The authors found that fertility does indeed vary by
immigrant generation, with significant declines between the
first and subsequent generations for groups with large immigrant
populations (Figure 1). Fertility rates are much higher
for immigrant Hispanics than for their U.S.-born counterparts,
whose rates exceed the overall state average. For Asians,
these rates are relatively low for immigrants but extremely
low for U.S.-born mothers. Among whites, fertility rates for
immigrants are slightly higher than those for the U.S.-born,
and among African-Americans, there is virtually no difference
between the two groups. These results indicate that
immigrant generation is strongly associated with fertility
outcomes for the groups in California with the largest immigrant
populations.
Yet the authors also found that personal characteristics—
such as educational attainment, marital status, and income
levels—are much more important than immigrant generation
in understanding fertility outcomes. In fact, generations
are not independently important once these personal characteristics
are controlled for. The authors maintain that declining
fertility levels among the descendants of Mexican and
Central American immigrants are primarily the result of
higher educational attainment levels, lower rates of marriage,
and lower poverty.