Economic Choices of a Nomadic and Isolated Work Force: Shifts in Social Attachment and Their Implications

TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the location choice of a sample of former mariners and a matched sample of traditional workers to shed some light on this question and found that nomadic and isolated workers choose to locate close to past peers, suggesting a shift in social attachments and a redefined set of social ties that influence the choices that individuals make.

Abstract: Do nomadic and isolated work settings impact individuals’ life-shaping economic choices? In particular, the paper investigates the location choice of a sample of former mariners and a matched sample of traditional workers to shed some light on this question. Empirical evidence suggests that a nomadic and isolated work force, such as mariners, rely on traditional and family-based social relations, when making location choices, to a lesser extent than other workers. Furthermore, nomadic and isolated workers choose to locate close to past peers, suggesting a shift in social attachments and a re-defined set of social ties that influence the choices that individuals make. This implies that nomadic isolated lifestyles influence social attachment, shifting it away from traditional and family-based relations to professional relations. Geographical distance, social relations and contextual setting are thereby shown to interact in shaping some of the most important decisions of the economic agent.