In this article, I explore the varying logic of second‐generation Filipino‐Americans' decisions to send economic support to family members in the Philippines. I extend the conceptual framework of remittance scripts to that of second‐generation migrants. I find that second‐generation Filipino Americans rely heavily on their first‐generation migrant parents to mediate both remittance requests and sending. As a result, respondents send what I refer to as ‘mediated remittances’. This type of remittance among second‐generation migrants leads to material, relational, and emotional aspects of a transaction being directed towards both first‐generation migrants, as well as non‐migrant recipients. Furthermore, I discuss the repertoire of scripts that second‐generation migrants employ when refusing the request to remit. Analysis of the emotional milieu associated with decisions to remit or not remit reveals an additional dimension beyond the sender–recipient dyad with the inclusion of a mediator. In doing so, this article sheds light on how second‐generation migrants participate in the transnational social field.
This study uses the concept of brokerage to explain how the transnational ties of the children of migrants born in the host country, i.e., the second generation, are initiated and sustained. By examining second generation Mexican- and Filipino-Americans, two groups that differ in linguistic proficiency, geographical proximity to the home country, and interpersonal contact with nonmigrants, this study highlights the common role of a broker for both groups. These findings also reveal the ways in which second generation ties can differ. The second generation utilized middleman brokerage, in which a broker is present throughout each connection; and catalyst brokerage, in which a broker facilitates only the initial ties. Overall, these forms of brokerage were shaped by the type of cross-border connection, linguistic proficiency, interpersonal contact, and emotional attachments between nonmigrants and the second generation. While Filipino-Americans in the sample generally required a middleman broker to be present throughout each connection, Mexican-Americans had a greater capacity to eventually engage in dyadic connections. Given the triadic nature of connections, cross-border ties were shaped and limited by the capacities and emotional attachments of those in the ancestral homeland, immigrant brokers, and the second generation.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.