Immigrants In Israel Research Articles

The Coverage of "Spousal Homicide" in the Ethiopian Community in the Israeli Daily Press

In the recent years, Ethiopian immigrants in Israel have been making headlines mainly in connection to domestic violence and murder. For the last decade, 30 Ethiopian women were murdered by their husbands. Iyengar (1991) distinguishes between two types of framing in news coverage. An episodic frame, which focuses mostly on the specific details of the events, and a thematic frame, which deals with the broader context within the events occur. In the case of the thematic frame, the source of the problem is found in the wider social circles, or the care-giving facilities, and they bear the responsibility for solving the problem as well. According Carter and Weaver (2003) the media’s presentation of violent stories constitutes means of social control, which encourages fear that leads to the search for authoritative and one-dimensional solutions. In order to examine the nature of the press coverage of Ethiopian husbands who murdered their wives, two of the most popular daily newspapers in Israel have been chosen. The sample includes all the articles regarding eight Ethiopian women murdered by their partners during the years 2007-2009. It seems as the press coverage of the murdered Ethiopian women makes use of both types of frames: episodic and thematic. Strengthening the image of the poor, criminal black immigrant plays a dual functional purpose, Illustrating, on the one hand, a clear line between the dangerous and the normal and, on the other hand, removing responsibility from the rest of the Israeli society.

Supporting minority nursing students: ‘Opportunity for Success’ for Ethiopian immigrants in Israel

To report on an Israeli academic nursing project, aimed at supporting the integration of Ethiopian immigrants into nursing studies. The representation of ethnic minorities within nursing is crucial for the provision of efficient care in diverse societies. Nevertheless, successful integration of minority students in nursing programs is not a simple task and needs developing support systems that will attract and retain students from minorities. Ethiopian Jewish immigrants and their descendants in Israel form a community of 120,000 people. Their participation in the national workforce is low, as well as their average income. The paper is based on formative evaluation, using action research, of an academic nursing program in Israel. Four main strategies identify this project: (1) a policy of institutional commitment, (2) personal relations with staff, (3) personal tutoring, and (4) cultural safety education. The project has reached success in terms of attraction, retention and students' satisfactions. The project's two main challenges, which need further concern, are: (1) giving support without labelling and (2) supporting without creating dependency. CONCLUSIONS AND INTERNATIONAL POLICY IMPLICATIONS: Appropriate strategies can enable success of minority students. Nevertheless, the amount of support needed for such programs raises two major questions: (1) To what extent should individual nursing departments be expected to bear solutions to this widely experienced problem? (2) How does focusing on one minority affect cultural safety of the overall group?

Immigrating to a universal health care system: Utilization of hospital services by immigrants in Israel

BackgroundDuring the 1990s, Israel absorbed approximately 1 million immigrants. The entitlement to citizenship and social rights in a country with universal health care coverage makes the Israeli case of special interest concerning immigrants' utilization of health care services. Objectives1. To describe utilization patterns of emergency room and in-hospital services among recent immigrants to Israel. 2. To determine if and when there is convergence of health care utilization patterns on the part of recent immigrants with native-born and long-established immigrants to Israel. MethodsData was obtained from Clalit Health Services computerized database and included sociodemographics, date of immigration,presence of chronic disease, emergency room visits, and hospitalization days among all covered residents.Descriptive analysis of the group characteristics, multivariate analyses to determine influential factors, and tests for trend were conducted. ResultsRates of emergency room and hospitalization were lower for immigrants, and remained so even after 10 years. ConclusionsEconomic and cultural factors influence health care utilization among immigrants and may lead to inequity in health care delivery and consequent health outcomes. A better understanding is needed for the differences in health care utilization patterns between immigrants and veteran Israelis.

Fertility Change among Post-1989 Immigrants to Israel from the Former Soviet Union

Research on the evolution of immigrant fertility patterns has focused on the expected reduction in fertility among immigrants from high fertility, less developed countries who arrive in relatively low-fertility developed societies. The current research considers a different context in which immigrants from the low-fertility Former Soviet Union arrive in a relatively high-fertility setting in Israel. This research context allows us to test various theories of immigrant fertility, which cannot normally be distinguished empirically. Results from Cox multivariate regressions of parity-specific progression do not support assimilation theory, which would predict an increase in fertility following migration, in this context. We interpret the very low fertility rates of the FSU immigrants in Israel, relative to all relevant comparison groups, in terms of the economic uncertainty and hardship experienced during a difficult transition period by immigrants who have high aspirations for social mobility in their destination society.

