Examining Demographic Characteristics and Settlement Patterns of Ethnoculturally-Diverse Specific Long-Standing and Recent Older Immigrants in the Toronto CMA, 2016

Adam Anthony

doi:10.32920/ryerson.14667918

Abstract

Understanding population characteristics and residential patterns of recent and long-standing older immigrants is important to ensure that settlement services are adequately supporting a diverse and vulnerable population. This research paper represents a pilot study to fill in the gap found in the already limited scholarship on the characterization, spatial distribution and in-group differences of older immigrants in the Toronto CMA. Firstly, it explores the nuanced differences in population composition of four ethnocultural-specific subgroups representing long-standing (Italian and Portuguese) and recent immigrants (Chinese and South Asian) and secondly, it identifies clusters of recent immigrants that are settling outside of the long-standing ethnocultural enclaves. Despite having higher rates of education than their long-standing counterparts, Chinese and South Asian are characterized by low income prevalence and lack of knowledge of an official language. Hence, determining the multilingual composition of the South Asian and Chinese subgroups can facilitate language-specific settlement services within recent older South Asian and Chinese immigrant clusters. Key words: older adults, immigration studies, recent immigrants, settlement challenges, low income, hot spot analysis, Toronto Census Metropolitan Area

Highlights

What are the residential patterns of the four ethnocultural subgroups across the Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) and what are the spatial and socioeconomic differences between recent (Chinese and South Asian) and long-standing (Italian and Portuguese) older immigrant subgroups?. This analysis represents a pilot study to fill in the gap found in the already limited scholarship on the characterization, spatial distribution and in-group differences of older immigrants in the Toronto CMA
Recent older immigrants seek to be better understood in their communities by their fellow residences, local and regional governments and the Canadian society at large, while long-standing older immigrants have endured the challenges with settlement but throughout their tenure in Canada, have developed language skills to give them a competitive advantage (Zou & Fang, 2017)
Foreign-born older adults are faced with language barriers, cultural deterioration, chronic low income, and devaluation of education, which perpetuates their isolation and reluctance to integrate into Canadian society

Summary

Introduction

1.1 BackgroundThe trend in greying populations is a global concern. The World Health Organization’s National Institute on Aging (2011) projects that between 2011 and 2050 the number of people aged 65 or above will increase from 8% to 16% globally, amounting to a staggering 1.5 billion older adults around the world. In one of the most populous countries, China’s older population will triple over the three decades, with an estimated 100 million Chinese individuals 80 years old or above (National Institute on Aging, 2011) This dramatic increase in volume and proportion of older adults is further compounded by the increased average life expectancy observed over the past 100 years at a global scale (National Institute on Aging, 2011). This shifting population structure is reflected in Canada’s population composition, such that in 2016, 17% of Canada's population were 65 years and above, from 15% in 2011 and 8% in 1996. Simultaneous to an aging demographic, Canada’s population is diversifying and composed largely of immigrants and their descendants (Edmonston, 2016)

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