Triumphant Transitions: Socioeconomic Achievements of the Second Generation in Canada

Abstract

Articulated within the last decade, the revisionary perspective on second generation integration argues that the model of equal or above average success of the second generation in North America is historically specific, based on the postwar entry of a white second generation in boom economic times. One implication is that the past patterns of second generation success may not hold now and in the future for immigrant offspring. Using data from the 1994 Canadian General Social Survey for women and men, age 25–64, this article assesses the proposition of triumphant transitions in which the second generation experiences high levels of educational and labor market achievements. Multivariate analyses confirm second generation success with respect to educational levels and occupational status, thus contradicting verdicts of a new chapter to be written for the second generation in Canada. Although limited by the small number of cases in the General Social Survey, exploratory analysis finds variations in educational and occupational attainments exist within second generation groups distinguished by parental region of origin. These findings support the argument that degrees of success are not uniformly assured for all second generation groups.