The Demographic Intersection of Age,Race,and Immigrant Composition in the United States

Abstract

This visualization illustrates the proportion of U.S. residents at every age between 0 and 80 years who are foreign born and native born. The author uses a robust cross-sectional sample from the 2022 American Community Survey and groups individuals into nine distinct racial and ethnic (i.e., ethnoracial) groups. Following demographic expectations, age-specific immigrant shares of the total population are largest in midlife. However, across different ethnoracial groups the pattern varies greatly. Among Hispanic White individuals, a presumed immigrant-dominant group, there is no age at which the majority of members are foreign born. Alternatively, among non-Hispanic Asians and Pacific Islanders, Hispanics from other races, and multiracial Hispanics, there is a clear divide between majority foreign-born and majority native-born age groups. These results show the strengths of disaggregating the Hispanic population and the need to consider the intersection of age, race, and immigration when formulating social policy.

The United States as a land of immigrants is foundational to the nation’s narrative, yet the image of the “melting pot” is complicated by immigrants’ ongoing marginalization (Foner 2022). Demographic processes also add nuance, as the share of individuals at each age and among racial and ethnic (i.e., ethnoracial) groups who are immigrants varies greatly. This variation exists for two reasons. First, most immigrants arrive during their middle adult years, with fewer coming as young children or at older ages (Ward and Batalova 2023). Second, because the magnitude of migration from different regions has changed over time, certain ethnoracial groups will contain few older individuals, whereas for other groups, most older individuals will be immigrants (e.g., Asians). Additionally, immigrants can belong to any racial group, yet most research has ignored those from smaller ethnoracial groups, such as multiracial individuals, and has viewed Hispanic immigrants as racially monolithic (Frank, Akresh, and Lu 2010; Shiao 2023). Most research on age variation in immigrant share has been indirect. For example, Frey (2019) found that 31.1 percent of those ages 0 to 15 years are Hispanic or Asian (i.e., immigrant-heavy groups), compared with 24.2 percent of all ages. A more complete picture of the demographic intersection of age, race, and immigration is needed at a time when minoritized ethnoracial groups and immigrants constitute ever growing shares of the U.S. population (Lichter 2013).

To document the foreign- and native-born share of age groups, I use the 2022 American Community Survey (Ruggles et al. 2024). I plot the percentage of all individuals (n = 3,223,483) from ages 0 to 80 years who belong to the two groups, as well as disaggregated into nine ethnoracial groups. Figure 1 reveals that the proportion of foreign-born individuals at each age indeed varies greatly, with the largest share of such individuals found among those ages 35 to 55, peaking at age 48 (25.4 percent of individuals). Unsurprisingly, the smallest share is among those less than 1 year old (1.6 percent).

Figure 1.

The percentage of U.S. residents ages 0 to 80 years who are foreign born and native born disaggregated by ethnoracial group.

Disaggregating estimates by ethnoracial group provides key insights. Despite common perception, at no age do immigrants make up the majority of Hispanic Whites. This is not true for Hispanics of other races or those who are multiracial, for whom the majority of those ages 35 and older and 39 and older are foreign born, respectively. This partially reflects relatively recent immigration, with many native-born individuals from these Hispanic groups having not yet aged into adult years. A similar trend is found among non-Hispanic Asians and Pacific Islanders, for whom the majority of those ages 22 and older are foreign born. This group contains the most immigrant-dominant age group, with 90.0 percent of individuals age 76 being foreign born.

The lesson to be learned here is that the age-specific shares of immigrants overall matches expectations with the proportion foreign born peaking in midlife, and for some ethnoracial groups, there is a clear demarcation between the ages that are majority foreign born and majority native born. The latter has significant implications for aging social services and workforce development. These results also highlight marked variation when looking within the Hispanic population, suggesting the need to consider ethnoracial heterogeneity within this group across a broad range of socioeconomic and demographic outcomes in future research.

Supplemental Material

sj-docx-1-srd-10.1177_23780231241259653 – Supplemental material for The Demographic Intersection of Age, Race, and Immigrant Composition in the United States

Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-srd-10.1177_23780231241259653 for The Demographic Intersection of Age, Race, and Immigrant Composition in the United States by Matthew M. Brooks in Socius