Social Capital and Economic Success among New Immigrants

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Abstract

This paper focuses on the extent to which higher levels of social capital among immigrants are associated with greater economic opportunity and success. The project uses data from a 2014 survey of 1,194 immigrants in six U.S. cities. The sample includes immigrants from over 160 different countries but is restricted to individuals with at least some higher education outside the U.S. The aim of the paper is to establish the nature of the relationship between social capital and three measures of economic success among recent immigrants to the U.S. Using fixed effects models, we determine that, net of demographic controls, social capital has a positive effect on immigrants’ likelihood of achieving economic success, regardless of how success is measured. However, we find that social capital is more influential a predictor when economic success includes being employed in a managerial or professional occupation. These findings are then situated into the context of other scholarship on the value of social capital for labor market outcomes.

Authors

• James C. Witte, George Mason University

• Shannon N. Davis, George Mason University