A Study Of The Current Occupational Pattern Of Chinese Americans And Their Assimilation Into The American Society

The United States of America is a nation mainly composed of immigrants andtheir descendants. As an ethnic minority, Chinese Americans have a long history in theUnited States. Since the Immigration and Nationality Act of1965took effect, Chineseimmigrants began to pour into the United States in large numbers, finally becomingthe largest Asian ethnic group. As a result of the large influx of professionals andtechnicians, the occupational pattern has changed drastically. The growing body ofsenior professionals and technicians within the Chinese community has earned thewhole ethnic group the fame as a “model minority”.Based on the2000census data and the American Community Survey in recentyears, the thesis analyzes the occupational pattern of Chinese Americans. Rather thana model minority, Chinese Americans are a diverse group, demonstrating a bimodaloccupational pattern. While the proportion of high-status workers is relatively large,there is a big proportion of low-skilled workers within the Chinese community.Therefore, compared with the non-Hispanic white people, Chinese Americans displaya clear-cut bimodal occupational pattern.Since the1965immigration reform, Chinese Americans have accelerated theirpace in assimilating into the host society. Nonetheless, the thesis finds that they arestill suffering structural discrimination. In order to quicken their assimilation andpromote their upward social mobility, Chinese Americans need to eliminate suchdiscrimination. To achieve such purpose, it necessitates the development of a fairersocial system as well as the improvement of the Chinese community.