Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

Panel: Immigrant Integration: A National Academies Concensus Study

(Population and Migration Issues)

The study facilitated a more informed and fact-based discussion of the issues surrounding current immigration in the U.S. The report summarizes what we know about how immigrants are integrating into American society; discusses what the implications of this knowledge are for informing various policy options; and identifies any important gaps in our existing knowledge and data availability. More specifically, the committee was asked to explore the following set of questions: * What has been the demographic impact of immigration, in terms of the size and age, sex, and racial/ethnic composition of the US population from 1970 to 2010? What are the likely changes in the future? * What have been the effects of recent immigration on the educational outcomes, employment, and earnings of the native-born population? * How has the social and spatial mobility of immigrants and the second generation changed over the last 45 years? * How has the residential integration (or segregation) of immigrants and their descendants changed over the last 45 years? How has immigration affected residential segregation patterns within native born racial and ethnic communities? * How rapidly are recent immigrants and their descendants integrating into American society, as measured by competency in English language, educational attainment, rate of naturalization, degree of intermarriage, maintenance of ethnic identity, health outcomes, and other dimensions? * How has immigration affected American institutions, including economic, civil society, and political organizations? What role do mediating institutions play in the integration process? How responsive are these institutions to the needs of immigrants and their descendants? * How has immigration affected the stock and growth of scientific and technological skills in universities, research organizations, and private businesses? Is it possible to measure the impact of immigration on the pace of technological change and innovation? * What are the general attitudes and public perceptions of native-born Americans towards (a) legal and illegal immigration and (b) how immigrants shape American society? How do these perceptions compare with the statistical record? * How does legal status affect immigrants’ and their descendants’ ability to integrate across various dimensions? * For each of these questions, how do outcomes vary by gender, race and ethnicity, social class, geography, and other social categories? * What additional data are needed for research on the role and impact of immigration on American society? The report addresses these questions in 10 chapters, including chapters on: 1) The Legal and Institutional Framework for Immigrant Integration; 2) Legal Status; 3) Political and Civic Dimensions; 5) Spatial Dimensions; 6) Socioeconomic Dimensions; 7)Sociocultural Dimeneions; 8) Family Dimensions; 9) Health Dimensions; 9) Data Needs