Economic man and social woman: Determinants of immigrants' life satisfaction

This study examines life satisfaction among immigrants in the US, a topic that has been little discussed in immigration studies. The New Immigrant Survey-Pilot is used to analyze the impact of different forms of capital, namely human, financial, and social capital, on life satisfaction and how they affect male and female immigrants differently. The empirical results confirm the differences in factors contributing to life satisfaction between males and females. Some forms of social capital significantly affect female satisfaction but not male satisfaction, while financial capital tends to increase male satisfaction but not female satisfaction. Understanding what contributes to immigrants life satisfaction is important as certain findings could be used to shape an effective immigration policy.