Analysis of longitudinal data for immigrants presents a more pessimistic portrait of immigrants' economic success. First, the rate of growth of immigrant earnings was overstated in census-based studies. Second, the worsening of immigrant earnings for more recent arrival cohorts is deeper than previously suggested. Against these two negative findings, one must keep in mind an important caveat. The steeper cohort decline in earnings may be a sign of greater human-capital investment by more recent immigrants. Longitudinal data suggest a strong degree of earnings convergence: immigrants who start at lower earnings quickly make up a large part of the deficit relative to their immigrant counterparts.

Drawing on a novel database of the 401(k) plans of 296 firms, we examine the international equity allocations of 3.8 million individuals over the 2005–2011 period. We find enormous cross-individual variation, ranging from zero to more than 75%, and strong cohort effects, with younger cohorts investing more internationally than older ones and each cohort investing more internationally over time. Access to financial advice, lower fees, and more international fund choices are associated with higher international allocations, suggesting a role for plan design and policy. Education, financial literacy, and the fraction of foreign-born population in the ZIP code also have positive effects on international diversification, consistent with explanations based on familiarity bias and information barriers.