Money Flows: The Political Consequences of Migrant Remittances

Remittances, the repatriated earnings of emigrant workers, have risen spectacularly in recent decades. They are a crucial lifeline for the households that receive them and one of the largest sources of capital for developing economies, outstripping both aid and foreign direct investment.

Money Flows studies how remittances shape the relationship between remittance recipients and the authorities in migrant-sending countries by providing a comprehensive study of the political effects of remittances on the attitudes of their recipients. It argues that far from being an exclusively economic risk-sharing mechanism between poorer, migrant-sending, and richer, migrant-receiving economies, remittances may compromise rudimentary accountability mechanisms in the developing world.

The book leverages survey data from Central-Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia and original focus groups from Kyrgyzstan. It shows how remittances, and fluctuations in their volume, colour recipients’ economic evaluations; shape the burden of corruption; and change how recipients interact with, and view their state, ultimately impacting the approval function of the authorities.

Catherine De Vries, Dean and Professor of Political Science, Bocconi University, David Doyle, Professor of Politics, University of Oxford, Hector Solaz, Lecturer, Bocconi University, Katerina Tertytchnaya, Associate Professor of Comparative Politics, University of Oxford

Catherine E. De Vries is Dean for International Affairs and Professor of Political Science at Bocconi University. At Bocconi, she is also a Research Associate at the Dondena Centre for Research on Social Dynamics and Public Policy. Previously, she held professorships at the University of Oxford and Essex as well as visiting posts at University of California at Los Angeles, University of Mannheim, and University of Vienna. Catherine’s work can be broadly situated in the areas political behaviour, political economy and EU politics. Her work has appeared in leading political science journals, such as the American Political Science Review, Annual Review of Political Science, and the Journal of Politics. She has published several books.

David Doyle is a Professor of Politics in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Oxford, and a Fellow of St Hugh’s College. He is also a member of the Latin American Centre. His general research and teaching interests include comparative politics and comparative political economy. He is currently working on a number of projects. These include a project on taxation and tax morale in Latin America and a project on the political effects of migrant remittances. His research has appeared in journals such as the American Political Science Review, the Journal of Politics, the British Journal of Political Science and Comparative Political Studies, among others.

Hector Solaz is a Lecturer in the Department of Social and Political Sciences of Bocconi University since January 2020. His main research interests lie within behavioral science and political economy. He mainly uses lab experimental methods to study the economic and political implications and foundations of behavioral phenomena. In particular, he focuses on the determinants of cooperation in collective actions, the emergence and enforcement of social norms, and the role of behavioral biases on voting. His work has appeared in journals such as the American Political Science Review, Annual Review of Political Science or PLOS One.

Katerina Tertytchnaya is Associate Professor of Comparative Politics at the Department of Politics and International Relations and Brasenose college, University of Oxford. She has received the 2019 best dissertation prize in elections and political representation from the Political Studies Association. Her research has been funded by the UK Economic and Social Research Council, the National Science Foundation, and the British Academy/ Leverhulme Trust; published in the top journals of political science, including the American Political Science Review, the Journal of Politics, and World Politics; and referenced in media outlets including the CNN, The Washington Post, and the BBC.