Gendered Paths in Ethnic Identity Exploration Between Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood

Previous work suggests that women and men differ in their ethnic identification. Yet few studies analyze gender differences in identification patterns between adolescence and emerging adulthood among children of immigrants from multiple national origins. Using a longitudinal survey, we find that the number of men and women from Latin America and the Caribbean who identify as American decreases over time. Young women have a stronger sense of their ethnicity by adolescence, while men are more likely to change identities until emerging adulthood. As they become adults, both men and women choose identities shaped by their national origins: Children of immigrants from Latin America prefer to identify using racial or pan-ethnic categories, while men and women with parents from Cuba or other Caribbean countries tend to choose national origin labels. Taken together, our results highlight how gender and national origins interact to create distinct identity processes for emerging adults