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Open Access
Article
Publication date: 22 December 2023

Nafiz Zaman Shuva

Although there is a growing body of work on immigrants' information behavior, little is known about the pre-arrival information experiences of immigrants who consult formal…

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Abstract

Purpose

Although there is a growing body of work on immigrants' information behavior, little is known about the pre-arrival information experiences of immigrants who consult formal information sources such as immigration agents. Drawn from a larger study on the information behavior of immigrants, this paper mainly reports the semi-structured interview findings on the pre-arrival information experiences of Bangladeshi immigrants who used formal information sources with discussion on how that affected their post-arrival settlement into Canada.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used a mixed method approach with semi-structured interviews (n = 60) and surveys (n = 205) with participants who arrived in Canada between the years of 1971 and 2017. Data were collected from May 2017 to February 2018.

Findings

Although the overall scope of the original study is much larger, this paper features findings on the pre-arrival information experiences derived mainly from an analysis of interview data. This study provides insights into the pre-arrival information experiences of Bangladeshi immigrants consulting formal information sources such as immigration firms, individual immigration consultants and more formal government agencies. The author introduces a new concept of “information crafting” by exploring the negative consequences of selective information sharing by immigration consultants/agents in newcomers' settlements in Canada, primarily positive information about life in Canada, sometimes with exaggeration and falsification. The interview participants shared story after the story of the settlement challenges they faced after arriving in Canada and how the expectations they built through the information received from immigration consultants and government agencies did not match after arrival. This study emphasizes the importance of providing comprehensive information about life in Canada to potential newcomers so that they can make informed decisions even before they apply.

Originality/value

The findings of this study have theoretical and practical implications for policy and research. This study provides insights into the complicated culturally situated pre-arrival information experiences of Bangladeshi immigrants. Moreover, the study findings encourage researchers in various disciplines, including psychology, migration studies and geography, to delve more deeply into newcomers' information experiences using an informational lens to examine the information newcomers receive from diverse sources and their effects on their post-arrival settlement in a new country. The study challenges the general assumptions that formal information sources are always reputable, useful, and comprehensive, and it provides some future directions for research that seeks to understand the culturally situated information behavior of diverse immigrant groups.

Article
Publication date: 7 November 2016

Pornpimol Sirikul and Dan Dorner

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how Thai immigrants who relocated to Auckland, New Zealand, looked for and found the information they needed during their settlement

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how Thai immigrants who relocated to Auckland, New Zealand, looked for and found the information they needed during their settlement process.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used a qualitative methodology through semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions that were conducted with nine Thai immigrants living in the greater Auckland region. Mwarigha’s three stages of settlement and Dervin’s Sense-Making Methodology were used as theoretical frameworks for understanding the information-seeking behaviour of the Thai immigrants and their information needs and associated barriers to accessing information at different stages of the settlement process.

Findings

The information needs of Thai immigrants in Auckland were diverse based on the stage of each participant’s settlement process. The main information needs of the participants were for employment, English language-learning, housing, health and making connections. Their main information sources during settlement were family, friends and the internet. The participants saw Auckland Libraries as a useful source but did not take full benefit of the library’s services. The main barriers in accessing services were English language incompetence, lack of resources available in the Thai language, lack of time and library staff behaviour.

Research limitations/implications

The results of this study will provide library and information professionals with new insights into Thai immigrants’ information-seeking behaviour and their information needs, which may contribute to providing immigrants with the information tools they need to improve the quality of their lives in New Zealand. As this study is limited to Thai immigrants in Auckland only, there is a need to conduct a study on the information needs and seeking behaviour of Thai immigrants in other locales. It may be of interest to researchers to conduct a quantitative study of a larger sample to further generalise the findings.

Originality/value

There is minimal research that specifically investigates the information needs, sources and barriers to information experienced by immigrants throughout the settlement process. This study is unique in that it focuses on a specific ethnic community of Thais. The findings of this study can be a stepping stone towards further research to gain a deeper understanding of Thai and other immigrants’ information needs, sources, barriers and their perceptions towards public libraries.

