Outlines and clarifies the 1981 amendments to the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. Covers provisions relating to visa status of foreign students, foreign medical students, and foreign medical graduates; naturalization requirements; alien admission criteria and requirements; reentry permits; and alien deportation. (MJL)

The formal award of citizenship is made by the courts, but the core of the naturalization process is the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. This article follows an applicant through this process, examines some of the roadblocks, and recommends an overhaul of the Immigration and Nationality Act. (VM)

In a secondary analysis of citizenship acquisition among legal Mexican immigrants many individual characteristics which were significant in previous studies did not correlate with an interest in naturalization. Positive correlations were found in these areas: (1) roots in the United States; (2) residential patterns; and (3) barriers and attitudes…

Compares the fertility behavior and fertility expectations for future childbearing of foreign-born and native-born women in the United States. Results show the immigrant-native fertility gap has increased during the 1980s because fertility dropped at a faster rate for natives than for immigrants. (GLR)

An investigation of the naturalization experiences of Hispanics shows that factors like occupation and length of time in the United States jointly influence the decision to become naturalized. The support of knowledgeable individuals is required to guide the candidates through the mechanics of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. (VM)

Against a backdrop of administrative rather than criminal justice, examines the changing concepts in United Kingdom immigration practice, where immigration control at the port of entry has extended to internal control within the United Kingdom, the burden of proof of legality of status being increasingly upon the immigrant. (RDN)

The political integration of Mexican immigrants is a slow and uneven process. This article discusses these three political orientations found in this population; (1) individual/system blame; (2) perceived discrimination; and (3) support for collective activities. These orientations are influenced by structural relations and institutional policies…

This study investigates political and social consequences of non-citizenship in the U.S. Hispanic community. Currently one-third of Hispanic adults are legally unable to vote. Although Hispanics may become the largest United States minority group by the year 2010, non-citizenship will impede their political empowerment. Naturalization must be…

Examines census data on the fertility of U.S. immigrants to study trends in fertility after migration. Results show that immigrant fertility may rise after arrival in the new country, perhaps because immigrants are making up for births or marriages postponed because of the move, but that, with assimilation, fertility declines. (AF)

Reviews research literature on socioeconomic and cultural factors associated with immigrants who naturalize. These explanatory factors are commonly found: (1) length of residence in the United States; (2) potential for acculturation, which varies among different national origin groups; (3) motivation for immigration; and (4) formal education and…

Examines the study by the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) on the implementation of the employer sanctions requirement of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA). Discusses citizenship discrimination and other possible discriminatory influences. Applauds the study's contribution while urging attention to omitted issues such as…

Survey data from 1976 are used to explore nativity differences in the levels of functional impairment and access to medical resources among elderly Mexican Americans. Foreign-born status is found to be weakly associated with greater functional disability and strongly associated with differences in access to medical resources. (VM)

Proposes a broad analytical framework in the study of immigrant naturalization that incorporates an immigrant's individual characteristics with the larger social contexts in the country of origin and the country of destination to explain the likelihood of citizenship acquisition. Results testing of this framework show that such considerations are…