The Brain Drain

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Abstract
This chapter has three objectives. First it attempts to take stock of our knowledge concerning the scale, composition, and direction of migration from developing to developed countries in the recent period. Second, the chapter places that mobility in the context of the existing literature. Third, it attempts to indicate ways in which, at both an analytical and empirical level, progress can be made in better understanding the phenomenon and, in particular, the appropriate policy implications. The overall conclusion is that, while there is clearly a possibility that the brain drain is beneficial to the residents left behind in the home countries, there are reasons to be suspicious of that conclusion. It is not even certain that there is an overall global-welfare gain from the brain drain, although given the apparently large private benefits of the migrants themselves and their higher productivity in their new locations, it seems highly likely. A commentary is also included at the end of the chapter.

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