Should I Stay or Should I Go? Mexican Return Migration across the Life Course

Foreign-born individuals make up a growing share of older adults in the US. Older immigrants
offer an important vantage point from which to investigate integration because outcomes at older ages
can be considered “final” measures providing empirical evidence for theoretical understandings of the
forces impacting immigrant trajectories. However, considering the non-negligible portion of
immigrants that ultimately return to their country of origin it is impossible to get the full range of
immigrant outcomes without considering returnees. Further, patterns of return may differ across the
life course with distinct economic, social, and health considerations at older ages. However, the impact
of selective return migration, including considerations of heterogeneity by life stage, on immigrant
outcomes at older ages remains understudied.