Small Canadian City Research Articles

‘They don’t do nothing’: Exploring marginalized people who use drugs’ experiences with and expectations of private security officers

Private security guards are increasingly supplementing public police in the policing of urban parks. In the context of this expansion, little is known about how people who frequent and depend on access to these spaces, such as street-involved people who use drugs, view and experience private security. Drawing upon 30 interviews and ethnographic observations with unhoused, street-involved people who use drugs in a small Canadian city, findings show that participants held largely neutral views of security. Departing from common perceptions of marginalized people’s disdain towards the social control enacted by law enforcement actors, participants expected and wanted security officers to actively enhance everyone’s safety and well-being. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of this for security’s legitimacy, and recommendations for improving how private security engage communities.

An ecological analysis of walkability and housing affordability in Canada: Moderation by city size and neighbourhood property type composition.

The neighbourhood built environment can support the physical activity of adults regardless of their individual-level socioeconomic status. However, physical activity supportive (walkable) neighbourhoods may not be accessible to those with lower incomes if homes in walkable neighbourhoods are too expensive. The objectives of this study were: 1) to estimate the associations between neighbourhood walkability and home values in Canadian cities, and 2) to test whether these associations differ by city size and residential property type composition within neighbourhoods. We linked built environment data from the 2016 Canadian Active Living Environments (Can-ALE) index with neighbourhood-level structural home characteristics and sociodemographic data from the 2016 Canadian census for 33,026 neighbourhoods across 31 Census Metropolitan Areas. We used multilevel linear regression models to estimate covariate-adjusted associations between neighbourhood walkability and natural-log median home values and tested city size and neighbourhood property type composition as moderators. There were no statistically significant associations between walkability and home values overall. The associations between neighbourhood walkability and home values were jointly moderated by city size and property type composition. For small and medium sized cities, within neighbourhoods containing a high proportion of detached homes, walkability was negatively associated with home values (b = -0.05, 95% CI: -0.10, -0.01; and, b = -0.04, 95% CI: -0.06, -0.02, for small and medium cities, respectively). However, for extra-large cities, within neighbourhoods containing a high proportion of detached homes, walkability was positively associated with home values (b = 0.06, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.10). Our findings suggest that, based on housing affordability, higher walkable neighbourhoods are likely accessible to lower income households that are situated in small and medium Canadian cities. In larger cities, however, municipal interventions (e.g., inclusionary zoning or targeted development of subsidized or social housing) may be needed to ensure equitable access to walkable neighbourhoods for lower income households.

Understanding Why Many People Experiencing Homelessness Reported Migrating to a Small Canadian City: Machine Learning Approach With Augmented Data

Over the past years, homelessness has become a substantial issue around the globe. The largest social services organization in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, has observed that a majority of the people experiencing homelessness in the city were from outside of the city or province. Thus, to improve programming and resource allocation for people experiencing homelessness in the city, including shelter use, it was important to investigate the trends associated with homelessness and migration. This study aimed to address 3 research questions related to homelessness and migration in Thunder Bay: What factors predict whether a person who migrated to the city and is experiencing homelessness stays or leaves shelters? If an individual stays, how long are they likely to stay? What factors predict stay duration? We collected the required data from 2 sources: a survey conducted with people experiencing homelessness at 3 homeless shelters in Thunder Bay and the database of a homeless information management system. The records of 110 migrants were used for the analysis. Two feature selection techniques were used to address the first and third research questions, and 8 machine learning models were used to address the second research question. In addition, data augmentation was performed to improve the size of the data set and to resolve the class imbalance problem. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve value and cross-validation accuracy were used to measure the models' performances while avoiding possible model overfitting. Factors predicting an individual's stay duration included home or previous district, highest educational qualification, recent receipt of mental health support, migrating to visit family or friends, and finding employment upon arrival. For research question 2, among the classification models developed for predicting the stay duration of migrants, the random forest and gradient boosting tree models presented better results with area under the receiver operating characteristic curve values of 0.91 and 0.93, respectively. Finally, home district, band membership, status card, previous district, and recent support for drug and/or alcohol use were recognized as the factors predicting stay duration. Applying machine learning enables researchers to make predictions related to migrants' homelessness and investigate how various factors become determinants of the predictions. We hope that the findings of this study will aid future policy making and resource allocation to better serve people experiencing homelessness. However, further improvements in the data set size and interpretation of the identified factors in decision-making are required.

