Shakamohtaa: Connecting And Coming Together To Support International Student Career Readiness, Sabreena Macelheron

The Dissertation-in-Practice at Western University

Abstract

In the evolving Canadian landscape, permanent residency acquisition has undergone a transformative shift from land sales to educational credential procurement. Canadian higher education markets post-secondary qualifications to international students (IS) seeking migration routes, posing nuanced challenges. IS, despite holding higher education credentials, often find themselves relegated to non-field specific jobs due to existing disparities in the Canadian job market. Amid this equation, IS grapple with the essential need for pre-and-post graduate career experiences to fulfill eligibility criteria for permanent residency application. This pursuit extends beyond merely aligning with their credentials, requiring conformity to approved national occupation codes aligned with …

Syrian Refugee Place Attachment And Place Making In Ottawa, On, Kiran Va Unger-Basappa

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

How can Syrian refugees’ feelings of attachment towards places and spaces in Ottawa, ON be used to indicate their own sense of integration into Canadian society? Exploring research participants’ place attachments to the city of Ottawa enables a greater understanding of their lived geographies that either hinder or elevate their integration experience. The mixed-method data collection used in this research study include an online qualitative survey, in-depth interviews, and a mental mapping exercise. The analysis of the data is based upon five factors of place attachment used to define integration. These are comfort, security, relationships, involvement, and rootedness. …

Economics Or Culture? Measuring Economic Thinking And Cultural Enrichment Beliefs About Immigration., Paolo Aldrin Palma

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The present work attempts to distinguish people’s economic concerns about immigration from their (anti-)diversity attitudes, and examines how these economic concerns influence attitudes towards immigrants. To do this, we develop a scale to assess economic thinking and cultural enrichment beliefs about immigration (ETI/CBI). Economic thinking was associated with personality and ideological traits related to viewing the world as competitive and anti-diversity attitudes. Cultural enrichment beliefs on the other hand, were associated with traits associated with a preference for equity and pro-diversity orientations. Furthermore, economic thinking was associated with greater preferences to reduce immigration for all migrant groups except economic migrants, …

Examining The Socio-Economic And Gendered Structure Of Canada's Live-In Caregiver Program: A Qualitative Study Of Filipina Women's Health Experiences, Andrea Bobadilla

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The primary aim of this critical ethnographic study was to examine how Filipina women in the Canadian live-in caregiver program (LCP) negotiate their own physical and mental well-being while managing the complex health needs of their clients. Using global care chain and postcolonial theoretical frameworks, I also sought to identify how multi-scalar forces including caregiving and migrant policies in Canada and South East Asia exacerbate pre-existing gendered and labour inequities faced by these women. The distressing impact of this precarious form of employment on family dynamics and relationships among family members in the Philippines was also explored. Data collection took …

Colombian Women’S Experiences Of The Canadian Refugee And Asylum Adjudication Process, Camila N. Parra Carrillo

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The present thesis “Colombian women’s experiences of the Canadian refugee and asylum adjudication process” is an ethnographic description and analysis of the experiences of Colombian refugee women as they move through the refugee and asylum adjudication system in Ontario, Canada. Using concepts such as liminality, politics of waiting, hermeneutics of suspicion and arbitrariness, the refugee and asylum adjudication system is shown to be a site of power and domination that creates negative emotions in the people who face it, especially in the oral hearing as a central event in the process. Centering Colombian refugee women’s voices, their experiences and emotions …

The Places We'll Go: Rural Migration In Canada, Lindsay Finlay

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

As Canada increases immigration rates, there is a greater need for geographic dispersion to counteract issues of population aging and economic disparities. Historically, Canada’s main Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) have experienced the greatest gains in terms of immigrant recruitment and retention. The problem, however, is that this leaves rural regions falling behind in terms of both population increases and overall development. As such, understanding the characteristics of both rural movers and residents is of utmost importance, especially in regard to potential policy initiatives aimed at ensuring newcomers to Canada are evenly distributed across the country. This study adds to the …

Differences In Income For Foreign-Born Blacks Across Settlement Types In An Era Of Rising Anti-Immigration Sentiment, Sandra F. Weir

MA Research Paper

Traditional immigration patterns show immigrants in the United States settling in cities with a high density of co-ethnics called ethnic enclaves. There has been a shift in the last three decades where immigrants are moving to suburbs with a high density of one ethnic group called an ‘ethnoburb’ or mixed ethnicity suburbs. Partly reflecting the composition of migration flows, prior work has heavily focused on foreign-born Hispanics and Asians. Less attention has been paid to the settlement patterns of foreign-born Blacks. Furthermore, immigration has become more contested in the United States due to changing political discourse and it is unclear …

