FUNDED RESEARCH PROJECTS -- CERIS TORONTO -- 1996 RFP FUNDING COMPETITION

ECONOMIC DOMAIN PROJECTS
(3 of 12 CERIS Projects)

Immigrants, Ethnic Economy and Integration:
A Case Study of Chinese in the Greater Toronto Area

This is Phase 1 of a case study on the Chinese economy in Toronto. The broad objectives of the project are to understand the dynamics of the new Chinese economy, to assess Chinese immigrants’ contributions to the larger economy, and to examine implications on immigrant integration. This phase studies the structure of the Chinese economy and specifically aims to delineate the settlement and economic activity patterns of Chinese immigrants, to assess the level of completeness of the Chinese economy, and to measure their monetary contribution to the larger Canadian economy. It shall carry policy implications and contribute to new understanding about ethnicity in metropolises.

Research Team:

Dr. Lucia Lo, Associate Professor, Dept. of Geography, York University (lead researcher)

Dr. Shuguang Wang, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Applied Geography, Ryerson Polytechnic University

1 postgraduate and 2 undergraduate students (research assistants)

Amount Funded: $15,000

Chinese Ethnic Economy in Toronto

This project seeks financial funding to collect data on topics related to ethnic economy. With collaboration between the ethnic social service agency and university faculty member, the research team will interview 600 Chinese by telephone on four major areas: economic returns, job transitions, social networks of immigrants participating in the ethnic economy and those who work in the mainstream economy, and effectiveness of various services available to immigrants. The collection of the data is intended to address some major heated debates in the field of ethnic economy.

Research Team:

Dr. Ambrose Ma, Vice President, South East Asian Services Centre (lead researcher)

Dr. Eric Fong, Assistant Professor, Sociology, University of Toronto

1 graduate, 2 graduate/undergraduate, and 10 undergraduate students (research assistants)

Amount Funded: $15,000

The Immigration Points System and Labour Adjustment Program: A Gender Analysis

By employing a gender analysis, this study will examine, in an attempt to discover, the relationship between two seemingly different domains of government policies affecting immigrant women in the Metro Toronto area: the points system used by Citizenship and Immigration Canada to assess and select immigrants under the independent and nominated relative categories and the labour adjustment policies and programs of the province of Ontario. Possible linkages between this immigration classification system and the subsequent labour market location of women entering Canada under the family class will be investigated by analysing statistical data, conducting an in-depth textual analysis on present immigration policies and labour adjustment programs and analysing interviews done with key informants. The focus policies and labour adjustment programs and analysing interviews done with key informants. The focus will be on immigrant women workers in the garment sector in Metro Toronto. The findings of the project will inform policy development and program implementation.

Research Team:

Dr. Roxana Ng, Dept. of Sociology in Education, OISE, (lead researcher)

Daisy Mak and Nandita Sharma, OISE, (student research assistants)

Amount Funded: $6,000

EDUCATION DOMAIN PROJECTS
(4 of 12 CERIS Projects)

Supporting Parental Involvement in Schools:
An Ethnographic Study of the Toronto Latino Parent Support Group

In 1991, approximately 56,000 people in the Greater Metro Toronto area identifies Spanish as their first language, and increase of about 30,000 or 87% since 1981. Yet Latino children in Toronto often have low academic achievement and high dropout rates. Through a participatory research approach, we will investigate the school adaptation difficulties of Latinos in the GTA, working with parents in their native language. We will document how, together, they plan change and interact with educators. Findings will lead to a) public policy recommendations to the Ontario Ministry of Education and community groups; b) reforms of policies regarding teacher training at Faculties of Education and Schools of Early Childhood Education.

Research Team:

Dr. Judith Bernhard, Associate Professor, School of Early Childhood Education, Ryerson Polytechnic University (lead researcher)

Dr. Marlinda Freire, Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of

Toronto

Carlos Torchia, Chair, Spanish-Speaking Parents’ Liaison Committee and the Parents’ Committee of the International Languages Program-Spanish, Toronto Board of Education Patricio Bascunan, Chair, Spanish Teachers’ Committee, Toronto Board of Education
Nicholas Drever, graduate student (research assistant)
Suparna Nirdosh, graduate student (research assistant)
Fidelia Torres, undergraduate student (research assistant)

Amount Funded: $15,000

Upward Mobility Among Second Generation Caribbean Men Living in Toronto: A Pilot Study

Between 1967 and 1992, approximately 300,000 landed immigrants from the Caribbean entered Canada. The first generation of Caribbean immigrants tended to occupy low status jobs. Some children of these first generation Caribbean immigrants have now gone on to attain university qualifications in Canada. Ironically, however, despite their qualifications and being "Canadianized" in almost every sense, the second generation of Caribbeans continue to have difficulties accessing good jobs in Canada. This proposed study examines the employment experiences and blocked mobility that university schooled second generation Caribbeans face in Canada. The study is based in part on special tabulations of the 1991 Census, a survey questionnaire of second generation Caribbean in Toronto (n=500), and the utilization of transgenerational life-history interviews with second generation Caribbeans and their parent(s) (n=30).

