In the ongoing debate about immigration, a subtext has been concern over the degree to which Hispanic immigrants are assimilating into broader U.S. society. A study by Ipsos Public Affairs (based on polling last fall of Hispanic adults, whether immigrants or not) gives some hints.
One query asked whether respondents agreed that most of their friends “are from my country of origin.” Thirty-eight percent strongly agreed — 35 percent of women, 40 percent of men. Age wasn’t a consistent dividing line, with 39 percent of 18-34-year-olds, 30 percent of 35-54s and 52 percent of those 55-plus agreeing strongly.
Education was a salient factor, though: 53 percent of respondents with a high school diploma or less agreed strongly that most of their friends are from their own country of origin, vs. 15 percent of those with a college degree or higher.
The pattern of response was similar when respondents were asked about their comfort with people of different (or not-different) ethnicities. Forty-one percent agreed strongly with the statement, “I feel more comfortable being around people of my ethnicity.” Equal percentages of men and women subscribed to that idea. Sixty-percent of respondents with a high school education or less did so, vs. 25 percent of those with some college and 23 percent of those with a college degree or higher.
