Conceptual definitions of the Vietnamese-Americans: differences based on census data

Abstract

After the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, there were three major exoduses of Vietnamese refugees to the United States. The first wave occurred immediately after the fall of Saigon, the second wave occurred in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and the third wave occurred in the late 1980s. Consequently, the Vietnamese are the fastest growing Asian population in the U.S. Between 1980 and 1990, the Vietnamese-American population increased by 135%. Thus, the Vietnamese-American population is not negligible. This thesis uses the 1990 census data to define conceptually the Vietnamese population. We need to know how to define Vietnamese-Americans in order to respond to questions, such as: How many Vietnamese-Americans live in the U.S.? What are the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the Vietnamese-Americans? Answering these questions is the second objective of this thesis. The U.S. census allows several ways to characterize ethnic populations. Four indicators will be used to define a Vietnamese-American: birthplace, whether or not Vietnamese is spoken in the home, self-identification as Vietnamese on the census "race" question, and self-identification as Vietnamese on the census "ancestry" question. In addition to using these four identifiers, various combinations of the identifiers will be used in order to depict alternative and perhaps a more accurate sense of belonging to a particular group. There are seven total identifiers/combinations. After the numbers of Vietnamese-Americans are assessed according to each of the identifiers, demographic and socioeconomic characteristics are addressed. Similar to the population counts, the demographic characteristics vary by identifier. However, the socioeconomic characteristics do not vary by identifier. This may be due to the similar characteristics of the Vietnamese-American population, in terms of place of birth. Thus, the number of Vietnamese-Americans vary according to the definition used. Demographic characteristics vary as well; however, the socioeconomic characteristics do not vary significantly according to the definition used.