Surveying Immigrant Communities

📖 The Scoop

While national debates focus on rising immigration and its impact, current data on immigrants and how they affect the national life are limited. To determine the feasibility of conducting a national survey of immigrants, a pilot project surveyed Salvadorans and Filipinos in Los Angeles in 1991. This report addresses key methodological issues in conducting a large-scale immigrant survey by describing the design, implementation, and field results of the Los Angeles Community Survey. The survey had two phases: neighborhood screening, and the main interview covering immigration status; employment experiences, wages, and skills; needs for and use of public services; tax contributions; family composition and economic transfers among family members; use and ability level of English and native language; and educational expectations and aspirations of immigrants and their children. Findings produced several tentative conclusions with important policy implications. The relative success of immigrants in the labor market and their demand for services depended largely on their education and English proficiency on arrival, suggesting that immigration impact is shaped by eligibility criteria. Second, U.S. laws offer many alternative avenues for undocumented immigrants to become legal residents. Third, use of public services had less to with people's immigration status than with their income, family size, and other factors. Finally, filing of federal tax returns was strongly related to immigration status. A final chapter discusses types of policy questions that survey data can answer, and makes recommendations for survey procedures. Appendices contain screening and interview questionnaires. (One questionnaire is in English, Spanish and Togolog). (SV)

Genre: Political Science / Civil Rights (fancy, right?)