How Are The Formal And Informal Online Supports Of Mental Health Accessible For Refugees And Their Children In Canada?, Maria Jose Gonzalez Sanchez

MA Research Paper

Refugees fleeing from extreme human rights violations are highly vulnerable and predisposed to a variety of mental health illnesses. The issue that this study addresses are the barriers refugees encounter when navigating mental health resources in Canada. Across the literature it has been found that refugees tend to underutilize mental health resources for a variety of reasons despite their poor mental health outcomes. Some factors of underutilization include, linguistic, religious, cultural, and economic (Chaze et al., 2015). To address this problem, the purpose of this study will be to evaluate the online accessibility of available resources. A content analysis on …

From Stateless People To Citizens: The Reformulation Of Territory And Identity In India-Bangladesh Border Enclaves, Md Rashedul Alam

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This dissertation analyzes nation-building in hitherto ungoverned territories of two Indian chhitmahals in Bangladesh and explores the transformation of their residents from stateless Indian nationals to citizens of Bangladesh. Chhitmahals comprised nearly two hundred enclaves located along the Bangladesh-India border that belonged to one country but were located inside another’s territory. Chhitmahals came into existence with the partition of India in 1947; their non-contiguous locations kept them without state administration and citizenship rights. People developed political councils and adopted illicit practices to survive in the absence of the state, but the impossibility of exercising sovereignty in chhitmahals led Bangladesh and …

Immigrant’S Personal Network In The Integration Process: A Case Study Of Ghanaian Immigrants’ In The Toronto Census Metropolitan Area, Emmanuel Kojo Kyeremeh

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This dissertation focuses on the integration of recent immigrants in receiving societies by analyzing their personal networks' contribution to this process. Although migration studies have stressed the importance of relationships or im/migrant networks in different spatial contexts, gaps exist in understanding this phenomenon. Specifically, studies on immigrants' networks' structure and composition that indicate their integration level in the host society is missing within the literature. This research, therefore, contributes to our understanding of personal networks. It considers the structure of immigrants’ network by examining the role of their migration project and context of reception towards developing ties in the host …

Assessing The Impact Of Denizenship In The Making And Evaluation Of Temporary Foreign Worker Policies In Canada, Sihwa Kim

MA Research Paper

Despite the larger number of temporary foreign workers (TFWs) that are channelled through a long-standing Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), their experience with the program and, more broadly, within the Canadian society has been overlooked.

This study examines the ways in which a denizen status coupled with other social factors, such as race and amount of human capital, create marginalizing migratory experience for low-skilled TFWs in Canada. As denizens, these migrant workers are isolated in the geographical, economic, political, and social periphery of Canadian society. The longstanding inequality embedded in the structure of TFWP legitimizes differential entitlements and experiences of …

The Impact Of Ethnicity And Immigration On Prostate Cancer Mortality In Canada, Noah Stern

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Despite the prevalence of prostate cancer its pathogenesis remains unclear. Marked differences in mortality rates have been observed between countries, however, it is unclear whether the source of the observed differences is driven by underlying genetics, geographic, or social factors. This thesis investigated the impact of ethnicity and immigration on prostate cancer mortality in Canada using the Canadian Census Health and Environment Cohort. South Asian and East Asian men were seen to be at decreased risk of prostate cancer mortality, while no increased risk was observed in black men. These results affirm studies showing lower risks in Asian men; however, …

Examining The Role Of Integration Experiences In Shaping Immigrants’ Post-Migration Food Choices And Eating Practices In Ontario, Canada, Eunjeong Eugena Kwon

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Despite the extensive literature on immigrants’ post-migration dietary transitions and their implications for long-term health and well-being, little research has been conducted to link these processes to their integration experiences. This dissertation contributes to the current literature by examining the interrelationship between immigrants’ integration experiences – especially their economic integration – and their post-migration food choices and eating practices.

The first integrated article (Chapter 2) draws on qualitative interviews with 38 recent immigrants in two Ontario cities (Toronto and London) in Canada. First, this chapter focuses on illustrating recent immigrants’ general experiences in managing their post-migration food choices and eating …

Forms Of Capital In Immigrants’ Social And Economic Integration, Georgina Chuatico

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Immigrants’ social and economic integration in Canada are explored using the 2001 census, the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada (LSIC) and the Longitudinal Immigration Database (IMDB). I analyze how immigrants’ ethnicity as well as education level relative to their ethnic group, affect their social tie formation with co-ethnic members. Visible minority groups are more likely to make co-ethnic ties than the white population groups. Additionally, those who have similar or lower levels of education than their group are likely to make intra-ethnic networks two years after arrival. Next, I examine the income trajectories of immigrants by taking into account …

