The impact of childhood contact with immigrants on long-term residential and family choices.

As other European countries, France is experiencing a decline in social cohesion, characterized by increased distrust towards the immigrant population. This project aims to study the relationship between interactions and future attitudes of native individuals towards immigrants in France. The goal is to test the intergroup contact theory, for which evidence in the short term is often found, on long-term outcomes. More specifically, using the EDP panel data, we will develop an empirical strategy to provide causal estimates of the effect of childhood exposure to diversity on preferences in adulthood. Several long-term choices will be considered. We will look into residential location decisions, and more precisely neighborhood composition, as well as family decisions (such as unions and family structures).”