Details

Library Review, vol. 65 no. 8/9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0024-2535

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 14 February 2008

Christine B. Avenarius

The nature of immigration to the United States has varied tremendously over the course of the last 100 years. While the rate of immigrants in comparison to the total population…

Abstract

The nature of immigration to the United States has varied tremendously over the course of the last 100 years. While the rate of immigrants in comparison to the total population was as high as 14% in the early 1900s, it steadily declined due to regulations passed at the beginning of the First World War reaching its lowest point in 1970 at less than 5% (Bernard, 1998). Yet, ever since the early 1970s, in response to the Immigration and Nationality Act Amendments that replaced national-origin quotas with a single annual worldwide ceiling for all other immigrants while eliminating any numerical limitations for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, the number of immigrants has been continuously on the rise. In 1996, about 1 of every 10 residents in the United States was foreign born. This is exemplified by the fact that more than one fourth of the present foreign-born population of the United States arrived after 1990 (U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 2004).

Details

Gender in an Urban World
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-0-7623-1477-5

Book part
Publication date: 17 September 2012

Audrey Singer

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the ascent of Metropolitan Washington from an area with low levels of immigration to a major U.S…

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the ascent of Metropolitan Washington from an area with low levels of immigration to a major U.S. destination.

Methodology/approach – Drawing on a growing body of research on immigration to Washington, DC, and data from the American Community Survey (ACS), trends are examined in detail to illustrate how this immigrant gateway fits into the national historical picture.

Findings – The findings analyze the historical comparative settlement patterns of immigrants to the United States to demonstrate how Washington has emerged as the seventh largest immigrant gateway. The paper further analyzes metropolitan-level data on country of origin and residence to show the diversity of the immigrant population and their disbursal to suburban areas from the central core over the past four decades.

Social implications – The paper also highlights some conflict in new suburban destinations within metropolitan Washington, which experienced fast and recent growth. But immigrant incorporation has worked well in the past and Washington can continue to work to be a model of immigrant integration as local organizations, governments, and communities continue to confront the challenges of immigration in productive and sustainable ways.

Originality/value of paper – This paper combines the historical settlement of immigrants across the United States with the in-depth examination of one of the newest and largest immigrant gateways, the U.S. capitol region, Washington, DC.

Details

Hispanic Migration and Urban Development: Studies from Washington DC
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-345-3

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 February 2011

Yanqiu Rachel Zhou and William D. Coleman

This paper aims to examine the impacts of immigration processes on the HIV risk faced by mainland Chinese immigrants in Canada.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the impacts of immigration processes on the HIV risk faced by mainland Chinese immigrants in Canada.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawn from a larger qualitative study on the vulnerability to HIV of recent immigrants to Canada, the data presented were collected through individual, face‐to‐face, semi‐structured, in‐depth interviews with 34 mainland‐Chinese immigrant adults who perceived themselves as facing sexual health risks (including HIV infection) through engaging in unsafe sex.

Findings

Immigration processes have not only exposed these immigrants to a HIV risk that they did not face in China; they have also compromised their capacity to effectively respond to it. In light of various settlement difficulties, HIV risk is neither the only nor the most urgent challenge that they have faced in their post‐immigration lives.

Research limitations/implications

The HIV risk under discussion must be understood by situating it in the processes of immigration, settlement, and transnational connections, all of which have shaped not only the dynamics of HIV risk but, also, these individuals' capacities to respond to that risk. Owing to its small‐size purposive sample, the results of this study may not be generalizable for Chinese immigrants in Canada as a whole.

Practical implications

Greater attention should be given to the intersections between immigrants' vulnerability to HIV and settlement processes and to holistic approaches that take into account the changing contexts and dynamics of HIV risk.

Originality/value

This exploratory study will contribute to knowledge of the HIV risk Chinese immigrants in Canada face – a little‐known topic.

Details

International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, vol. 7 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-9894

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 18 August 2022

Justice Muchineripi, Willie Chinyamurindi and Tendai Chimucheka

The study explores experiences of African immigrants in their self-employment journey. South Africa has been receiving many African immigrants seeking for socio-economic survival…

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Abstract

Purpose

The study explores experiences of African immigrants in their self-employment journey. South Africa has been receiving many African immigrants seeking for socio-economic survival. This presents a gap to understand the self-employment journey of such immigrants post-settlement.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative inquiry is used with semi-structured interviews using a sample of African immigrants based in South Africa. Narrative enquiry was utilised in trying to understand the African immigrant self-employment journey.

Findings

The findings show strategies used by African immigrant entrepreneurs in their self-employment journey. These include immigrant relying on established relationships to respond to contextual challenges. Further, immigrant entrepreneurs turned to borrowing from family, including personal savings and using fronts as a capital generation strategy.

