(Re)Expressions of African/Caribbean Cultural Roots in Canada

Abstract

This qualitative article examines the importance of collectivism expressed by both newcomers and established Ghanaian and Jamaican immigrants in Canada. Toronto residents ( N = 32) participated in structured face-to-face interviews consisting of 32 open-ended questions examining individualism— collectivism and cultural orientation. Results indicated that the majority of participants maintained a collectivistic cultural orientation, despite their length of residency in Canada, as a result of three major factors. First, participants' social networks facilitate the migration and adaptation of newcomers and thus perpetuate collectivistic principles. Second, as a symbol of identity, participants actively value and promote their collectivistic cultural attributes. Finally, participants' cultural collectivism encourages the establishment of highly interwoven transnational ties that reinforces collectivistic orientational interactions. The findings suggest that conscious engagement is a necessary component of collectivistic endeavors to actualize group goals.