The Neighborhood Patterns and Processes of Asian Ethnic Groups in the U.S.

Abstract

Today, Asians are the fastest growing ethnoracial group in the United States and are an extremely diverse population made up of at least 20 different national origin groups with varying social, economic, and political characteristics. Yet, there is limited research on the neighborhood patterns and processes of distinct Asian ethnic groups. This dissertation thus contributes to the existing residential segregation literature by using standardized U.S. decennial census data for the years 1980, 1990, 2000, and 2010 to examine three neighborhood patterns of dissimilar Asian ethnic groups. First, I explore how various characteristics of Chinese and Vietnamese ethnic neighborhoods have evolved from 1980 to 2010 and how the trajectory of these characteristics varies across different immigrant destination types. I find important enduring differences in neighborhood contexts between Chinese and Vietnamese ethnic neighborhoods, and between newer and more traditional destinations. For example, Chinese ethnic neighborhoods, on average, have remained relatively socioeconomically advantaged, while Vietnamese clusters have become more racially diverse and have lower socioeconomic status. Second, I investigate what social and economic neighborhood characteristics are associated with the development of ethnic neighborhoods for Chinese, Asian Indians, Filipinos, and Vietnamese, and explore how these associations vary across immigrant gateways. I find that the dynamics associated with the degree of co-ethnic contact in ethnic neighborhoods differs depending on the Asian ethnic group and matters more in some immigrant destination types than others. For instance, poor English language proficiency is more strongly associated with the development of highly concentrated Chinese and Filipino ethnic neighborhoods in traditional destinations, while it is more pertinent for the development of Asian Indian and Vietnamese ethnic neighborhoods in non-traditional destinations. Finally, I explore the role of Asian ethnic groups in the emergence and stability of racially diverse neighborhoods. I find that some Asian ethnic groups matter more for certain aspects of this process, while other Asian ethnic groups are more important for other aspects. Specifically, Filipinos and Asian Indians are more likely to encourage Black entry into neighborhoods and the development of diverse neighborhoods, while Chinese and Japanese are more likely to prevent White loss thereby providing the opportunity for racially diverse neighborhoods to remain stable. Overall, the findings from my dissertation illuminate significant variations in the neighborhood dynamics for different Asian ethnic groups, further highlighting the importance of disaggregating the Asian population and the continued salience of ethnic group distinctions in understanding the experiences of Asians in the United States.