Success Attained, Deterred, and Denied: Divergent Pathways to Social Mobility in Los Angeles's New Second Generation

Min Zhou, Jennifer Lee, Jody Agius Vallejo, Rosaura Tafoya-Estrada and Yang Sao Xiong
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Min Zhou: Department of Asian American Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles
Jennifer Lee: University of California, Irvine
Jody Agius Vallejo: University of Southern California and a visiting research fellow at the Center for Comparative Immigration Studies and U.S.-Mexican Studies at the University of California, San Diego
Rosaura Tafoya-Estrada: University of California, Irvine
Yang Sao Xiong: University of California, Los Angeles

The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 2008, vol. 620, issue 1, 37-61

Abstract: This article highlights divergent pathways to mobility among members of the new second generation, identifies key mechanisms affecting the choices they make in their pursuit of success, and explains how specific choices were pivotal in determining outcomes of segmented assimilation. First, the authors evaluate definitions of success and pathways to social mobility, advancing a subject-centered approach to study second-generation mobility. Second, the article turns to the results from the authors' ongoing qualitative study of the new second generation in Los Angeles to examine cases that exemplify predictable and anomalous outcomes. Third, the authors zoom in on patterns that emerge from real-life histories to clarify key mechanisms affecting the decisions made by members of the second generation that are consequential in shaping their paths to mobility. The study dispels some enduring myths about group-based cultures, stereotypes, and processes of assimilation. It also advances theoretical debates about intergenerational mobility and immigrant incorporation.

Keywords: immigration; the new second generation; assimilation; success; mobility; Chinese; Mexican; Vietnamese (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2008
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:anname:v:620:y:2008:i:1:p:37-61

DOI: 10.1177/0002716208322586

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