundation at Bar-Ilan University. Correspondence: [email protected] and [email protected].