ORCID

0000-0002-4086-014X

Keywords

Immigrant entrepreneurship, glass wall, status characteristics theory

Subject Categories

Business Administration, Management, and Operations | Human Resources Management | Organizational Behavior and Theory

Abstract

Skilled immigrant professionals frequently experience barriers that limit their ability to secure employment opportunities aligned with their qualifications in host-country labor markets. Although prior research has documented some of the challenges these professionals face, such as credential devaluation and discrimination, less is known about why recruiters perceive immigrant candidates with similar qualifications differently and why some immigrants navigate the labor market more successfully than others. Drawing on Status Characteristics Theory, this dissertation examines how the location and type of immigrant professionals’ prior work experience shape hiring-related outcomes by influencing recruiters’ perceptions of competence and acculturation. First, I review the literature on skilled immigration, labor market integration, the glass wall phenomenon, and status characteristics theory. Then, I develop hypotheses linking host-country experience and entrepreneurial experience to hiring-related outcomes and test them through four complementary studies, including a synthetic experiment, a survey with skilled immigrant professionals, a résumé-based audit study with real job applications, and a controlled experiment with hiring professionals. Findings consistently demonstrate that host-country experience improves labor market outcomes for immigrant professionals, and that competence and acculturation perceptions represent two central mechanisms through which the glass wall operates. Furthermore, results showed that recruiters do not interpret all forms of experience equally. Entrepreneurial experience obtained in the host country generated the strongest hiring-related advantages, whereas entrepreneurial experience obtained abroad often generated the weakest outcomes, suggesting the existence of a “founding premium” associated with host-country entrepreneurship and a corresponding “founding penalty” associated with entrepreneurship acquired abroad. Finally, I discuss the theoretical and practical implications of iv the findings and outline directions for future research on immigrant labor market integration and immigrant entrepreneurship.

Completion Date

2026

Semester

Summer

Committee Chair

Combs, James

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

College

College of Business

Department

Management

Format

PDF

Document Type

Dissertation

Language

English

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