Portes went on to discuss the factors that are critical to the outcome of the second generation: the history of the first generation, the pace of acculturation for both parent and child, the cultural and economic barriers faced, and family or community resources. Portes continued, "children can become, in a real sense, their parent's parents. Children are acculturating so far ahead of their parents that family decisions are based on the children's knowledge, freeing them from the yoke of parental control." Portes suggested that this pattern of acculturation tends to lead to the downward fall of the children.
Portes said the most successfully acculturated immigrants are those whose parents acculturate at an equal or faster pace, where the group's initial culture and language are preserved within the home or immediate community, and the family is part of a strong community of immigrants of similar background from which to draw support. He opposes the traditional route of separating immigrants in order to immerse them into American culture and teach them English faster, claiming this practice merely alienates them, making successful acculturation more unattainable.