Originality/value

Based on the findings strategies are suggested as a useful precursor in advancing understanding of the African immigrant self-employment journey. This becomes useful especially considering ideals for assisting post-settlement of migrants.

Details

Journal of Global Mobility: The Home of Expatriate Management Research, vol. 10 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-8799

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 June 2022

Millicent N. Mabi, Heather L. O'Brien and Lisa P. Nathan

Skilled, well-educated African immigrants arrive in Canada with aspirations for more opportunities and a better life, but too often end up with few employment options and…

Abstract

Purpose

Skilled, well-educated African immigrants arrive in Canada with aspirations for more opportunities and a better life, but too often end up with few employment options and precarious jobs. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the experiences of African immigrants attempting to locate suitable, well-compensated employment in Canada. More specifically, this paper reveals how long-standing information poverty frameworks from the field of information behavior are inadequate for understanding intersectional and broader socio-cultural forces influence access to information and employment precarity among African immigrants.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with twenty-five African immigrants in Metro Vancouver. Qualitative content analysis was used to explore participants' employment information seeking and perceptions of information availability using Britz's information poverty framework.

Findings

Participants encountered a range of difficulties when seeking information related to employment, including content, process and identity-related challenges, in alignment with Britz's framework. However, the framework did not fully encompass their information seeking experiences. Limited access to relevant information impacted participants' ability to make timely career decisions, and there was evidence of information inequity resulting from a mismatch between information provision and participants' multifaceted identities.

Originality/value

This research applied Britz's information poverty approaches and provided a map of participants' responses to information seeking challenges. Participants did not fit into the category of information poor as defined by Britz. The findings suggest that the discourse on information poverty would benefit from considerations of the diverse backgrounds of information seekers and the incorporation of cultural dimensions to understandings of information access, information poverty and technology use for information seeking.

Book part
Publication date: 2 October 2012

Frederick T.L. Leong, Donald Eggerth, Michael Flynn, Rashaun Roberts and Stanton Mak

In this chapter, we have proposed that an important approach to understanding occupational stress and well-being among racial and ethnic minority workers is to integrate the…

Abstract

In this chapter, we have proposed that an important approach to understanding occupational stress and well-being among racial and ethnic minority workers is to integrate the occupational health disparities paradigm into work stress research. As such, the current chapter provides a state-of-the-art review of the existing literature on occupational health disparities for Latinos, Asian Americans, and African Americans. Each of the three sections has highlighted the unique occupational health problems encountered by the specific racial and ethnic group as well as the research and policy gaps. We end with a series of recommendations for future research.

Details

The Role of the Economic Crisis on Occupational Stress and Well Being
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78190-005-5

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 12 December 2006

Natalia Magnani

This paper contributes to the analysis of the relationship between sociological discourse on ethnic relations and social changes produced by immigration in Italy. It is organized…

Abstract

This paper contributes to the analysis of the relationship between sociological discourse on ethnic relations and social changes produced by immigration in Italy. It is organized in three parts. The first part investigates the reasons that until recently prevented European and Italian academic debate from using the concept of ethnic minority to analyze international migration.

Details

Ethnic Landscapes in an Urban World
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-0-7623-1321-1

Book part
Publication date: 28 May 2012

Roberta Cucca

Over the past decade, in Europe the attention of scholars, as well as the focus of the political debate on the ‘urban social cohesion’, has become increasingly oriented to the…

Abstract

Over the past decade, in Europe the attention of scholars, as well as the focus of the political debate on the ‘urban social cohesion’, has become increasingly oriented to the issue of immigrants’ spatial segregation. This concern has gradually led to the promotion of urban policies oriented to fight against the residential segregation on ethnic basis, although the effects of residential concentration per se and social inclusion are not clearly identified, and minor attention has been devoted to understand and fight against the casual factors leading immigrants to occupy the most residual part of the social and physical urban space. By proposing a comparative analysis of two urban contexts – Copenhagen, Milan – that are different in terms of immigrants’ presence and legal status, as well as labour market integration and general welfare regime, the study explores some mechanisms promoting the social and spatial marginalization of immigrants in Europe. It also analyses the most important urban policies dealing with residential segregation, evaluating their capacity of facing the phenomenon or promoting (unexpected) negative consequences.

Details

Living on the Boundaries: Urban Marginality in National and International Contexts
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-032-2

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