Replication data for: The Spatial Dynamics of Freedom of Foreign Movement and Human Trafficking

Some existing human trafficking research examines how trafficking laws and regulations deter traffickers. This research, however, pays little attention to how states’ freedom of movement policies influences human trafficking. Existing policy debates suggest two possible effects. Europe’s experiences with open borders have led to claims that freedom of movement decreases the likelihood that traffickers are detected, thus making human trafficking in and out of states more likely. By contrast, movement restrictions could create an environment where people become more vulnerable to traffickers. We utilize data from 182 countries from 2001 to 2017 to test whether freedom of movement increases or decreases human trafficking flows. We find that it is necessary, theoretically and empirically, to consider freedom of foreign movement both locally and in a state’s neighborhood because freedom of movement increases human trafficking when the local and neighborhood practices diverge from each other.

现有关于人口贩运的研究多聚焦于贩运相关法律法规对贩运者的威慑效应，但此类研究鲜有探讨各国出入境自由（freedom of movement）政策对人口贩运的影响。现有政策层面的争论提出了两种潜在影响路径：欧洲的开放边境实践催生了相关论断，即出入境自由会降低贩运者被查获的概率，进而提升跨境人口贩运活动的发生概率；与之相对，出入境限制则可能营造出民众更易被贩运者侵害的生存环境。本研究采用2001年至2017年间182个国家的面板数据，旨在验证出入境自由政策对人口贩运流动的影响方向。研究结果表明，无论从理论还是实证维度，都需同时考量本国及周边国家的出入境自由政策：当本国与周边国家的出入境政策实践存在分歧时，出入境自由会加剧人口贩运活动。