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Age at Immigration and the Adult Attainments of Child Migrants to the United States

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  • Audrey Beck
  • Miles Corak
  • Marta Tienda

Abstract

Immigrants’ age at arrival matters for schooling outcomes in a way that is predicted by child development theory: the chances of being a high school dropout increase significantly each year for children who arrive in a host country after the age of eight. The authors document this process for immigrants in the United States from a number of regions relative to appropriate comparison regions. Using instrumental variables, the authors find that the variation in education outcomes associated with variation in age at arrival influences adult outcomes that are important in the American mainstream, notably English-language proficiency and intermarriage. The authors conclude that children experience migration differently from adults depending on the timing of migration and show that migration during the early years of child development influences educational outcomes. The authors also find that variation in education outcomes induced by the interaction of migration and age at arrival changes the capacity of children to become fully integrated into the American mainstream as adults.

Suggested Citation

  • Audrey Beck & Miles Corak & Marta Tienda, 2012. "Age at Immigration and the Adult Attainments of Child Migrants to the United States," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 643(1), pages 134-159, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:anname:v:643:y:2012:i:1:p:134-159
    DOI: 10.1177/0002716212442665
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Hoyt Bleakley & Aimee Chin, 2010. "Age at Arrival, English Proficiency, and Social Assimilation among US Immigrants," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(1), pages 165-192, January.
    2. Gonzalez, Arturo, 2003. "The education and wages of immigrant children: the impact of age at arrival," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(2), pages 203-212, April.
    3. George A. Akerlof & Rachel E. Kranton, 2000. "Economics and Identity," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 115(3), pages 715-753.
    4. Hoyt Bleakley & Aimee Chin, 2004. "Language Skills and Earnings: Evidence from Childhood Immigrants," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 86(2), pages 481-496, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Marie Connolly & Catherine Haeck & Anne Mei Le Bourdais-Coffey, 2023. "Age at Immigration and the Intergenerational Income Mobility of the 1.5 Generation," Working Papers 23-03, Research Group on Human Capital, University of Quebec in Montreal's School of Management.
    2. Gevrek, Deniz & Guven, Cahit & Gevrek, Z. Eylem, 2022. "The relationship between early-life conditions in the home country and adult outcomes among child immigrants in the United States," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 45(C).
    3. Chiara Zisler & Damiano Pregaldini & Uschi Backes-Gellner, 2023. "Opening doors for immigrants: The importance of occupational and workplace-based cultural skills for successful labor market entry," Economics of Education Working Paper Series 0204, University of Zurich, Department of Business Administration (IBW).
    4. Alessandra Minello & Nicola Barban, 2012. "The Educational Expectations of Children of Immigrants in Italy," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 643(1), pages 78-103, September.

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