ARE Assistant Professor Alejandro Gutierrez-Li, in collaboration with Economics Assistant Professor Daisoon Kim, was awarded competitive funding from the Caterpillar Foundation to explore economic opportunities for underserved groups, with a focus on immigrants. The three-year project, part of Poole College’s Game-Changing Research Initiative Program — Economic Access and Opportunity (GRIP-EAO), seeks to address the gap in understanding the determinants of persistent economic differences across demographic groups.
Immigration has long been integral to the economic and social landscape of the United States, with immigrants comprising nearly 15% of the population and 19% of the workforce. In particular, the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the country, such as Raleigh-Durham, are attracting large numbers of newcomers from different parts of the world. Their contributions across various sectors, like leisure and hospitality, construction and agriculture, are widespread.
Despite immigrants’ significant presence, substantial disparities exist in self-employment outcomes among different groups, especially across gender, country of origin and racial and ethnic lines. While factors influencing immigrants’ success in traditional salaried employment have been extensively studied, there remains a notable gap in understanding the determinants of immigrant entrepreneurship trajectories.
This project aims to contribute by examining the challenges and opportunities encountered by immigrant entrepreneurs in the U.S., focusing on understanding the factors that hinder or facilitate their success and growth compared to the native-born. Gutierrez-Li and Kim’s interdisciplinary research will employ advanced quantitative analysis and modeling techniques. They will generate actionable policy recommendations designed to promote economic development and enhance the contributions of immigrants to the U.S. economy, like job creation and innovation. Opportunities to mentor graduate students will also be available.
Immigrant entrepreneurship in the United States is an area Gutierrez-Li has worked on since he was a graduate student at Washington University in St. Louis. One of his dissertation chapters, forthcoming at the prestigious International Migration Review, found that immigrants’ home country self-employment experience affects their occupational choices and earnings in the U.S. This is a key result with major policy implications in the context of congressional discussions to create an immigrant entrepreneurship visa.
This project highlights the importance of understanding and addressing the economic and social challenges of one of the fastest growing demographic groups in the country. By conducting empirical analyses and disseminating their findings to a broader audience, Gutierrez-Li and Kim aim to contribute valuable insights to the ongoing discussion of immigrant contributions to the U.S. economy.
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