The New Second Generation: Segmented Assimilation and its Variants
01 Nov 1993-Annals of The American Academy of Political and Social Science (SAGE Publications)-Vol. 530, Iss: 1, pp 74-96
TL;DR: This article introduced the concept of segmented assimilation to describe the diverse possible outcomes of this process of adaptation and used modes of incorporation for developing a typology of vulnerability and resources affecting such outcomes.
Abstract: Post-1965 immigration to the United States has given rise to a vigorous literature focused on adult newcomers. There is, however, a growing new second generation whose prospects of adaptation cannot be gleaned from the experience of their parents or from that of children of European immigrants arriving at the turn of the century. We present data on the contemporary second generation and review the challenges that it confronts in seeking adaptation to American society. The concept of segmented assimilation is introduced to describe the diverse possible outcomes of this process of adaptation. The concept of modes of incorporation is used for developing a typology of vulnerability and resources affecting such outcomes. Empirical case studies illustrate the theory and highlight consequences of the different contextual situations facing today's second generation.
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TL;DR: Social capital has a definite place in sociological theory as mentioned in this paper, and its role in social control, in family support, and in benefits mediated by extra-familial networks, but excessive extensions of the concept may lead to excessive emphasis on positive consequences of sociability.
Abstract: This paper reviews the origins and definitions of social capital in the writings of Bourdieu, Loury, and Coleman, among other authors. It distinguishes four sources of social capital and examines their dynamics. Applications of the concept in the sociological literature emphasize its role in social control, in family support, and in benefits mediated by extrafamilial networks. I provide examples of each of these positive functions. Negative consequences of the same processes also deserve attention for a balanced picture of the forces at play. I review four such consequences and illustrate them with relevant examples. Recent writings on social capital have extended the concept from an individual asset to a feature of communities and even nations. The final sections describe this conceptual stretch and examine its limitations. I argue that, as shorthand for the positive consequences of sociability, social capital has a definite place in sociological theory. However, excessive extensions of the concept may j...
11,460 citations
Cites background from "The New Second Generation: Segmente..."
...It is present in those cities whose inhabitants vote, obey the law, and cooperate with each other and whose leaders are honest and committed to the public good (Putnam 1993, 1995)....
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...(Putnam 1993, p. 36) In other words, if your town is “civic,” it does civic things; if it is “uncivic,” it does not....
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...The collective character of this version of the concept is evident in the next sentence: “Working together is easier in a community blessed with a substantial stock of social capital” (Putnam 1993, pp. 35–36)....
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...In fairness to Putnam, he does this in his analysis of differences between the well-governed towns of the Italian north and the poorly governed ones of the south (Putnam 1993, Lemann 1996)....
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...(Putnam 1993: 36, 1996) The prospect of a simple diagnosis of the country’s problems and a ready solution to them has attracted widespread public attention....
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TL;DR: The link between socioeconomic disadvantage and children's socioemotional functioning appears to be mediated partly by harsh, inconsistent parenting and elevated exposure to acute and chronic stressors.
Abstract: Recent research consistently reports that persistent poverty has more detrimental effects on IQ, school achievement, and socioemotional functioning than transitory poverty, with children experiencing both types of poverty generally doing less well than never-poor children. Higher rates of perinatal complications, reduced access to resources that buffer the negative effects of perinatal complications, increased exposure to lead, and less home-based cognitive stimulation partly account for diminished cognitive functioning in poor children. These factors, along with lower teacher expectancies and poorer academic-readiness skills, also appear to contribute to lower levels of school achievement among poor children. The link between socioeconomic disadvantage and children's socioemotional functioning appears to be mediated partly by harsh, inconsistent parenting and elevated exposure to acute and chronic stressors. The implications of research findings for practice and policy are considered.
3,753 citations
TL;DR: The concept of social embeddings has also been used in economic sociology as mentioned in this paper, where the authors explore the different forms in which social structures affect economic action and their consequences, positive and negative, highlighted.
Abstract: This article contributes to the reemerging field of economic sociology by (1) delving into its classic roots to refine current concepts and (2) using examples from the immigration literature to explore the different forms in which social structures affect economic action. The concept of social "embeddedness" provides a suitable theoretical umbrella, although in analyzing its specific manifestations, the article focuses on the concept of social capital. The various mechanisms through which social structures affect economic action are identified and categorized and their consequences, positive and negative, highlighted. The propositions that summarize the different parts of the discussion attempt to move these concepts beyond sensitizing generalities to hypothesis-like statements that can guide future research. Recent work in economic sociology represents one of the most exciting developments in the field insofar as it promises to vindicate the heritage of Max Weber in the analysis of economic life and, by the same token, to rescue this vast area from the exclusive sway of the neoclassical perspective. Spearheaded by Mark Granovetter's (1985) critique of a pure "market" approach to economic action, the sociological perspective has been reinforced by the introduction and subsequent use of the concepts of "social capital" (Bourdieu 1979; Bourdieu, Newman, and Wocquant
3,260 citations
TL;DR: It is argued that assimilation theory has not lost its utility for the study of contemporary immigration to the United States and some of the evidence about the socioeconomic and residential assimilation of recent immigrant groups is sifted through.