Prevalence of diabetes mellitus among Ethiopian‐born HIV patients in Israel

During the mid‐1980s and early 1990s the majority of Ethiopian Jews immigrated to Israel. Diabetes mellitus (DM) rates were exceedingly low upon their arrival, reaching 0–0.4%, but rose to 16.6% at 10–16 years post‐arrival. This may be a challenging factor in HIV patients, since metabolic abnormalities are a major concern in individuals receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). In this study we assessed the prevalence of DM in HIV‐positive Ethiopian immigrants. Data were retrospectively obtained from 245 HIV patients treated at the Clinic of Infectious Diseases at the Meir Medical Center, Kfar Saba, Israel. DM was determined according to the following: fasting glucose >127 mg/dl; hemoglobin A1C >6.5%; blood glucose >200 mg/dl; diagnosis of DM in patient problem list. Comparison between Ethiopian and non‐Ethiopian Israelis was done by Student's t‐test and p<0.05 was considered as significant. The cohort included 176 Ethiopians and 69 other Israelis. The rate of DM in the Ethiopian group was remarkably high (22.9% vs. 4.3%, p<0.0001). We therefore analyzed both conventional as well as HIV‐related factors which may contribute to the development of DM. The data indicated that the mean age of the Ethiopian subjects was 5.5 years greater (47±1.1 SD vs. 41.5±1.4 SD, p=0.0056). Surprisingly, body mass index (BMI) was not increased among the Ethiopians, as compared with other Israelis (24.2±0.5 vs. 26.1±1.1, p=0.057). In terms of HIV‐related features, both groups received similar rates of HAART and had comparable levels of viral loads. The Ethiopian group had lower CD4 levels (477.0±18.0 /mm3 vs. 550.1±34.7/mm3, p=0.046), and disclosed longer periods of time elapsed from diagnosis of HIV (8.7±0.4 years vs. 6.0±0.6, p=0.0001). In conclusion, we report a considerably high prevalence of DM among Ethiopian immigrants in Israel, who are HIV patients. Plausible risk factors are ethnic background and older age. Low CD4 levels and a longer HIV‐carrier state were also noted, which had been proposed by others to increase insulin resistance by enhanced inflammation. The possibility of an exaggerated impact of HAART protocols on glucose levels in this cohort is currently being investigated. Intriguingly, BMI was not increased in the Ethiopian group, a finding that warrants further study, and implies a lower threshold to develop DM. Our data underscores the importance of defining HIV subpopulations with increased susceptibility to DM, especially among immigrants.

Linguistic Assimilation of First-Generation Jewish South African Immigrants in Israel

We contribute to scholarship on the linguistic assimilation of migrants by focusing on the special case of Jewish South African migrants in Israel. English as an international language is widely used in the Israeli society, so immigrants whose mother tongue is English are a very interesting case because they might experience much less social pressure to improve their Hebrew skills than other immigrant groups who speak other languages. The study reveals that, although most first-generation immigrants participated in state-sponsored Hebrew classes and reported relatively moderate levels of language proficiency, it has not become their primary language. Hebrew proficiency proved conditional on age at arrival and rise sharply with tenure in the country and exposure to Hebrew (at origin or at destination). Hebrew proficiency is higher for migrants with more extensive contacts with Israelis and with higher education. Positive synergism emerged between language acquisition and reasons for migrating and attachment to the country.

