CANADIAN FAMILIES
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
• Identify some characteristics of the Canadian
population.
• Describe the patterns of immigration to
Canada.
• Compare the experiences of immigrant
families in Canada.
• Understand why it is important for us to be
aware of racial and ethnic differences when
studying families
RACIAL AND ETHNIC DIFFERENCES
• Race
– A system of classifying people based on physical characteristics
such as skin colour
• Ethnicity
– The term used to specify a group of people who share a
common cultural heritage (regardless of race)
… There is just one human race …
RACIAL AND ETHIC DIFFERENCES
• Interpreting census data on ethnicity is
challenging because
– Concept of ethnicity is fluid
– Respondents’ understanding of their ethnicity,
generational cohort, length of time since immigration, and
social context at time of data collection affect reporting
from one census to another
– Increasing intermarriage among various groups increases
reporting of multiple ancestries
– Changes in format of census questions affect reporting
over time (e.g., “Canadian”)
RACIAL AND ETHIC DIFFERENCES
• Visible minority
– A person, other than Indigenous, who is non-Caucasian in race or nonwhite in colour
– Chinese, South Asian, black, Arab, West Asian, Filipino
• Indigenous
– A person who is First Nations, Inuit, or Métis
• Minority group refers to any group that holds
less power than the dominant group—a group
that has greatest power but not necessarily
the greatest numbers
PREJUDICE AND DISCRIMINATION
• Prejudice is a negative attitude toward an
entire group of people
• Discrimination is the unfair treatment of
people based on their social characteristics
rather than on merit
STEREOTYPES
• Stereotypes are simplified perceptions people
have of an entire group
• Negative stereotypes—such as believing all
Arabs are terrorists—are absolutely
unreasonable
• Positive stereotypes—such as believing all
Italian families are loving—can be just as
damaging
THE CANADIAN POPULATION
Indigenous Peoples
• Indigenous families consist of parents and children
living together in a household, but also extended
family networks
• Indigenous population is growing nearly six times
faster than Canadian population as a whole
– Younger population; more are of child-bearing age
– More individuals are identifying as Indigenous
– Reserve residents more completely counted
THE CANADIAN POPULATION
Other Immigrant Groups
• Diversity of Canada’s population will continue to
increase significantly over next decades
• 2006 Census counted 200+ ethnic origins (25 in 1901
census)
• By 2031…
– About 25% will be foreign-born and about 30% will belong to a
visible minority group
– Vast majority of visible minorities will live in cities, making up
63% of Toronto, 59% of Montreal, 31% of Vancouver
– Nearly half of those 15 and older will be foreign-born or have at
least one foreign-born parent
Who am I?
• Make a list of words that describe who you are
– E.g. social categories such as female, Italian, sister,
college student
• Diversity comes in many forms and we each
belong to many different groups, depending
on what criteria are used to define the groups
THE CANADIAN POPULATION
Multiracial Families
• Increasing number of Canadians report
belonging to more than one ethnic group
• Mixed-race families vary
• Mixed-race couples experience difficulties
arising from different cultural traditions or
from prejudice of relatives
Which of these countries is the top country of birth of recent
immigrants?
a) United Kingdom
b) Philippines
c) China
d) United States
In recent years, from which country do most adopted Canadian
children come from?
a) Vietnam
b) Haiti
c) China
d) Russia
IMMIGRATION AND CANADA
• Need for labour
• Mining, railroads, farming
• Humanitarian motives
• Fugitive slaves, Europeans displaces by WWII, Refugees
from Syrian conflict
• 1976 Immigration Act – 4 classes of immigrants:
• Family, economic, refugee, other
• Citizenship Act (2009) – citizenship to one
generation born outside Canada
THE EXPERIENCE OF IMMIGRANTS
IN CANADA
• Many immigrants see Canada as “promised
land”
• Types of policies in place at time of arrival
either facilitate or complicate adaptation
– Official policy of multiculturalism is promoted
through public recognition and funding of ethnic
diversity (e.g., subsidized language courses)
THE EXPERIENCE OF IMMIGRANTS
IN CANADA
• Despite generally being more highly educated
and skilled, new immigrants have difficulty
finding work
– Lack of Canadian experience
– Problems in having qualifications recognized
– Lack of fluency in English or French
• Wage gap
Which ethnic origin makes up the largest group on the 2011
census?
a) English
b) French
c) Canadian
d) Chinese
In what year was the ethnic origin “Canadian” included in
the census?
a) 2011
b) 2006
c) 2001
d) 1996
THE EXPERIENCE OF IMMIGRANTS
IN CANADA
• Upon arrival, many immigrants live in ethnic
neighbourhoods that support cultural traditions
• Friendship networks become very important
• Immigration can also mean separation from family
members
– Female domestic workers often leave children when they come
to Canada on temporary visas to care for Canadian children or
seniors
• Children of immigrants may have difficulty growing
up in two cultures
– Age at the time of immigration has some effects
– http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11f0019m/11f0019m2011336-eng.pdf
What was your/your family’s
experience with immigration to
Canada like?
VIDEO
NFB: Who Gets In (1989)
https://www.nfb.ca/film/who_gets_in/
7:50 to 19
ACCULTURATION STRATEGIES:
MINORITY STATUS
• Acculturation strategies can be located along
two dimensions:
– acceptance or rejection of the new culture
– acceptance or rejection of the old culture
• Four main responses to minority status:
– integration, assimilation, separation,
marginalization
ACCULTURATION STRATEGIES
• Integration
– When high levels of engagement in both the
heritage and mainstream cultures are sought
– Most adaptive pathway because it implies
bicultural competence and flexibility
– Example: the hyphenated Canadian (e.g.,
Polish-Canadian)
ACCULTURATION STRATEGIES
• Assimilation
– Based on rejection of heritage culture; may be
voluntary or forced
– A form of passing—trying to hide membership in
minority group
– Example: immigrants from India may opt to
choose their own marriage partners instead of
agreeing to arranged marriages
ACCULTURATION STRATEGIES
• Separation
– Strategy based on voluntary rejection of dominant
culture or involuntary exclusion from dominant
culture
– Collective versus individual strategy; can occur by
choice or be forced on a particular group
– Example: Muslims have emphasized their Islamic
identity in the face of discrimination following
September 11, 2001
ACCULTURATION STRATEGIES
• Marginalization
– When little possibility or interest in maintaining
heritage culture and little interest in having
relations with others in dominant culture
– Often associated with appearance of
dysfunctional and deviant behaviours (e.g.,
delinquency, substance abuse, family abuse)
Understanding Immigrant Families
From Around the World - Reading
• “only by studying immigrant families and children
across a broad range of societies can we evaluate the
validity and limitations of generalizations derived
from North American research.”
• “the overall social and cultural conditions as well as
the emotional climate of acceptance or rejection that
host societies offer to their immigrant families and
children will exert a major impact on the children’s
psychosocial adjustment”
(Chuang & Gielen, 2009)
Understanding Immigrant Families
From Around the World - Reading
1. The Adaptation of Immigrant Families and Children
•
friendship homophily decreased slowly over time and lower levels of
this was associated with increased use of the German language
rather than Russian
2. Parenting Practices and the Implications for Child
Outcomes
•
Chinese Canadian parents were more supportive of authoritative
child-rearing practices, whereas Chinese parents were more likely to
report authoritarian practices.
3. Parent–Adolescent Relationships and Adolescent
Mental Health
•
immigrant youths reported fewer mental health issues than native
youths - strongest predictor were their perceptions of discrimination
and negative sociocultural adjustment
NEXT: GETTING TOGETHER