Ethnic Identities, Language, and Economic Outcomes Among Dominicans in a New Destination

Objective. This study examines how racial/ethnic self-identity interrelates with language ability, skin tone, and years in the United States and with indicators of socioeconomic attainment for Dominican immigrants in Reading, Pennsylvania, a new destination city that had a nearly 800 percent increas...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inSocial science quarterly Vol. 87; no. 5; pp. 1088 - 1099
Main Authors Jensen, Leif, Cohen, Jeffrey H., Toribio, Almeida Jacqueline, De Jong, Gordon F., Rodríguez, Leila
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Malden, USA Blackwell Publishing Inc 01.12.2006
Blackwell Publishing
Southwestern Social Science Association
Blackwell Publishing Ltd
SeriesSocial Science Quarterly
Subjects
Adults
Agricultural production
Assimilation
Attainment
Censuses
Cities
Community
Cultural identity
Dominicans
Economics
Ethic Identities and Social Capital
Ethnic Identity
Ethnicity
Factories
Hispanic Americans
Hispanics
Households
Identifiers
Identity
Immigrants
Immigration
Indexes (Measures)
Labor force
Language
Migrant communities
Migration
Noncitizens
Pennsylvania
Population
Population growth
Race
Racial attitudes
Racial identity
Research methodology
Self concept
Self-perception
Skin
Skin color
Social assimilation
Socioeconomic factors
Socioeconomic Status
Statistical data
U.S.A
United States of America
USA, Pennsylvania
Online AccessGet full text
ISSN0038-4941
1540-6237
DOI10.1111/j.1540-6237.2006.00417.x

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Summary:Objective. This study examines how racial/ethnic self-identity interrelates with language ability, skin tone, and years in the United States and with indicators of socioeconomic attainment for Dominican immigrants in Reading, Pennsylvania, a new destination city that had a nearly 800 percent increase in the Dominican population between 1990-2000. Methods. In-depth ethno-surveys conducted with a sample of 65 Dominican-origin adults are the basis for the descriptive analysis. Results. Based on open-ended responses, nearly 43 percent of immigrants described themselves with a specific ethnic identifier (Dominican) and 41 percent use a more general panethnic identifier (Hispanic or Latino). Panethnic self-identity is interrelated with stronger language ability, lighter skin tone, and more years in the United States, and with better indicators of socioeconomic status. Conclusion. Race/ethnic identity is an important component of Dominican immigrant assimilation in this new destination context.
Bibliography:Direct correspondence to Leif Jensen, Pennsylvania State University, 110B Armsby Building, University Park, PA 16802-6211 〈lij1@psu.edu〉. Support for this research was provided by Russell Sage Foundation Project # 88-04-01, "Context, Identities, and Economic Outcomes: A Pilot Study of Dominicans in Reading, Pennsylvania." Infrastructural support and funding for a special U.S. Census tabulation were provided by the Population Research Institute at Penn State, which has core funding from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD041025-03). Copies of computer code and printout are available on request. Confidentiality protection precludes dissemination of the survey data. We thank Robin Leon, Nancy Quiñónez, Eva-María Suárez Budenbender, Jason De León, Carlos Nye, Rob Griffin, and Amanda Martínez for invaluable fieldwork assistance. We thank Brett Lewis, Survey Research Center, Penn State, for his capable computer programming assistance. Remaining errors are our own.
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Direct correspondence to Leif Jensen, Pennsylvania State University, 110B Armsby Building, University Park, PA 16802‐6211
lij1@psu.edu
Support for this research was provided by Russell Sage Foundation Project # 88‐04‐01, “Context, Identities, and Economic Outcomes: A Pilot Study of Dominicans in Reading, Pennsylvania.” Infrastructural support and funding for a special U.S. Census tabulation were provided by the Population Research Institute at Penn State, which has core funding from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD041025‐03). Copies of computer code and printout are available on request. Confidentiality protection precludes dissemination of the survey data. We thank Robin Leon, Nancy Quiñónez, Eva‐María Suárez Budenbender, Jason De León, Carlos Nye, Rob Griffin, and Amanda Martínez for invaluable fieldwork assistance. We thank Brett Lewis, Survey Research Center, Penn State, for his capable computer programming assistance. Remaining errors are our own.
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ISSN:0038-4941
1540-6237
DOI:10.1111/j.1540-6237.2006.00417.x