RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 The Wealth of Mexican Americans
JF Journal of Human Resources
JO J Hum Resour
FD University of Wisconsin Press
SP 841
OP 868
DO 10.3368/jhr.XLI.4.841
VO XLI
IS 4
A1 Cobb-Clark, Deborah A.
A1 Hildebrand, Vincent A.
YR 2006
UL http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/XLI/4/841.abstract
AB This paper analyzes the sources of disparities in the relative wealth position of Mexican Americans. Results reveal that—unlike the racial wealth gap—Mexican Americans’ wealth disadvantage is in large part not the result of differences in wealth distributions conditional on the underlying determinants of wealth. Rather, Mexican Americans’ wealth disadvantage is attributable to the fact that these families have more young children and heads who are younger. Mexican Americans’ low educational attainment also has a direct effect in producing a wealth gap relative to other ethnic groups even after differences in income are taken into account. Income differentials are important, but do not play the primary role in explaining the gap in median net worth. Finally, geographic concentration is generally unimportant, but does contribute to narrowing the wealth gap between wealthy Mexican Americans and their white and black counterparts.