Cultural Attachment and Remittance Sending among US Latinos

Stacey Tucker, University of Tennessee at Knoxville
Stephanie A. Bohon, University of Tennessee

Our paper examines how attachment to both US culture and various Latin American cultures affects the odds of sending money abroad. Using data from the 2006 National Survey of Latinos, we determine the effects of several social-psychological measures of attachment on the probability of sending remittances for United State-, Puerto Rican-, and foreign-born Latinos, controlling for relevant demographic, economic, and immigration characteristics. Our results indicate that attachment to US culture is associated with reduced log odds of sending remittances, while most measures of attachment to Latino cultures show no effect. These findings extend the literature on remittance sending by establishing the existence of a social-psychological component to remittance sending behavior net of demographic and economic factors. Furthermore, our findings suggest that the acculturation of Latino immigrants may have negative economic consequences on sending communities.