Immigration and Immigrant Integration

Overview

The Russell Sage Foundation/Carnegie Corporation Initiative on Immigration and Immigrant Integration seeks to support innovative research on the effects of race, citizenship, legal status and politics, political culture and public policy on outcomes for immigrants and for the native-born of different racial and ethnic groups and generations. This initiative falls under RSF’s Race, Ethnicity, and Immigration Program and represents a special area of interest within the core program, which continues to encourage proposals on a broader set of issues. 

For over 25 years, RSF has supported immigration research that has made significant contributions to the study of (1) immigrant integration and intergenerational mobility, (2) political incorporation, and (3) the causes and consequences of immigration to new areas of settlement. This research has shown the significant progress made by immigrants and their children, with immigrants becoming more like the native-born over time, and with second and later generations becoming more like other native-born Americans than their parents were.  

A 2016 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine report confirms that, for education, income, residential integration, English language fluency, and living above the poverty line, the children of immigrants do better than their parents and reach parity with other U.S.-born citizens, often within a generation. Nevertheless, the reports notes the continuing importance of legal status, race, and political culture, suggesting that immigrant incorporation into our society remains incomplete. 

This initiative is also responsive to recent federal policy changes and emerging concerns about the resurgence of nativism and anti-immigrant sentiment –from executive orders limiting refugee resettlement to barring travel from some Muslim-majority countries.  And it invites examination of the extent to which social and political institutions reinforce (or prevent) the goals of immigrant progress and integration. 

Areas of Interest 
RSF and the Carnegie Corporation of New York invite proposals for new research that will strengthen the theory, methods and empirical knowledge about the effects of race, citizenship, legal status, and the interplay of politics and policy on immigrant outcomes. Because of limitations in government statistics, researchers are curating and analyzing data from both public and private sources (e.g., specialized surveys, administrative sources from tax, social security and citizenship and immigration services, as well as social media), and collecting their own data to measure the progress of the foreign-born and their children. 

Many of the questions listed below are difficult to answer because of data limitations regarding age and time of arrival, time spent in the U.S., legal status at present and upon entry, visa type, parents’ and grandparents’ place of birth. Thus, we welcome proposals to improve the measurement of immigrant integration over time and across generations. We are especially interested in creative uses of administrative and other data sources that enhance our ability to identify immigrants by generation and legal status. We are open to the study of historical events which give insight into contemporary immigrant integration.

Examples of the kinds of topics and questions that are of interest include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• Legal Status 
• Naturalization, Citizenship, and Civic Engagement 
• Mixed-Ancestry, Ethnic Identity, and Integration 
• Race, Religion, Legacies of Exclusion, and Inequality 
• Politics, Political Culture, and Public Policy 

We are particularly interested in analyses that make use of newly available data or demonstrate novel uses of existing data. We also support original data collection, such as field experiments, in-depth qualitative interviews, and ethnographies. RSF encourages methodological variety and inter-disciplinary collaboration. All proposals must have well-developed conceptual frameworks and research designs. Analytical models must be specified, and research questions and hypotheses (where applicable) must be clearly stated.

All applicants (both PIs and Co-PIs) must have a doctorate. In rare circumstances, RSF may consider applications from scholars who do not hold a doctorate but can demonstrate a strong career background that establishes their ability to conduct high-level, peer-reviewed scholarly research.

Letter of Inquiry is required. A brief letter of inquiry (LOI; four-page maximum excluding references) must precede a full proposal to determine whether the proposed project is in line with the Foundation's program priorities and available funds.  

Funds can support research assistance, data acquisition, data analysis, and investigator time. Trustee Grants are capped at $200,000, including 15 percent indirect costs, over a two-year period. Presidential Awards are capped at $50,000 (no indirect costs), but at $75,000 (no indirect costs) when the proposed project has special data gathering (e.g., qualitative research) or gaining access to restricted-use data.