How public policies and other events can shape spatial distribution of local activities over time? An investigation based on spatial micro-data

The aim of the paper is to propose a methodological framework to explore how urban planning policies, such as the construction of highways, and other major events, such as opening/closure of major plants, affect the spatial distribution of residential and economic activities within a specific location over time. To do so, the paper proposes to use statistics related to the spatial distribution of individual buildings based on centrographic analysis, and to explore the statistical relations between the changes that occur over time with a vector autoregressive (VAR) model. From a land use policy perspective, this framework allows to investigate the causal impact of public action and other events on the local spatial distribution of the activities to see if (and how) it shapes spatial footprints and the distribution of residential and economic activities. The framework is applied to a small Canadian city case but can easily be implemented to any other cases.

Empowering newcomer workers by addressing racism and xenophobia: a promising pilot

ABSTRACT Though immigrant employment gaps are typically articulated as newcomer skill-deficits, evidence suggests structural oppression and intercultural ignorance creates greater barriers to newcomers’ success. In this article we describe a project in a small Canadian city that flipped the dominant narrative to confront xenophobia and racism through intercultural intelligence interventions with local employers. By positioning newcomers as reverse mentors, the project disrupted typical power relationships, empowering newcomers with a platform and tools to voice their experiences and directly address structural inequity in the labour market. Their expertise and abilities were validated through the project and by employers. In this paper we outline the implementation, outcomes, challenges and future opportunities for incorporating similar approaches in existing newcomer-employment strategies to further the voices of, and empower, newcomer jobseekers.

Persuasive Technologies and Social Interactions in Professional Environments: Embedded Qualitative Case Study.

BackgroundAlthough previous studies have highlighted the impact of interactions on the web in the context of patient–health care professional (HCP) dyads, this paper extends that context to a triad that includes the role of employers and associated settings with social groups.ObjectiveThis study aims to evaluate how the interactions between individuals and the social use of the platform affect individuals’ use of persuasive technology and, in turn, their work environment actions and responses, by implementing a persuasive technology health and wellness platform in a work environment.MethodsFor 8 months, we deployed a persuasive technology platform with different combinations of health-related features and content in 1 embedded case design with 8 fire stations for a small Canadian city (total number of participant firefighters, n=141) assigned to 1 of 2 treatments—interactive or static webpages. We used text-based content analysis techniques for outcome measures, drawn from a total of 29 participant exit interviews. In addition, medical assessments were conducted at baseline, midpoint, and end point by 7 HCPs and 1 researcher (BM), who also served as the data steward and managed the study.ResultsOur results reveal that group, social, and work influences introduce new elements to the use of persuasive technology, which interact to foster higher levels of individual success. The platform in our study served as part of a larger social system, providing information that facilitated new behaviors at work and home. The 8-month group programs centered on exercise, nutrition, and smoking cessation. Groups of participants coached by certified professionals showed significant increases in sodium awareness, levels of actual exercise, and consistency of activities. As a result of the study, of 141 people, 15 (10.6%) were notified of serious medical health issues and 29 (20.6%) underwent blood work assessments and a privacy shield (protected by federal law) was enacted to protect employees from losing their employment based on any health concerns disclosed.ConclusionsThe persuasive technology platform, in combination with self-management and professional management and social interactions, significantly altered work management behaviors. Interactions among individual outcomes, group influences, and social situations strongly influenced individuals’ behaviors in their work and home environments. Three things further improved the positive results that we observed: privacy shields (which allowed employees to reveal health concerns without fear of professional consequences), individual private activities aligned with group activities, and integration between HCP work with localized, organizational work roles.

Does Community Size Matter in the Settlement Process? The Experience of Syrian Refugees in Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada.

