Ethnic economies promote interclass contact among East Asian Americans, which facilitates the exchange of information and resources through social capital networks. However, low-income Korean Americans are more likely than low-income Chinese Americans to take SAT prep, although both communities have extensive ethnic economies. In the analysis of a national dataset of first-year college students, religious affiliation and religious service attendance were positively associated with SAT prep for Korean Americans, while low socioeconomic status and lack of citizenship discouraged participation for Chinese Americans. I argue that immigrant churches facilitate interclass contact for Korean Americans, which encourages the flow of information around educational resources. Findings demonstrate how what is often stereotyped as “Asian culture” is in reality shaped by complex structural factors.
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