causal

Low-Skilled Immigration Lowers Mean and Raises Variance

Low-skilled immigration simultaneously increases variance and lowers the mean and median, and the cost of pulling down the mean/median—especially in democracies—very likely swamps the small-probability benefit of admitting a few high-elite individuals.

causalpending

Speaker

Garett Jones

Evidence Quote

I think hurting the mean and median is actually a big cost, especially in democracies. That is very likely to swamp the benefits of the small probability of getting higher elite folks in as part of a low-skilled immigration policy.

Source

Garett Jones — Immigration, national IQ, & less democracyDwarkesh Patel Podcast
Created: 6/13/2026, 3:31:19 AM

My Notes

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