The article documents refugee experience in the first year of their settlement in a small city in Canada and then explores whether the size of the community matters in the settlement processes. This is based on an extensive study of Syrian refugee settlement experiences in one large Canadian city (Edmonton) and one small Canadian city (Lethbridge). The findings argue that contrary to existing scholarly literature, small municipalities such as Lethbridge were more creative, nimble, and efficient in settling Syrian newcomers. In small cities, however, lack of denominational and non-denominational organizations to complement government assistance, the onset of compassionate fatigue among the city dwellers, and limited retention of newcomers due to limited employment opportunity are real threats to the settlement process immediately after newcomers’ arrival and in the long term. A more substantial role of municipal governments in the refugee resettlement process is recommended to offset the disproportionate burden settlement sector carries.

Intelligibility as a Methodological Problem in the Rehearsal Spaces of Apple Time, a Signed Play

In this study, we investigate the impact of American Sign Language (ASL) playbuilding on the language practices of culturally and linguistically diverse deaf high school students. Students' learning of ASL takes place in an inclusive secondary school environment in a small midwestern Canadian city. This study explores ways in which participants develop linguistic repertoires through the production of a play involving eight deaf youth actors supported by a production team consisting of a nondeaf director, a nondeaf teacher, a deaf teacher, and a deaf elder volunteer. Analysis of participant interactions during the processes of language teaching and learning and meaningmaking in the context of daily school surroundings and activities supports the assertion that intelligibility of perceptions situated in deaf and nondeaf ontologies is a methodological problem.

Understanding parental concerns related to their child's development and factors influencing their decisions to seek help from health care professionals: Results of a qualitative study.

Early identification of children at risk of developmental delay is crucial to promote healthy development. Assessing parental concerns about development is often part of identification processes. However, we currently do not understand well how and why parents become concerned and how and why they access early identification and intervention services. The purpose of this study was to explore parental perceptions about their child's development and the factors influencing their reported professional help-seeking behaviours. This exploratory study was part of a larger study describing child development in children aged 2-5 in a small Canadian city. We conducted semistructured interviews with 16 parents whose children were at risk of developmental delay to examine their perceptions of their child's development, their use of community services promoting development, and their recommendations to optimize those services. Four themes were identified: (a) Vision of child development influencing help-seeking behaviours: Natural or Supported?, (b) Internal and external sources contributing to parents' level of developmental concern, (c) Using internal resources and struggling to access external resources, and (d) Satisfaction with services accessed and recommendations to access more support. Parents' vision of child development along with sources of parental concern appeared to influence the level of concern, enhancing our understanding of how parents become concerned. The level of concern and parents' knowledge and perceived access to resources seemed to influence their decision whether or not to consult health care professionals. Parents provided many suggestions to improve services to promote child development and support families. Results highlight the importance of supporting parents in recognizing if their child is at risk of delay and increasing awareness of available resources. It appears particularly important to ensure that health care professionals and community-based support services are accessible to provide parents with the support they need, especially when they have concerns.

A randomized controlled trial of the effectiveness of Housing First in a small Canadian City

BackgroundThe paper presents two-year findings from a study investigating the effectiveness of Housing First (HF) with assertive community treatment (ACT) in helping individuals with serious mental illness, who are homeless or precariously housed and living in a small city, to become stably housed.MethodsThe research design was a parallel group non-blinded RCT with participants randomly assigned after the baseline interview to receive HF with ACT (N = 100) or treatment as usual (TAU; N = 101). Participants were interviewed every 3 months over 21/24 months to investigate changes on a range of housing and psychosocial outcomes. The primary outcomes were housing stability (as defined by a joint function of number of days housed and number of moves) and improvement in community functioning. Secondary predicted outcomes were improvements in self-rated physical and mental health status, substance use problems, quality of life, community integration, and recovery.ResultsAn intent-to-treat analysis was conducted. Compared to TAU participants, HF participants who entered housing did so more quickly (23.30 versus 88.25 days, d = 1.02, 95% CI [0.50–1.53], p < 0.001), spent a greater proportion of time stably housed (Z = 5.30, p < 0.001, OR = 3.12, 95% CI [1.96–4.27]), and rated the quality of their housing more positively (Z = 4.59, p < 0.001, d = 0.43, 95% CI [0.25–0.62]). HF participants were also more likely to be housed continually in the final 6 months (i.e., 79.57% vs. 55.47%), χ2 (2, n = 170) = 11.46, p = .003, Cramer’s V = 0.26, 95% CI [0.14–0.42]). HF participants showed greater gains in quality of life, (Z = 3.83, p < 0.001, ASMD = 0.50, 95% CI [0.24–0.75]), psychological integration (Z = 12.89, p < 0.001, pooled ASMD = 0.91, 95% CI [0.77–1.05]), and perceived recovery (Z = 2.26, p = 0.03, ASMD = 0.39, 95% CI [0.05–0.74]) than TAU participants.ConclusionsThe study indicates that HF ends homelessness significantly more rapidly than TAU for a majority of individuals with serious mental illness who have a history of homelessness and live in a small city. In addition, compared to TAU, HF produces psychosocial benefits for its recipients that include an enhanced quality of life, a greater sense of belonging in the community, and greater improvements in perceived recovery from mental illness.Trial registrationInternational Standard Randomized Control Trial Number Register Identifier: ISRCTN42520374, assigned August 18, 2009.

