Assimilating Through Social Networks? The Importance of Networks in Assimilation Trajectories

• In Event: 426 - Section on International Migration Paper Session. Immigrant Organizations and the Assimilation/Transnationalism Divide

Abstract

The assimilation outcomes of second generation youth have been hotly debated amongst scholars. While the outcomes are contested, it is undeniable that ethnic organizations play a central role in the second generation’s assimilation trajectory. Zhou and Bankston (1998) suggest that participating in ethnic religious institutions promotes upward assimilation through instilling an ethnic identity onto youths and connecting them with the ethnic community. However, Petts and Jolliff’s (2008) report religious attendance has adverse effects on Asian-American youth. My research on the greater Seattle area Vietnamese Buddhist youth organizations explores how these findings are not mutually exclusive by focusing on peer networks inside the youth groups. Based on 43 in-depth interviews, I find that organization participation promotes upward and downward assimilation, and the friendships formed inside ethnic organizations play a crucial role in assimilation outcomes. My project shows that participation in Buddhist youth groups instills a Vietnamese-American identity on youths and, in turn, this ethnic identity can lead to upward assimilation only if the individual is part of a peer network that promotes normative values. Downward assimilation can be associated with youth group participation if the youths enter peer networks that promote deviant behaviors. These deviant peer networks can supersede the positive effects of the youth organization’s overall influence on the individual. I propose for immigration scholars to shift the research agenda from ethnic and religious identities and boundaries to focusing on peer networks and ethnic religious organizations in assimilation outcomes.

Author

• Andrew N. Le, University of California-Los Angeles