Multi-dimensional hyper-selectivity and divergent mobilities: second-generation Filipinos and Chinese

Abstract

ABSTRACT Asian Americans are generally understood as a success story: scholars point out the incredible educational leaps in the second-generation. As a result, research on Asians is often devoted to explaining why mobility occurs. A recent explanation points to immigrant hyper-selectivity: post-1965 Asian immigrants come to the U.S. highly educated. Yet, research has shown divergent patterns among two of the largest hyper-selected Asian groups, Chinese and Filipinos: while the former achieves tremendous educational gains in the second-generation, the latter experiences stagnation. Drawing on data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, the following study examines why current hyper-selectivity literature fails to explain the two groups’ disparate outcomes. Findings point to unequal levels of hyper-selectivity between Chinese and Filipinos, largely due to their opposing gendered migrations. In addition, the study illustrates a Filipino penalty in education vis-à-vis their Chinese counterparts.