The Uneven Economic Diversification of Small and Mid-Sized Canadian Cities, 1971-2016

Economic diversification is a long-standing public policy goal in Canada, driven by concerns about resource dependence and the need to remain innovative and competitive in a complex global economy. While considerable economic diversification of Canada’s urban regions has been noted by a range of observers, the phenomenon remains only partially understood. We propose to study the economic diversification process using an entropy decomposition approach, with industrial composition data compiled from census responses between 1971 and 2016 for 125 small and mid-sized urban regions. We demonstrate that, while industrial concentration indeed declines for almost all regions studied during the study period, trends are highly variable between regions. In about half of regions, diversification was mainly driven by job loss in goods-producing industries rather than job growth in new activities, whereas among the other half of regions, diversification was weaker, but job growth was stronger. This suggests a need for caution in interpreting changes in industrial concentration indices as evidence of economic success stories.

Walmsley, C., &amp; Kading, T. (Eds.). (2018). Small cities, big issues: Reconceiving community in a neoliberal era. Edmonton, Canada: Athabasca University.

As the title suggests, the book Small cities, big issues: Reconceiving community in a neoliberal era takes a critical look at the complex social issues facing small Canadian cities – namely, Kamloops, Kelowna, Nanaimo and Prince George. Part one presents a reflection of displacement, isolation and Othering, echoing a dominant discourse of diversity as deficiency through communal responses to a variety of issues – specifically, homelessness, the street sex trade, illicit drug use, queerness, deinstitutionalization, the reintegration of parolees and finally, decolonization. While at first glance these issues may appear to be drastically different, they are in fact intimately connected by both the responses they elicit and the actions they can inspire. Individually and collectively, part one is a call to all Canadians – those who are typically silenced and those who are members of institutions, community groups and all levels of government – to collaboratively reframe our notion of community. In doing so, we commit to ensuring that each one of us, regardless of our differences, feels valued and included – a True North reflection of diversity as strength. Part two focuses on how we can build such inclusive communities by encouraging us to reflect on our social policies and our social responsibilities – thus calling into question the myth of Canada as fair and just. In essence, it is no longer enough to simply talk the talk of social inclusion, we must also walk the walk.

Microaggression and everyday resistance in narratives of refugee resettlement.

The mental health of resettled refugees is not only affected by the trauma they experience before and while fleeing persecution, but also by experiences during the resettlement process. Drawing on a qualitative study of refugees' experiences of mental wellbeing in a small Canadian city this paper documents participants' experiences of microaggression and everyday resistance. In our analysis, we refer to the metaphor of uprooting that is often used to describe the totality of refugee displacement. In our expansion of the metaphor, microaggression re-uproots resettled refugees by challenging their right to be where they are. Using acts of everyday resistance, participants in our sample attempted to set down roots in the resettlement context despite microaggressions. Participants' acts of everyday resistance are captured under five themes: rejecting victimhood, rejecting burden narratives, ignorance as an explanation, the transience of vulnerability, and setting down roots. This study contributes to the literature that de-emphasizes the vulnerability narrative of refugee mental health by demonstrating the role of personal agency in refugees' experiences of their own wellbeing.

