Neha Prashar, Ines Alvarez Boulton (p)

Riccardo Curtale

Intergenerational transmission of employment preferences has been a subject of interest in labour economics and entrepreneurship. Prior research has shown there is a strong link between parental role models and a children’s decision to become an entrepreneur (Hoffmann, Junge & Malchow-Moller, 2014). If the parents are self-employed, they may endow their children with the necessary soft skills and values needed for entrepreneurial self-employment. However, it is still unclear how the relationship between parental self-employment, training, and a individual’s decision to become an entrepreneur varies depending on regional disparities/deprivation. Entrepreneurship and self-employment outcomes are also influenced by exogenous regional factors, such as deprivation, for instance by reducing the overall likelihood of entrepreneurship (Thompson, Jones-Evans & Kwong, 2012) Thus, it is important to understand how and whether regional factors may impact the relationship between self-employment and an individual’s decision to follow into their parents’ steps by becoming an entrepreneur.

Using individual level data from the UK Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), we analyse whether children of self-employed parents are more likely to pursue entrepreneurship than children of solely wage-employed parents and examine how regional deprivation may affect these outcomes. We apply multilevel logistic regression analysis to estimate the likelihood of children adopting entrepreneurship, using parental career outcome (mother and father) as the independent variables. Furthermore, UK GEM data also provides information on whether the individual was involved in the running of their parent(s) business, nuancing the analysis to assess how prior exposure impacts their own decision to opt for entrepreneurship.

Provisional analysis shows that if either parent was self-employed in their own business, their child is more likely to also be self-employed in some capacity. Furthermore, prior training in working within their parent’s business significantly impacts their own self-employment outcomes.

This working paper contributes to the broader literature on the importance of parental role models on shaping career trajectories and how these relationships are impacted by regional deprivation levels. It also holds important implications for policymakers as it shows the significance of having role models and mentors in the likelihood that a person becomes an entrepreneur. It emphasises the need to develop entrepreneurial programmes where these are most needed.

Hoffmann, A., Junge, M., & Malchow-Møller, N. (2015). Running in the family: parental role models in entrepreneurship. Small Business Economics, 44, 79-104.

Thompson, P., Jones-Evans, D., & Kwong, C. (2012). Entrepreneurship in deprived urban communities: The case of Wales. Entrepreneurship Research Journal, 2(1).

Riccardo Curtale (p), Martijn Stut, Alfredo Alessandrini, Christophe Deuster, Filipe Batista e Silva, Fabrizio Natale, Lewis Dijkstra

Marcin Stonawski

The European Union is experiencing profound demographic shifts. This paper presents an analysis of observed population trends encompassing observations for the period 2000-2022 and projections until 2040 at the NUTS3 level. The projections were obtained by regionalizing the 2021 Ageing Report’s demographic projections using the Demography-Economy-Land use interaction (DELi) model, which considers explicitly the interlinkages between demographic and economic dynamics.
Results show that urban regions are expected to increase their populations primarily due to economic opportunities pulling migrants, while intermediate and rural regions are projected to face population decline, with remote rural regions being the most affected. The natural change rate is trending downwards across all regional typologies, while the net migration rate, historically positive in all typologies, is projected to compensate for the natural change only in urban regions. The implications of these demographic changes are far-reaching, affecting labour markets, public service provision, and economic growth. The paper discusses the potential for regional convergence in GDP per capita, particularly in rural regions close to cities, and the challenges posed by changes in the demographic structure, affected by increasing old age dependency ratio and a shrinking working-age population, and the need for adaptation.

Marcin Stonawski (p), Leo van Wissen (p)

Sofia Wixe

The European Union faces significant demographic challenges due to depopulation and ageing, driven by negative natural population change. At the regional level, migration—both internal and international—has become a key factor shaping population dynamics. This study examines the role of mobility of foreigners in population change across regions in Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden from 2005 to 2022.

Findings show that 70% of analyzed regions experienced population growth, with 42% relying solely on mobility (national and international migration). Notably, in 26% of regions, growth was entirely driven by mobility of foreigners, particularly in Sweden (71%). No region experienced population decline due to foreign mobility alone. However, in 151 regions where depopulation occurred, positive foreign mobility was insufficient to offset negative natural change or native migration losses.

The study identifies five major regional demographic profiles based on population change and components of demographic change (natural change and mobility).

Mobility accounted for over 70% of population turnover, with significant regional differences. Scandinavian countries and the Netherlands exhibited high native mobility, while Austria and Spain relied more on foreign mobility. These findings highlight the crucial role of foreign mobility in mitigating demographic decline and emphasize the need for proper regional policies to address population challenges.

Sofia Wixe (p), Charlotta Mellander

Ines Alvarez Boulton

Since the early 1990s, Sweden has undergone significant demographic changes, with the share of foreign-born increasing from approximately 10 percent to more than 20 percent of the population. During this time, the origins of immigrants have also shifted, with a growing proportion arriving from non-Western countries, often culturally distinct from Sweden (e.g., based on the World Values Survey). During the same time, the country has also seen a sharp rise in residential segregation, both in terms of foreign-born individuals and across socioeconomic dimensions. In this paper, we examine the extent to which the increase in socioeconomic segregation is linked to the changed immigration profile of the country. Our findings show a significant strengthening of the relationship between ethnic and socioeconomic segregation over time. Ethnic minorities, particularly non-Western immigrants, are increasingly concentrated in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods characterized by poverty, unemployment, and low educational attainment. Additionally, we find that socioeconomic segregation has risen gradually alongside the growing share of immigrants, particularly non-Western immigrants, whose immediate arrival contributes to higher levels of residential segregation.