Rethinking Social Participation: The Case of Immigrants in Canada

Abstract

The social engagement of Canada's immigrants continues to be the subject of debates. Most studies indicate a lower level of involvement, particularly for recent immigrants. This article investigates the possible causes of this lower participation by analyzing data from the 1998 General Social Survey (GSS), which provides precise measures of two different types of social engagement: volunteering and social participation. Three results stand out. First, formal volunteering and broader social participation do not display the same level of variability across groups. Second, the positive family effect usually observed does not apply to immigrants: the presence of children does not significantly increase their social engagement. Third, there is a strong gender component: whereas Canadian women are more likely to participate, immigrant women are not. Other factors (age, income, education), on the other hand, do seem to apply to both groups. We suggest that these results contribute to a new explanation of immigrant social engagement: Rather than being marked by a general immigration differential, newcomers to Canada seem to be left out of very specific, gender-influenced modes of participation, specifically, those related to the family, children, and schooling.

Mainstream and Ethnic Volunteering by Korean Immigrants in the United States

“…Overall, Asian immigrants' socioeconomic characteristics have little influence on their participation in both ethnic and mainstream volunteering. Although this finding is consistent with the existing literature (Couton and Gaudet 2008;Sundeen et al 2009), the mechanism behind it needs further study. …”

“…Research also suggests that having children in general increases an individual's social networks, and therefore increases their civic engagement (Putnam 2000). However, research finds that various life course events including marriage and parenthood have smaller impacts on immigrants' participation in volunteering than on nonimmigrants' volunteering (Couton and Gaudet 2008;Sundeen et al 2009). For the purpose of this study, one's marital status and parental status are controlled in the model.…”

An application of stakeholder theory to advance community participation in tourism planning: the case for engaging immigrants as fringe stakeholders

“…A study conducted by Uzar (2007) on Turkish and Arab immigrants in Germany identified factors that hinder immigrants' participation in decision-making activities as: lack of language proficiency (both language of the host country and technical terms used in the planning process); different perceptions of participation; lack of awareness about participation opportunities; considering the content of discussions as not relevant to their lives; not having enough time; and expecting tangible benefits resulting from the participation. Findings of another study (Couton & Gaudet, 2008) showed that social participation is lower among immigrant women compared to men in Canada due to factors such as lack of previous experiences in social participation and decreased social interactions after immigration. In the context of recreational activities, Aizlewood, Bevelander, and Pendakur (2006) indicated that "ethnic minority status, immigrant status, belonging to a minority religion and speaking a non-official language" have negative impacts on the level of people's participation (p. 22).…”

Sunday School Revisited: An Alternative to Christian Education of the Church Today?

“…The level of their social involvement is low for a number of reasons, such as lack of proficiency in Canada's official languages, different educational systems, cultural differences, geographic locations, lack of information, time and material constraints, and difficulty of entering the Canadian labor markets (Couton and Gaudet 2008). Furthermore the discrimination immigrants encounter in their early life in Canada will hinder their social participation and make social integration problematic.…”