Breaking the Mold: The One Social Class Model and Saving Face among Undocumented and Mixed-Status Chinese Immigrant Families

Abstract

Recent studies of immigrant families have called for a reconceptualizing of the influence of social class on education, articulated by the one social class model: White middle-class families possess the cultural capital to foster their social mobility. Focusing on three undocumented and mixed-status Chinese immigrant families in New York City for 3.5 years, we found those who arrived in the United States with the most social class resources fared the worst, whereas those who had less in China were able to persist better. We argue the mechanism underlying this reversal of expected social class patterns is the cultural practice of saving face, which reflects the intersection of social class status, documentation status, and intergenerational acculturation. From this article, we demonstrate understandings of social class among immigrants, especially those of precarious legal status, must expand and incorporate social status experiences prior to immigration, notions of belonging in the United States and being undocumented, and changes through acculturation influence practices that can directly affect mobility.