This book examines the role of three major social institutions--community, school, and family--in helping Chinese immigrant children cope with and adapt to a new life in New York City. The following aspects of Chinese life are explored: (1) immigration networking; (2) determinants of immigrant types; (3) the community; (4) the school--enrollment and profiles; (5) school performance; (6) bilingual education; (7) bicultural conflict; (8) after-school hours; (9) the deviants--Chinatown gangs; (10) peer groups; (11) the immigrant family; and (12) adjustment. New York City's Chinatown provides a familiar social milieu for the newly arrived immigrant family, thus mitigating many potential problems. Counseling programs set up since 1975 under the bilingual education programs have been successful in helping Chinese immigrant children address their personal problems. The immigrant family has undergone changes characterized by the following: (1) role change or reversal; (2) parental absence; and (3) birth rate decline. Some of the family's functions, such as providing supervision, meals, and medical attention, have been relegated to the schools. As a result, peer groups have increased in importance; gang involvement is an indicator of maladjustment. Data are presented on 57 tables, maps, and figures. An appendix details Chinese immigration to the United States by sex, 1944-80. An extensive bibliography and an index are included. (BJV)