Marital Assimilation and Family Financial Resources of U.S. Born Hispanics

ABSTRACT

Census 2000 5% PUMS data are used to study the association between intermarriage and family financial resources for U.S. born Mexicans (n=95,509), Puerto Ricans (n=51,030) and Cubans (n=5,688), based on classic and segmented assimilation theories. Findings give support to classic assimilation theory. For all three Hispanic groups exogamy with Whites leads to higher family financial resources than endogamy. Outmarriage to non-Whites is also linked to higher SES for Mexicans and Puerto Ricans, but not for Cubans. Intermarriage is also related to higher family SES for Hispanic women than for Hispanic men. Besides a symbol of assimilation, intermarriage tends to filter out low-SES Hispanics and keep them in endogamy, and is thus associated with different family financial environments for next- generation Hispanics.