Feel Good? The Dialectical Integration of International Immigrants in Rural Communities: The Case of the Canadian Prairie Provinces.

Jennifer Dauphinais,Mikaël Akimowicz,Sherine Salmon

doi:10.3389/fsoc.2020.578076

Abstract

The increasing influx of international immigrants settling in rural communities, where their landing is expected to revitalize communities, has triggered concerns about international immigrants' adaptation and well-being. In this article, we specifically focus on international immigrants' economic integration as a part of their socialization in communities. This article integrates the results of two independent studies, respectively, focusing on rural employers' motivations to hire immigrants and immigrants' integration in rural communities, both taking place in the Canadian Prairie provinces. Based on a survey of 112 employers and 36 in-depth interviews with international immigrants and organizations promoting their integration, we explore the impact of mediating organizations on the well-being of international immigrants. The results highlight that mediating organizations facilitate the sharing of meanings between rural communities' stakeholders, which is key to success for both employers and employees in formalized organizations such as businesses. The results suggest that international immigrants' well-being is facilitated by mediating organizations that foster a dialectical transformation of rural communities where both hosts and immigrants understand each other.

Highlights

Canada’s appeal has fostered strong immigration flux, be it to escape perilous situations, to discover new beginnings, or to experience financial prosperity (Gignac, 2013; Randstad, n.d.)
Based on a survey of 112 employers and 36 in-depth interviews with international immigrants and organizations promoting their integration, we explore the impact of mediating organizations on the well-being of international immigrants
With a focus on the Prairie provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, where the number of immigrants doubled between 2001 and 2016 (Statistics Canada, 2017a) and represented the landing point of 27% of Canada’s immigrants in 2017 (Statistics Canada, 2017b), the goal of this article is to examine the role played by mediating organizations such as settlement organizations, i.e., third-party intermediaries that contribute to facilitating international immigrants’ integration by helping them to make sense of their new environment on the well-being of international immigrants in rural areas

Summary

Introduction

Canada’s appeal has fostered strong immigration flux, be it to escape perilous situations, to discover new beginnings, or to experience financial prosperity (Gignac, 2013; Randstad, n.d.). The immigrant population represented 22% of the Canadian population, the highest since the 1921 census (Statistics Canada, 2017a). In 2018, the number of international immigrant entrances reached 321 035, placing Canada’s population growth in first place among its G7 counterparts (Statistics Canada, 2019). In a context of an aging population (Coutinho, 2018; Statistics Canada, 2018), Canada stands to benefit from the ongoing influx of younger immigrants. This is especially true for rural communities, where population aging, youth retention, and labor shortages are major challenges (Aure et al, 2018; Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 2019a)

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