Postcolonial Trauma In The Mediterranean: The Italian-Libyan Transnational Community, Rosario Pollicino

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This study aims to recuperate the Italian collective remembering originating from the colonial offense in Libya. Focusing on works of testimony in different genres of contemporary literature written by the Italian former settlers in Libya, I analyze how these former settlers who moved to Libya have been subjected to different kinds of traumas by the Fascist government. I focus on how these traumas, individual and collective, are documented through these works and discuss how they continue to be relevant today. Drawing on sociology, anthropology, history, literary and trauma studies I argue that these cultural representations prove the existence of a …

Oral Health, Dental Insurance Coverage, And Preventive Dental Care Utilization: The Case Of Immigrants In Canada, Yujiro Sano

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Oral health is essential for social, economic, and psychological well-being. Yet, we know very little about oral health among adult immigrants in Canada. Framing oral health as determined by a wide range of social, economic, cultural, and political conditions, three integrated articles in this dissertation aim to understand how some adult immigrants potentially experience disadvantages in accessing optimal oral health, dental insurance coverage, and preventive dental care utilization, due to their vulnerable positions in Canada.

Using the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), the first article examines whether the ‘healthy immigrant effect’ extends to self-rated oral health in Ontario, Canada. Findings …

Internationalization Of Higher Education Within Canada’S Migration Management Framework: Supply Side Of International Student Migration, Alexandra Bozheva

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This dissertation offers an integrative look into the supply side of international student migration (ISM) in Canada. Within its scope, supply side of ISM is understood as a space of interactions of the two key involved domains: education industry and migration management.

Drawing from previous empirical and theoretical works, this thesis investigates a set of research questions, starting with: (1) how the institutional domain structures the international student enrolment, and (2) how the pursuit of education suppliers’ collective agenda can influence policies defining ISM. With the neoliberal transformations of the late 1970s in education funding, Canadian higher education institutions (HEIs) …

The Economic Integration Of Lgb Immigrants: The Role Of Social Relationships, Sagi Ramaj

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Using the 2008 and 2013 Canadian General Social Survey, I analyze economic outcomes—employment, income, homeownership—of Canadian lesbian, gay, bisexual (LGB) immigrants compared to their heterosexual and/or native-born peers. I explore how LGB immigrants differ from others in terms of sociodemographic traits, human capital, and social relationships, and how this produces car disparities by sexual orientation and nativity status. Gay immigrants are faring as well, or better, in the labor market compared to heterosexuals and Canadian-born gays. Bisexual immigrants have a labor market disadvantage relative to heterosexuals and Canadian-born bisexuals. LGB immigrants are disadvantaged with regards to their homeownership attainment. Socio-demographic …

"We Were Meant To Go Down One Road, But Now We Have Rerouted": A Phenomenological Inquiry Into The Experience Of Aging Out-Of-Place, Sachindri Wijekoon

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In an age of globalization, the experience of aging in a foreign land is part of the late-life experience of many older adults. However, studies of aging and migration have largely failed to conceptualize the unique resettlement experiences of immigrants entering North America as older adults. This dissertation asked, “What is the experience of aging out-of-place?” Specifically, this research question aimed to understand how late-life immigrants relate to, and connect and engage with places through aging processes, and the essentiality of daily occupations within such engagement. An interpretive paradigm and a hermeneutic phenomenological methodology guided this inquiry. The hermeneutic phenomenological …

The Changing Spaces Of Racialized Contestation In Brampton, Ontario; A Multimedia Analysis, Stuart Emberg Mchenry

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Demographic changes, most notably changes in ethnic composition, can have major implications for the successful functioning of a community. Brampton, Ontario, is an example of one of these changing communities. Using two media sources: one traditional—the local newspaper—and the other emergent—online news—this thesis answers several key questions: is demographic change from a predominantly European-descent population in 1991 to today’s majority ‘visible minority’ population related to changes in the manifestations of racialized incidents in Brampton as reported in The Brampton Guardian? Has the emergence of online news impacted the geographic scope and nature of racialized incidents?

Content analysis of one-hundred …

Accessing Healthcare In Ontario: Influences On Utilization Among Asian Immigrant Women, Gwynne Ng

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Previous research on immigrant integration has tended to focus on economic and social integration. As such, the factors shaping health integration are less understood. At the same time, health researchers suggest that immigrants in Canada may underutilize certain health services. For instance, studies have documented the low participation rates of cervical cancer screening among Asian immigrant women in Canada (Xiong, Murphy, Matthews, Gadag, & Wang, 2010; McDonald & Kennedy, 2007; Woltman & Newbold, 2007). This study sheds light on immigrant integration by exploring the experiences of Asian immigrant women with cervical cancer screening and Canadian healthcare services more broadly. Through …