The Changing Structure of Structural Assimilation: White‐Collar Mexican Ethnicity and the Significance of Ethnic Identity Professional Organizations^*

Abstract

Objective. This article examines the experience of ethnicity among third‐plus generation Mexican‐American professionals at the workplace and through participation in ethnic identity professional organizations. Methods. A total of 25 face‐to‐face interviews were conducted in the San Jose, California metro area. Interviewees were initially recruited from two ethnic identity professional organizations. Results. The predicted confluence of acculturation with structural assimilation is supported by the responses of Mexican‐American professionals who acknowledge the social pressure to conform to dominant culture expectations. However, changes in the structure of structural assimilation since 1965 related to the emergence of identity politics have meant integration into society's dominant institutions no longer requires the exchange of ethnic for professional identities. Conclusions. Ethnic identity professional organizations provide a key source of ethnic networking for Mexican‐American professionals who typically find themselves in work settings with low levels of minority representation.

Weighing the Costs and Benefits of Mexican Immigration: The Mexican‐American Perspective*

“…Both these communities are semi-rural, and Mexican Americans are predominantly an urban and suburban population. Nevertheless, the overall experiences of Mexican Americans in Garden City and Santa Maria are consonant with research conducted on later-generation Mexican Americans in more urban and suburban settings (Macias, 2003(Macias, , 2004(Macias, , 2006Ochoa, 2000Ochoa, , 2004. Furthermore, the experiences of Mexican Americans in this study with regard to intergenerational advancement in education, income, and intermarriage reflect national trends (Alba, 2006;Alba et al, forthcoming;Duncan, Hotz, and Trejo, 2006;Macias, 2006;Perlmann and Waters, 2004;Reed et al, 2005;Smith, 2003Smith, , 2006.…”

Compulsory Military Service and Future Earnings: Evidence from a Quasi-Experiment

“…Apart from econometric reasons (identification, small samples, etc…), a smaller effect among the Jewish male community can be economically motivated, and thus reconciled with previous findings, by the fact that minority groups extract higher benefits from the same service, given their lower starting point. This is in line with previous findings in the literature (Berger and Hirsch 1983;Phillips et al 1992;Angrist 1998;Hisnanick 2003;Hirsch and Mehay 2003;Macias 2003;Nesbit and Reingold 2011, among others).…”

“…The value of networks is the most stressed aspect of social capital-most importantly the interethnic networks (known as "bridging" in sociological literature). First, the social pressure on minority groups to conform to the dominant culture expectations can be alleviated in the military setting as a professional organization providing key opportunities for interethnic and intraethnic networking (Macias 2003), as Druze men in the army serve along their Jewish counterparts. 19 Furthermore, Annen (2013) showed that social capital can facilitate access to the market and thus substitute for other more costly, formal methods of doing so: this notion pertains to the goods market but can readily be extended to the labor market.…”

Differences Among Latino Students in Precollege Multicultural Exposure and the Transition Into an Elite Institution

“…The promise of upward mobility motivates assimilation into dominant cultural values (Waters, Tran, Kasinitz, & Mollenkopf, 2010). The social pressure to assimilate to dominant culture is still relevant (Macias, 2003) and can affect well-being for adolescents (Greenman & Xie, 2008). Interestingly, assimilation among adolescents is positively associated with academic achievement and psychological well-being as well at-risk behaviors (Xie & Greeman, 2011).…”