Alcohol Use and Treatment Among Former Soviet Union Immigrants in Israel: Review of Publications July 2009–December 2011

This article examines the current state of alcohol use among immigrants from the Former Soviet Union (FSU) in Israel, as an update to the 2 previous publications that reviewed studies published in the professional literature (mainly in Hebrew) and referred to earlier periods (from the early 1990s until 2006 and from 2007 through June 2009). This article reviews studies published primarily in Hebrew from mid-2009 throughout December 2011 and describes alcohol use patterns and treatment among FSU immigrants. As the third in the sequence of reviews aimed at English readers, it confirms the findings of the previous 2 reviews. Alcohol use among FSU immigrants continues to be more prevalent than among Israeli-born residents, and FSU immigrants continue to be overrepresented in treatment programs. Moreover, the review describes a severe worsening in alcohol use among FSU detached youth and no differences in alcohol use among early and recent immigrants between the ages of 18 and 40 years.

Coping strategies of Ethiopian immigrants in Israel: Association with PTSD and dissociation

The aim of this study was to examine the relations between coping strategies, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and dissociation among Jewish Ethiopian refugees in Israel (following exposure to pre-, peri- and post-migration stressful events). A random sample (N = 478) of three waves of refugees took part in the research (N = 165; N = 169; N = 144). Religiosity, coping strategies, stressful and traumatic events, pre- and peri- migration, post-migration difficulties, posttraumatic symptoms, and dissociation were assessed. A significant relationship was found between PTSD symptoms and avoidance coping over and above immigration wave and traumatic events. Dissociation was positively associated with passivity and antisocial coping and negatively associated with social joining and level of religiosity, over and above immigration wave and traumatic events. The findings are discussed in the light of the coping strategies employed by Ethiopian refugees.

Lexical knowledge development in the first and second languages among language-minority children: the role of bilingual versus monolingual preschool education

This study focused on the role of bilingual versus monolingual preschool education in the development of lexical knowledge in Russian (L1) and Hebrew (L2) among second-generation Russian-Hebrew speaking immigrants in Israel. The study was designed as a longitudinal and comparative study. The lexical knowledge of children was measured three times during the education year. Thirty-two Russian-Hebrew speaking bilinguals (around age three) were selected from bilingual (Russian/Hebrew) and monolingual (Hebrew) preschools. The research design included observation of the preschools, testing of children's lexical knowledge, and a parents' questionnaire. The children's lexical knowledge was measured in both languages by applying the multidimensional approach of different domains: breadth of the lexical knowledge and depth of the lexical knowledge (paradigmatic semantic relations and syntagmatic semantic relations). The results demonstrated that later immersion in L2 and continuing development of L1 within a bilingual educational context not only do not impede the lexical knowledge development in the L2, but can even accelerate its progress. In addition, the differences between the groups in L1 were particularly striking in the paradigmatic semantic relations. Finally, the paradigmatic semantic relations in L1 were significantly and positively correlated with the lexical knowledge in Hebrew in both groups of comparison.

Communicating Health Rights to Disadvantaged Populations: Challenges in Developing a Culture-Centered Approach For Ethiopian Immigrants in Israel

Knowing about one's health rights can be critical for obtaining equitable and appropriate health care. A model drawing on a culture-centered approach was used to develop and present health rights information materials for a disadvantaged cultural minority—the Ethiopian immigrant community in Israel. The model is based on the supposition that the design of health rights information materials should address both concerns and barriers identified by members of the cultural community and illustrate specific means to address them. Stories of community members' actual experiences served as the basis for several types of narratives presented in video clips, a photonovella, and an illustrated booklet. More than 100 people participated in the study in five focus groups and 50 personal interviews. Findings indicate participants felt the materials developed using this approach were informative and represented their concerns and cultural barriers to realizing these rights from their perspective and would help motivate them to realize their health rights. The analytic process, which involved members from the cultural community, resulted in the identification of dilemmas associated with the development of solution-oriented materials that draw on the culture-centered approach. These dilemmas pose additional theoretical challenges to the culture-centered approach.

