New Immigrant Inflows and the Economic and Cultural Assimilation of Existing Immigrants, 1900-1930
How do existing immigrants respond to inflows of new immigrants? New waves of migration can push existing immigrants to assimilate as a means of differentiation or reduce the costs of not assimilating. This paper studies the effect of new immigrant inflows on the economic and cultural assimilation of existing immigrants from 1900-1930. I use linked census records and exploit plausibly exogenous variation from a shift-share instrument to study the effect of new inflows on immigrants' occupational ranking, incomes, and fertility. I find that new inflows improve the occupational standing and income of existing immigrants, but this effect is attenuated by the magnitude of new co-ethnic immigration, which generates competition and has negative effects on occupational upgrading and income. Despite improved labor market outcomes, immigrants are unable to outpace the gains made by natives. Culturally, aggregate inflows push immigrants into reducing fertility toward native fertility levels, possibly as a means of social differentiation, while co-ethnic inflows increase fertility, consistent with reducing the cost of not assimilating.