Fictive Kinship and Acquaintance Networks as Sources of Support and Social Capital for Mexican Transmigrants in South Bend
Introduction
Grounded in extensive literature review and primary ethnographic research in the Mexican immigrant community, this research explores the role of social networks as essential sources of support and generators of social capital for Latino immigrants as they adjust to life in the United States. Whereas in U.S. “American” culture, kinship is defined as biogenetic, Latino culture is characteristically more flexible with its interpretation. “Family” includes extended relatives and even close friends who are incorporated into the tightly-knit kin network via fictive kinship relationships. Immigrants cultivate these interpersonal ties, both strong (dense) and weak (diffuse), in an effort to cope with uncertainty and resource scarcity (Granovetter 1973; Wilson 1998; Foner 1999). This study analyzes how the creation of such network bonds and the development of trust-based systems of generalized reciprocity provide immigrants access to key information, resources, and emotional support as they establish themselves in their new community. The cultural traditions of compadrazgo (co-parenthood) and the lavish Mexican fiesta culture are prime exemplifiers of the...