'I'm on the train and I can't stop it': Western Canadians' reactions to prediabetes and the role of self-compassion.

Prediabetes, a condition characterised by impaired glucose regulation, is on the rise worldwide. This condition puts people at risk for cardiovascular disease, and 50% of people with prediabetes will develop type 2 diabetes (T2D). People with prediabetes can reduce their risk of developing T2D through lifestyle changes such as regular physical activity and healthy eating. However, the experience of health risks can be associated with negative reactions that can undermine people's ability to self-regulate the health behaviours that would reduce such risk. Self-compassion, or treating oneself kindly in the face of challenge, is known to help people manage negative emotions and facilitate self-regulation. Therefore, self-compassion may be helpful for people with prediabetes who have to manage their health behaviours in the context of a health threat. The purpose of this study was to explore how people, from a small Canadian city who learn that they have prediabetes, react emotionally to their prediabetes diagnosis. We also explored participants' receptivity to applying self-compassion in the context of their prediabetes. Twenty-one adults, recently notified by their doctors as having HbA1c scores indicative of prediabetes (Mage =57.76, SD=5.43), engaged in a semi-structured interview between June 2017 and January 2018. Inductive thematic analysis was used to analyse the data and four themes emerged. Participants' reactions to learning that they had prediabetes were characterised by (a) distress and concern, (b) downplay of T2D risks, (c) guilt and shame, and participants were receptive to (d) self-compassion as a beneficial approach to take in relation to their prediabetes. Findings suggest that people experience negative reactions to their prediabetes diagnosis yet are receptive to self-compassion, which could mitigate these reactions. These findings can inform lifestyle behaviour change programmes for individuals living with prediabetes by providing a better understanding of their perspectives of disease diagnosis.

Caleb Wing and the Ninth Miniature: An Investigation into a Copied Manuscript Leaf and the Bibliophile Community in 19th Century England

Buried within the famous Isabella Breviary, on the recto of page 37, there is a depiction of the circumcision of Christ. The miniature depicts Joseph and Mary on their knees, watching the circumcision of Christ being performed by a priest and another unrecognizable religious figure. Saying that this page is unknown to art historical scholarship is an understatement—the circumcision illumination in the breviary has never been referenced in scholarly writing. &#x0D; Yet buried in an art collector’s house in the small city of Kingston Ontario, there is a beautifully detailed copy of the basically unknown circumcision leaf from the Isabella Breviary. The copy underwent chemical testing and it was revealed that the leaf was created in the 19th century. How did a copy of this unknown leaf end up in a small Canadian city? Who created this copy, and why? This presentation will explore the history, iconography and provenance of the Kingston Leaf. Although the Kingston Leaf is an almost direct copy of the original leaf in the Isabella Breviary, the small differences between the two pages provide clues that I believe connect the Kingston Leaf to the famous manuscript copier, Caleb Wing. But more importantly, the provenance reveals a community of 19th century English bibliophiles and art dealers, who were thinking about and evaluating medieval art. Their trades and deals surrounding the Kingston Leaf, and the Isabella Breviary, provide insight into the Gothic revival, and the Victorian romanticism of medieval art.

The Raiding of Local 480: A Historic Cold War Struggle for Union Supremacy in a Small Canadian City

The arduous struggle to form Local 480 of the International Union of Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers (Mine-Mill) at Trail, British Columbia, began in 1938. By 1944 it had been certified as the legal bargaining agent for the 5,000 workers at the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company of Canada (cm's). But being certified did not spell the end of its problems. Even as World War II was winding down, local and continental anti-Communists attacked the Communist leaders who had founded the local. Among the most determined of the attackers was the United Steelworkers of America (uswa). As the Cold War began, Local 480 was girding for a two-year battle to protect itself from the raiding uswa. Sanctioned by the Congress of Industrial Organizations (cio) to subsume Mine-Mill across North America, the Steelworkers employed an aggressive anti-Communist strategy. In early 1950, when this account begins, Local 480 was in a fight for its life.