Abstract: Assimilation theory has been subject to intensive critique for decades. Yet no other framework has provided the social science community with as deep a corpus of cumulative findings concerning the incorporation of immigrants and their descendants. We argue that assimilation theory has not lost its utility for the study of contemporary immigration to the United States. In making our case, we review critically the canonical account of assimilation provided by Milton Gordon and others ; we refer to Shibutani and Kwan's theory of ethnic stratification to suggest some directions to take in reformulating assimilation theory. We also examine some of the arguments frequently made to distinguish between the earlier mass immigration of Europeans and the immigration of the contemporary era and find them to be inconclusive. Finally, we sift through some of the evidence about the socioeconomic and residential assimilation of recent immigrant groups. Though the record is clearly mixed, we find evidence consistent with the view that assimilation is taking place, albeit unevenly
1,984 citations
Cites background from "The New Second Generation: Segmente..."
...The second kind ofsocioeconomic assimilation allows for "segmented" assimilation (Portes and Zhou, 1993)....
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...…of this influence is already apparent; it is registered in the research observations about the identificational dilemmas confronted by the children of black Caribbean parentage (Waters, 1994; Woldemikael, 1989) and recognized in the concept of "segmented assimilation" (Portes and Zhou, 1993)....
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...But this may have reflected the opportunity structure available during a particular era in American history (Gans, 1992; Portes and Zhou, 1993)....
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...…it will be more difficult for the descendants ofcontemporary immigrants, marIY ofwhom enter the labor force at or near the bottom, to make the gradual intergenerational transition upwards, because footholds in the middle of the occupational structure are relatively scarce (Portes and Zhou, 1993)....
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...This result ofeconomic restructuring is described by Portes and Zhou (1993) asan "hourglass economy," with a narrowed band ofmiddle-level jobs and bulging strata at the bottom and the top....
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TL;DR: The authors integrate and synthesize what is known about racial and ethnic socialization on the basis of current empirical research, examining studies concerning its nature and frequency; its child, parent, and ecological predictors; and its consequences for children's development, including ethnic identity, self-esteem, coping with discrimination, academic achievement, and psychosocial well-being.
Abstract: Recently, there has been an emergence of literature on the mechanisms through which parents transmit information, values, and perspectives about ethnicity and race to their children, commonly referred to as racial or ethnic socialization. This literature has sought to document the nature of such socialization, its antecedents in parents' and children's characteristics and experiences, and its consequences for children's well-being and development. In this article, the authors integrate and synthesize what is known about racial and ethnic socialization on the basis of current empirical research, examining studies concerning its nature and frequency; its child, parent, and ecological predictors; and its consequences for children's development, including ethnic identity, self-esteem, coping with discrimination, academic achievement, and psychosocial well-being. The authors also discuss conceptual and methodological limitations of the literature and suggest directions for future research.
1,801 citations
Additional excerpts
...…who have been in the United States longer (Alba, 1990; Cheng & Kuo, 2000; Knight, Bernal, Garza, et al., 1993; Quintana, Casteñada-English, & Ybarra, 1999; Rumbaut, 1994; Umaña-Taylor & Fine, 2004; Waters, 1990) and as compared with successive generations (Portes & Zhou, 1993; Rumbaut, 1994)....
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References
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss economic scenarios, positive and negative, for the future of the children of the post-1965 immigrants, and propose the possibility that a significant number of children of poor immigrants, especially dark-skinned ones, might not obtain jobs in the mainstream economy, neither will they be willing or able to take low-wage-long-hour "immigrant" jobs like their parents.
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792 citations
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14 Apr 1988
679 citations
TL;DR: This article used a cultural/ecological framework for explaining variability in patterns of school performance among Japanese-American and Mexican-descent students in an agricultural/suburban community along the central California coast.
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342 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, structural hypotheses that link the relative advantage in certain ethnic enclaves to the structure of their economies are tested in a comparative analysis of the Cuban and black businesses in Miami.
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337 citations