Children of Immigrants in Unmarried Families: A Double Jeopardy?

1. Children of Immigrants in Unmarried Families: A Double Jeopardy? Yolanda C. Padilla, PhD, LMSW Melissa Radey, Eunjeong Kim, Robert Hummer Population Research Center University of Texas at Austin

2. Background • 1 in every 5 children in the U.S. has at least one foreign born parent • Children of immigrants are at greater risk than are the children of US-born parents • Children of single parents are at greater risk than the children of two-parent families

3. Research Question What are the living conditions of young children of immigrants relative to children of US-born parents in married and unmarried families?

4. Purpose • To assess the impact of marital status on immigrant child well-being • To examine social and economic hardship faced by children of immigrants at age 1 relative to children of US-born parents • To assess access to social support, health services, and social services among immigrant families

5. Study Design • Fragile Families and Child Well-being Study, Mother Survey, Year 1 and Baseline • Comparative analyses of children of immigrant mothers and children of US-born mothers broken by marital status • Weighted data, except in the tables providing sample distribution data (pros and cons of weighting the data are to be considered) • “Children of immigrants” are defined as those with foreign-born mothers (all born in the U.S.) • Puerto Ricans born in PR are not classified as immigrants

6. Table 1. Sample Distribution of Place of Origin of Immigrant Mothers Note: “Other” are respondents from the continents of Africa and Australia/Oceania, and from Canada.

7. Table 2. Sample Distribution of Immigrant Status and Marital Status

8. Unmarried/married sample split by immigrant status

9. Table 3. Recency of Immigration and Citizenship of Immigrant Mothers by Marital Status Significance level between married and unmarried: * = p<.10; ** = p < .05; *** = p < .01

10. Significance level between married and unmarried within each category of immigrant or US-born: * = p<.10; ** = p < .05; *** = p < .01 Significance level between between immigrant and native: + = p<.10; ++ = p < .05; +++ = p <.01 Table 4. Socioeconomic StatusEducation

11. Table 4. Socioeconomic Status Poverty

12. Table 4. Socioeconomic Status Race/Ethnicity

13. Table 4. Socioeconomic Status Employment

14. Table 4. Socioeconomic Status Occupation

15. Table 4. Socioeconomic Status Relationship Status Among Unmarried Mothers

16. Table 4. Socioeconomic CharacteristicsMother’s Age and Number of Children

17. Table 5. Mother’s Assets

18. Table 6. Mother’s Health Behaviors

19. Table 7. Maternal and Child Health

20. Table 8. Childcare Arrangements

21. Table 9. Material Hardship

22. Table 10. Irregular Work Schedules (If Worked After Child’s Birth)

23. Table 11. Availability of Social Support and Neighborhood Stability:Social Support

24. Table 11. Availability of Social Support and Neighborhood Stability: Neighborhood Stability

25. Table 12. Access to Health Care and Public Assistance

26. Table 12. Access to Health Care and Public Assistance

27. Conclusions • Children of unmarried immigrants face a double jeopardy. • Although 35% of children of immigrants are living in poverty, they are less likely to receive TANF or food stamps (although US citizens). • They have poorer health and are less likely to have private health insurance. • In addition, children of immigrants are less likely to live in families with access to social support.

28. Implications for Policy • The study shows that children of immigrants, especially unmarried, are at risk due to their socioeconomic conditions. • Recent policy developments under the 1996 Welfare Reform Act exclude immigrant families from access to many health and social services. • Parents often lack benefits for their children and, thus, their children run the risk of not getting their needs met.