The development of United States citizen infants with undocumented alien parents (UDOC, N = 24) was compared with the development of infants with documented alien or Hispanic American parents (DOC, N = 47). To assess the developmental differences, a closed-end demographic and environmental variab-le questionnaire and the Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID) were used. Most of the demographic and environmental variables which could have influenced development remained essentially equivalent for both groups of subjects. Yet, UDOC infants scored significantly lower than DOC infants on the BSID mental and psychomotor scales, and behavior record items highly correlated with cognitive development. These results lend support to the conclusions of the Select Commission on Immigration and Refuge Policy that the illegal status of undocumented aliens may have negative consequences on their families.
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