The Russian-Speaking Jewish Diaspora in Translation: Liudmila Ulitskaia'sDaniel Stein, Translator

Liudmila Ulitskaia's 2006 novel,Daniel' Shtain, pervodchik(Daniel Stein, Translator), explores the experience of the Russian-speaking diaspora in the aftermath of World War II through a focus on Jewish immigrants in Israel who convert to Christianity. The novel's treatment of the divisive topic of Jewish to Christian conversion is enabled by the author's reliance on the theoretical and allegorical values of translation. Evoking advancements in twentieth-century translation studies through its broad treatment of translation and critique of the investment in the notion of fidelity to the original, be it language or identity, the novel advocates for the acceptance of the transformations and the resulting hybridity of the Jewish diasporic self.Daniel Stein, Translatorspecifically highlights the influence of the Soviet nationalities policies and the Nazi occupation of eastern Europe on the identity metamorphoses of Soviet Jews. By promoting the legitimacy of the expressions of Jewish identity by immigrants from the USSR through her novel, Ulitskaia proposes an expanded and anti-essentialist view of Jewish identity that would include individuals traditionally viewed as apostates.

Value Differentiation in Adolescence: The Role of Age and Cultural Complexity

Living in complex social worlds, individuals encounter discordant values across life contexts, potentially resulting in different importance of values across contexts. Value differentiation is defined here as the degree to which values receive different importance depending on the context in which they are considered. Early and mid-adolescents (N = 3,497; M = 11.45 years, SD = 0.87 and M = 16.10 years, SD = 0.84, respectively) from 4 cultural groups (majority and former Soviet Union immigrants in Israel and Germany) rated their values in 3 contexts (family, school, and country). Value differentiation varied across individuals. Early adolescents showed lower value differentiation than mid-adolescents. Immigrant (especially first generation) adolescents, showed higher value differentiation than majority adolescents, reflecting the complex social reality they face while negotiating cultures.

Two Dimensions to Economic Incorporation: Soviet Immigrants in the Israeli Labour Market

This paper examines the economic integration of immigrants from the Former Soviet Union into the Israeli labour market in terms of occupational and earnings mobility (i.e. decreasing occupational and earnings disparities) in comparison with several Israeli Jewish sub-populations. Using data from annual Income Surveys conducted by the Israel Bureau of Statistics between the years 1995 and 2006, we find little occupational and earnings mobility of Soviet immigrants throughout the period and substantial occupational and earnings disadvantages compared to all Jewish sub-populations (especially when compared to Jews of European/American origin). The findings are discussed in light of the assimilation model, suggesting that the social and economic circumstances associated with the arrival of Soviet immigrants in Israel have long-lasting, detrimental consequences for their economic assimilation.

Dietary acculturation and increasing rates of obesity in Ethiopian women living in Israel

Objective Immigration from Third World countries to the developed world is characterized by modification of lifestyle and acculturation to local customs. This study investigated changes in nutritional status and eating behaviors in female Ethiopian immigrants in Israel. Methods Personal interviews, two 24-h dietary recalls, and anthropometric measurements were carried out in a random sample of 53 women 32 ± 6 y of age. Results After living in Israel for an average of 14 y, body mass index was similar to the general Israeli population, with 42% of participants with a body mass index greater than 24.9 kg/m 2, including 11% categorized as obese. This is in stark contrast to the body mass index measured at arrival in Israel (∼19–20 kg/m 2). Less than optimal consumption of dietary fiber, calcium, folate, and B12 was documented. Analysis by food groups showed that intake of dairy products, fruits, and vegetables was negligible, whereas simple sugar intakes were high. The women continued to prepare traditional Ethiopian foods but also incorporated local, less healthy foods into their diets. Compared with the high energy expenditure in rural Ethiopia, participants reported minimal physical activity in Israel. Conclusions This immigrant community is at high risk for developing nutrition-related chronic diseases. Culturally sensitive nutrition education programs are urgently needed.

The Floor Falling Away: Dislocated Space and Body in the Humour of Ethiopian Immigrants in Israel

The present paper analyses humorous stories circulating among Ethiopian immigrants now living in Israel. Typically told at community gatherings, these narratives articulate the drama of dislocation and the traumatic encounter with life in Israel, by focusing on the embarrassing clash of the quintessential “traditional” Ethiopian, with a new land-scape, time-scape, and body-scape. Characterised by an easy spirit, the revelation of innocence met with forgiving and accepting laughter, these stories enable internalisation and mediation of common ambivalences and vulnerabilities, converting them into elements of pleasure.