Place and certification cue usage with Canadian forest products

Place-based promotion is used in many industries, including food and wine products, to create a competitive advantage. This study focused on consumer behaviours related to cue usage of origin (i.e. local and imported) and certification (i.e. sustainable products) with the goal of understanding the importance of these two cues used together or separately in the context of Canadian forest products. The study asked consumers in a small Canadian city about their quality beliefs, value assessments and purchase intentions for local and/or certified products. Using a quasi-experimental design, the manipulations include location (local vs. imported), certification (certified vs. uncertified) and product type (commodity vs. value-added). A repeated measures ANOVA found that both cues of origin and certification were important as respondents perceived local products as better quality and higher value, and respondents were more likely to purchase them over most other types. A regression analysis indicated that in most cases quality and value were predictors, but value was the most important indicator of the likeliness to purchase specific forest products. This study has the potential to aid marketers because certification cue usage does not appear to have been examined in conjunction with a product’s local vs. foreign origin.

The Production of Public Space in a Small Canadian City: An Analysis of Spatial Practices in the Revitalizing of Galt Gardens

This article critically assesses a series of spatial practices implicated in the spatial production of a revitalized public park in downtown Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. I find that the park’s revitalization tends to encourage short-term, recreational crowd practice. Specifically, I show how recent material improvements, such as the replacement of park benches and the addition of a plaza and water feature, distinguish between “positive” and “negative” users of the park. I begin the analysis by using Barthes’s influential work on signification to discuss four murals that came to frame the park’s most recent revitalization. Considered as “materials of myth,” I argue that these murals both commemorate and reproduce a depoliticized version of local history, one that relies on certain forgettings. I find that the widely celebrated revitalization of Galt Gardens hinges in part on practices of exclusion and racialization as forms of urban purification.

Adolescent Resilience Assessment in Person-centered Medical Care

Background. Acquiring resilience and psychological strength is central to adolescents' development and evolution from dependent child to autonomous adult, but is rarely addressed by physicians. Nevertheless, resilience, that is, positive adaptation to stress, predicts adult health and wellness. Objectives. We examined how to assess resilience in youth in a person-centered manner of merit to participants themselves. Our aim was to identify characteristics of resilience such as self-control and optimism, and foster these strengths at the same time. Method. Fifty-nine13-16 year-old adolescents from a small Canadian city, a remote town and one northern Ontario First Nations Reserve answered the 28-item Resilience Scale for Adolescents (READ) privately. Then they were asked semi-structured questions about their responses, family and social stresses, and strengths. Medical histories provided information about childhood adversities like poverty, abuse and family disruption. Results. We found READ scores to be statistically valid, comparable across gender, but lower among on-reserve indigenous youth. Results aligned loosely with subsequent interview information. However, the real merit of the resilience scale was as a door-opener to deeper, person-centered discussions. Only via interviews did we learn that youth had often adapted positively to the adversities identified in standard social/medical histories and named these as sources of strength and resilience rather than stress. Participants welcomed engaging as individuals rather than offspring of parents, and talked at length and with insight and enthusiasm. Conclusions. The positive response to and contextual understanding gained during interviews suggests that use of the READ followed by a qualitative discussion is a valuable and feasible clinical component of adolescent-centered medical care.

“Parks Not Parkways”: Contesting Automobility in a Small Canadian City

This case study of a dispute over a project to construct a road through green space in a small Canadian city brings together two hitherto separate theoretical approaches to mobility disputes: "culture stories" and "regimes of engagement". The stories opponents tell, in interviews and documents, concern their mobilization against the project, the value of environmental preservation, and the costs of expanded automobility, culminating in contrasting visions of urban development. The culture stories approach examines how stories varied on a narrative dimension of informational formats, temporal structures, causal mechanisms, and plot institutionalization, and a place dimension of relational geography and physical attributes. The pragmatic conditions of the different narratives of contestation, and of the challenges faced by opponents are analysed in terms of the relation between regimes of engagement: a regime of familiarity based in slow mobilities, a regime of planned action based in automobility, and the clash of industrial and green orders of worth in a regime of justification