Provides historical background on the changing experiences of children in immigrant families in the United States compared to those in native-born families and on differences across first-, second-, and later-generation children. Discussion and detailed statistics address: (1) the number and countries of origin of children in immigrant families; (2) risk factors for children in general, including income inequality, low parental educational attainment and labor force participation, one-parent families and large families, and overcrowded housing; and (3) potential risk factors specific to children in immigrant families, including lack of English fluency, uncertain or undocumented immigrant status, and poverty. Key findings reveal that children in immigrant families in 1990 were more likely to live in poverty than were children in native-born families; children from war-torn and impoverished countries experienced extremely high risks of living in poverty; children in immigrant families experienced additional risk factors originating in their immigration circumstances, including ineligibility for benefits due to lack of citizenship and state-by-state variations in access to services; risk factors were markedly higher for children from the former Soviet Union, Southeast Asian and Central America, the Caribbean, and Mexico; and risk factors declined over generations, except for one-parent families.
