Immigrant Service Organizations and Cultural Capital

This study examines specific aspects of the environment of immigrant service organizations as precursors of the transformation of immigrants' culture into social resources. Specifically, it is proposed here that immigrant service organizations present an interesting case connecting cultural capital and adult immigrants' acculturation and related learning processes; that certain aspects of the cultural environment of immigrant service organizations have a strong contribution to the development of social resources among immigrants; and that these environments may mediate the negative effects (differentiation and exclusion) of unequal distribution of cultural capital inherent in capitalist societies, thus having strong implications for the health and well-being of immigrants.

Autorentext

Director of Research and Adjunct Professor at the Sophie Davis School of City College, City University of New York. Her work is focused on sources of health disparities, identifying community factors and related outcomes. She has extensive field research experience, encompassing the use of both qualitative and quantitative methodologies.