Author Gary Painter, Ph.D., director of research at the Lusk Center, said his paper -- Immigrants and the Spatial Mismatch Hypothesis: Employment Outcomes Among Immigrant Youth in Los Angeles - suggests that the study group of 16-21 year-olds born in and around Los Angeles may be reluctant to leave their families and neighborhoods to search for jobs that have moved to the far northern and eastern parts of LA County and also to Orange, Ventura, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
"The immigrants' lack of roots in a new country influences their determination to settle down in neighborhoods with better prospects for employment," he added. He said further research would be needed to determine if the youths faced with low job prospects will turn to more schooling that could extend their opportunities beyond entry-level positions.
February 20, 2008