We exploit a unique historical setting to study the long-run effects of forced migration on investment in education. After World War II, the Polish borders were redrawn, resulting in large-scale migration. Poles were forced to move from the Kresy territories in the East (taken over by the USSR) and were resettled mostly to the newly acquired Western Territories, from which Germans were expelled. We combine historical censuses with newly collected survey data to show that, while there were no pre-WWII differences in education, Poles with a family history of forced migration are significantly more educated today. Descendants of forced migrants have on average one extra year of schooling, driven by a higher propensity to finish secondary or higher education. This result holds when we restrict ancestral locations to a subsample around the former Kresy border and include fixed effects for the destination of migrants. As Kresy migrants were of the same ethnicity and religion as other Poles, we bypass confounding factors of other cases of forced migration. We show that labor market competition with natives and selection of migrants are also unlikely to drive our results. Survey evidence suggests that forced migration led to a shift in preferences, away from material possessions and towards investment in a mobile asset - human capital. The effects persist over three generations.

中文翻译：

---

强迫移民与人力资本：第二次世界大战后人口转移的证据

我们利用独特的历史背景来研究强迫迁徙对教育投资的长期影响。第二次世界大战后，波兰边界被重新划定，导致大规模移民。波兰人被迫从东部的克雷西（Kresy）领土转移（由苏联接管），并被重新安置到新近收购的西部领土，德国人因此被驱逐出境。我们将历史人口普查与最新收集的调查数据相结合，以表明，尽管第二次世界大战之前的教育水平没有差异，但具有强迫迁徙家族史的波兰人如今的教育水平明显提高。强迫移民的后裔平均有一年以上的受教育时间，这是由于他们有更高的完成中学或高等教育的倾向。当我们将祖先的位置限制在前克雷斯（Kresy）边界周围的子样本中并且包括对移民目的地的固定影响时，此结果成立。由于克雷西（Kresy）移民与其他波兰人具有相同的种族和宗教信仰，因此我们绕开了其他强迫移民案件的混杂因素。我们表明，与本地人的劳动力市场竞争和移民选择也不太可能推动我们的结果。调查证据表明，强迫迁移导致了偏好的转变，从物质财富转向对移动资产（人力资本）的投资。效果持续了三代之久。我们表明，与本地人的劳动力市场竞争和移民选择也不太可能推动我们的结果。调查证据表明，强迫迁移导致了偏好的转变，从物质财富转向对移动资产（人力资本）的投资。效果持续了三代之久。我们表明，与本地人的劳动力市场竞争和移民选择也不太可能推动我们的结果。调查证据表明，强迫迁移导致了偏好的转变，从物质财富转向对移动资产（人力资本）的投资。效果持续了三代之久。