Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences Olson et al. / Self-Employed Hispanics Self-Employed Hispanics and Hispanic Wage Earners: Differences in Earnings

The influence of employment sector on the income of Hispanics is examined using data from the 1990 U.S. Decennial Census. Human capital theory is augmented with meas-ures of acculturation, and income equations are estimated separately for self-employed Hispanics and Hispanic wage earners. The results suggest that self-employment offers economic benefits. The importance of acculturation varies by employment sector. Decomposition of the differences in income between self-employed Hispanics and His-panic wage earners indicates that these income differences are due more to differences in worker characteristics between the two employment sectors than to differences in rates of return to these characteristics. Self-employment has historically been considered a viable employment option for minority populations facing barriers to gainful employment in the traditional wage and salary labor market. Many ethnic, religious, and racial groups have achieved upward economic and social mobility by entering the mainstream economy through self-employment and small businesses (Aron-son, 1991). Self-employment continues to serve this function for minority populations. The fastest growing minority population in the United States is persons of Hispanic origin; it is predicted that by the year 2000 Hispanics will be the largest single minority group in the United States (Perez & Salazar