Immigration and the interplay among citizenship, identity and career: The case of Ethiopian immigration to Israel

Migration is a common phenomenon of the globalization era. In this article we explore the interplay of three foundational concepts in the migration experiences of Ethiopian Jewish immigrants in Israel: citizenship, identity and career. Through our analysis we examine the multiple layers of being an immigrant citizen. Following immigration, as reflected in empirical studies with members of this community, we have observed tensions between inclusion and exclusion, equality and difference, work and family as well as gender role transformation, family restructuring, and generational differences. These issues are discussed in the context of the development of active citizenship and career. Career development is found to be a core process in the enactment of citizenship, the promotion of a sense of belonging and deeply related to identity formation. Identity as an overarching perspective, with its personal and collective meanings, plays an important role at the intersection between citizenship and career.

Immigration and Entry into the Cultural Mainstream

AbstractThis research focuses on the absorbing society, and examines a process by which immigrants entered and changed the cultural core of the absorbing society. It analyzes the development of an ethnic holiday, the traditional ethnic Mimouna holiday of North African immigrants in Israel, into a national holiday and into part of the dominant culture. The research concludes that this process evolved mainly as a result of the political activism of immigrants from North Africa and a weakening of the hegemony. It may also illuminate the sometimes crucial role of immigrants in moving the boundaries between the center and the periphery.

Between Three Worlds

This study investigated various roles played by host, homeland, and global media in the lives of immigrant families from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS, former USSR) to Israel and Germany, as well as the place of different media in family conflicts, consolidation, and parenting strategies. The study was based on focus group interviews with 60 families of Russian-speaking immigrants in Israel and Germany and 73 semistructured, in-depth interviews with immigrant youngsters. The findings of this study demonstrate that the mass media fulfill diverse roles for immigrant families, assisting them face two main relocation challenges: integration “inward” (i.e., cultural transmission and family consolidation) and “outward” integration into their new surroundings.

Migration-Specific Hassles Among Adolescent Immigrants From the Former Soviet Union in Germany and Israel

This study compares the adaptation of diaspora immigrant adolescents from the former Soviet Union, ethnic Germans in Germany, and Russian Jews in Israel, using a new measure of acculturation-related hassles, which were defined as minor negative experiences originating from being an immigrant. Participants, who were 16 years of age on average in both immigrant groups, were assigned to three groups according to their length of residence. Based on acculturation theories, hypotheses were tested regarding frequency of language hassles, discrimination hassles, and family hassles depending on immigrant group and length-of-residence group. Results indicate that the overall level of language hassles and discrimination hassles was comparable in both countries, but family hassles were reported more frequently by immigrant adolescents in Israel. Adolescent immigrants in both countries reported fewer language hassles after being in the country for a longer period of time, although this effect was stronger in Germany. With regard to discrimination hassles and family hassles, adolescent immigrants who had lived in Germany for a longer period of time reported such hassles less frequently than their newly arrived counterparts; the opposite was found for adolescent immigrants in Israel. The results are discussed with regard to differences between both receiving countries in terms of necessity and opportunities to integrate into the receiving society.

Ethiopian Emerging Adult Immigrants in Israel

Experiences of discrimination and racism and individual coping strategies were examined among 22 emerging adult Ethiopian immigrants in Israel. In-depth interviews explored the way they perceive, understand, respond to, and cope with experiences of discrimination. Qualitative analysis identified an initial contrast between those interviewees who refuted the existence of personal and/or general experiences of racism and those who felt it acutely. Further analysis identified two strategies among those who refuted the existence of racism: a racism-free group who repudiated racism in general and a proactive strategy in which the young person felt that their own individual behavior prevented racism. Two strategies were identified among those who described frequent, painful racist experiences: (a) fighting back, involving confronting or talking back to the perpetrator, and (b) avoidance, choosing not to react openly to the situation. The article describes the different strategies together with the experience embodied in each of them in relation to integration in Israel and feelings of belonging to Israeli society. The results cast a spot light on the experience of discrimination and the ways of coping with it and suggest that active coping mechanisms are connected to a more positive internal feeling and to stronger feelings of belonging and integration, in particular when the strategy is based on an awareness of discrimination (as opposed to ignoring it).