Abstract

YUNEZ NAUDE, Antonio  and  MELENDEZ-MARTINEZ, Álvaro. Effects of Households' Assets in the Selection of Activities and in the Income of the Rural Households of Mexico. Inv. Econ [online]. 2007, vol.66, n.260, pp.49-80. ISSN 0185-1667.

This article presents the results of an empirical study on the effects of rural households' assets in the selection of family activities and on their income. The study uses data from surveys applied to representative samples of households in 24 rural communities located in different regions of Mexico (a total of 593 households were interviewed). Our main results are: 1) Family networks are a major asset explaining rural out-migration to the United States of America (USA) and, income wise, migration to the USA is more attractive than rural-out migration to urban Mexico; 2) International migration promotes rural households production of basic crops (corn and beans in particular); 3) Schooling rises household incomes and leads to a reduction in rural households participation in agricultural activities (the exception being the production of commercial crops), and in governmental welfare benefits; and 4) The returns of households located in indigenous communities are lower than those in other communities.

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