Can cumulative disadvantages be reversed? Class attainment and a network analysis of intergenerational occupational pathways by migratory origin in Buenos Aires, Argentina

This article analyzes patterns of intergenerational social mobility by family migratory origin in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area. The Argentine case contributes to current debates on assimilation and social mobility by comparing long-term class attainment among descendants of European immigrants and those of internal (“mestizo”) or Latin American origin. Drawing on pooled data from two recent probabilistic surveys (2021 and 2023), we apply multinomial logistic regression models to estimate the relative chances of social class attainment across different groups. In addition, social network analysis (SNA) is employed to conduct a micro-level examination of intergenerational occupational trajectories among migrants, natives, and their descendants, who share similar working-class backgrounds but differ in ethnic origin. This approach highlights occupations that serve as springboards for upward mobility and magnets for class reproduction. Results show that migrants, both internal and regional, have had fewer opportunities for upward mobility. Second-generation individuals born in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (MABA) of mestizo descent and children of Latin American migrants display similar chances of upward mobility to those of European descent when controlling for class origins and education. However, the children of internal migrants of mestizo descent exhibit limited upward mobility, even after controlling for class origins and educational attainment. This pattern is also observed among the first generation of internal migrants and among Latin American migrants. Disparities in class attainment reflect the cumulative disadvantages experienced by subaltern ethnic groups, rooted in long-standing structural inequalities. However, the micro-level analysis shows that, among disadvantaged migrant groups, the offspring of Latin American immigrants tend to experience slightly greater short-range upward mobility, particularly through gendered patterns, such as manual crafts among men and tertiary qualifications among women, especially in health and education.