NOVAFRICA News: New Article Published in the Journal of Public Economics

A new study by NOVAFRICA Scientific Director and Professor at Nova SBE Cátia Batista, and Tijan L. Bah, titled “Why Do People Migrate Irregularly? Evidence from a Lab-in-the-Field Experiment in West Africa,” has been published in the Journal of Public Economics.

Drawing on a lab-in-the-field experiment conducted in The Gambia, the study examines how information about the risks of irregular migration and the prospects of obtaining legal residence in Europe shapes migration decisions.

The findings reveal that potential migrants tend to overestimate the risk of dying during the journey to Europe. However, correcting these misperceptions does not necessarily reduce their willingness to migrate. In fact, providing more accurate information about the dangers of the journey can increase the intention to migrate, while lowering expectations about the likelihood of obtaining legal residence can reduce it.

These results highlight the complex role of information in shaping migration decisions and underscore the importance of evidence-based approaches to migration policy. They also suggest that information campaigns may have unintended consequences if they fail to account for how people perceive risks and weigh potential outcomes.

Read the full article here.

Read the Working Paper here.

Learn more about the NOVAFRICA research project here.