Khuu Thoa V, Van Hook Jennifer, Lowrey Kendal L
The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.
J Health Soc Behav. 2025 Jan 31:221465241310347. doi: 10.1177/00221465241310347.
In recent decades, naturalization rates among U.S. immigrants have surged as many seek citizenship to regain lost rights and protections. However, the impact of naturalization on immigrants' life outcomes, such as health, remains underexplored in academic research. Challenges arising from selection processes complicate the interpretation of any observed health disparities between naturalized citizens and noncitizens. To address this gap, we link restricted-use data from the 2000 U.S. census to individual Social Security records on citizenship change and death, enabling a 20-year observation of naturalization and mortality. Results from discrete-time hazard analysis of mortality risk reveals a significant protective health effect from naturalization, which increases in magnitude among long-term naturalized citizens. The effect is particularly strong across older ages and among groups with lower education, refugee entry status, Hispanic origin, and health limitations. These findings suggest that naturalization represents an important but stratifying source of institutional support for socially vulnerable immigrants.
近几十年来，美国移民的入籍率大幅上升，因为许多人寻求公民身份以重新获得失去的权利和保护。然而，入籍对移民生活状况（如健康）的影响在学术研究中仍未得到充分探讨。选择过程中产生的挑战使得对入籍公民和非公民之间任何观察到的健康差异的解释变得复杂。为了填补这一空白，我们将2000年美国人口普查的受限使用数据与关于公民身份变化和死亡的个人社会保障记录相链接，从而能够对入籍和死亡率进行20年的观察。死亡率风险的离散时间风险分析结果显示，入籍对健康有显著的保护作用，长期入籍公民的这种作用在程度上有所增加。这种影响在老年人以及教育程度较低、难民入境身份、西班牙裔血统和健康受限的群体中尤为强烈。这些发现表明，入籍对社会弱势移民来说是一种重要但具有分层作用的制度支持来源。
