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A Historical Note on the Assimilation Rates of Foreign-Born Women in the U.S

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  • Duleep, Harriet
  • Dowhan, Dan
  • Liu, Xingfei

Abstract

Using historical, longitudinal data on individuals, we track the earnings of immigrant and U.S.-born women. Following individuals, instead of synthetic cohorts, avoids biases in earnings-growth estimates caused by compositional changes in the cohorts that are followed. The historical data contradict key predictions of the Family Investment Hypothesis, shed light on its genesis, and inform its further testing. Challenging the perception that the quality of U.S. immigrants fell after the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act, immigrant women, as previously found for immigrant men, have high earnings growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Duleep, Harriet & Dowhan, Dan & Liu, Xingfei, 2023. "A Historical Note on the Assimilation Rates of Foreign-Born Women in the U.S," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1221, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:glodps:1221
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Immigrant earning growth; human capital investment; skill transferability; immigrant quality; sample restrictions; family investment model;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • C1 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General

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