Research Team:

Dr. Clifford Jansen, Department of Sociology, York University, (lead researcher)

Dr. Dwaine Plaza, The Centre for Research on Latin America and the Caribbean (CERLAC), York University, (post-graduate research assistant)

Amount Funded: $15,000

Opportunities and Possibilities: School Board/University Partnership as a Means of Enhancing the Educational Experiences of Immigrant and Refugee Students

This investigation examines the extent to which intervention strategies and support mechanisms of the University Path Program initiated through a School Board/University partnership have been able to address the educational participation issues of immigrant and refugee students. The data collection process will involve surveying students who have participated in the program, and interviewing a purposive sample of students, parents, teachers and other key informants. As research assistant, the graduate student on this project will be involved in all phases of the research process. This research is being carried out by the Faculty of Education, York University, in partnership with the Anti-Racism and Multicultural Educators Network of Ontario (AMENO), an organization made up of educators who are knowledgeable about the issues confronting immigrant and refugee students.

Research Team:

Dr. Carl James, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Education, York University, (lead researcher)

Dr. Celia Haig-Brown, Associate Professor, Faculty of Education Simon Fraser University 1 graduate student (research assistant)

Amount Funded: $8,000

The Next Generation: Life Course Effects of Immigration and Educational Experiences on Adolescent Transitions to Adulthood

This proposal seeks funds to extend a twenty year panel study of the transition of immigrants and non-immigrants from adolescence to adulthood in suburban Toronto. The central hypothesis is that parental support and educational services, especially English as a Second Language programming, as well as community experiences, have main and interactive effects on school and work outcomes. The analysis of the panel data will involve multivariate OLS and logit models of educational attainment and occupational status. Funds will primarily support a graduate research assistant who has experienced immigration and will be involved in all phases of the study.

Research Team:

Dr. John Hagan, Faculty of Law, University of Toronto, (lead researcher)

Patricia Parker, graduate student (research assistant)

Amount Funded: $6,000

COMMUNITY DOMAIN PROJECTS
(5 of 12 CERIS Projects)

Link by Link: The Challenge of Building Community with Survivors of Torture

The Befriending Programme of CCVT is unique in that it assists survivors of torture in becoming active members of our community by creating networks of support that also promote collective responsibility for human rights and community development. Using case study and network analysis of survivor/volunteer partnerships, this research has important implications for: the design of settlement and sponsorship services and the transferability of the community-based model to other settlement programs; the mobilization of community support for refugees and immigrants; and, further comparative research with programmes in other countries that have used the CCVT community empowerment approach as their model.

Research Team:

Dr. Adrienne Chambon, Associate Professor, Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, (lead co-researcher)

Mulugeta Abai, Executive Director, Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture - CCVT, (lead co-researcher)

Dr. Ben Zion Shapiro, Professor, Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto Teresa Dremetsikas, Intake and Settlement Coordinator, CCVT Susan McGrath, doctoral student (research assistant)

Amount Funded: $15,000

Immigration, Urban Citizenship and Municipal Governance in the Greater Toronto Area

Few urban regions in the world have been more dramatically transformed by recent immigration than Toronto, and few institutions have a more direct impact on immigrant settlement and integration than municipal governments. This project explores the dynamic relationship between immigrant communities and municipal governments in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Key issues to be addressed in this interdisciplinary study are: (I) mapping patterns of immigrant settlement communities across the GTA; (ii) comparing municipal government responsiveness to immigrant communities across the GTA; and (iii) assessing how factors such as race, gender, class, religion and language shape immigrant community activism and influence in local politics in a global era.

Research Team:

Dr. Myer Siemiatycki, Professor, Department of Politics and School of Public Administration, Ryerson Polytechnic University, (lead researcher)

Dr. Engin Isin, Assistant Professor, Urban Studies Programme, Social Sciences Division, York University

Undergraduate and graduate students (research assistants)

Community researchers (research assistants)

Amount Funded: $15,000

Identifying Barriers and Incentives to Breast Cancer Screening Behaviour in Tamil Immigrant/Refugee Women 50 Years Old and Over

Breast cancer screening behaviours (breast self-examination, clinical breast examination, mammograms) has been shown to decrease mortality from breast cancer in women over 50 years old, yet evidence suggests that a minority of immigrant women regularly engage in these behaviours. In this comparative pilot study we will examine the barriers and incentives influencing the extent to which older Tamil engage in these potentially life-saving behaviours. Physician attitudes and behaviours will also be investigated. By identifying the culture-specific obstacles and incentives to breast cancer screening, it is hoped that interventions can be designed and implemented to improve breast health in this population.

Research Team:

Dr. Marta Meana, Post-Doctoral Fellow, Women’s Health, Depts. of Psychology and Psychiatry, The Toronto Hospital/University of Toronto (lead researcher)

Dr. Lilian M. Wells, Professor and Associate Dean, Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto

Dr. Terry Bunston, Director Psychosocial Oncology Program, Ontario Cancer Institute/ Princess Margaret Hospital

Dr. Usha George, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto

Dr. Walter Rosser, M.D., FCFP, Professor and Chairman, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto

1 graduate student (research assistant)

Amount Funded: $10,250

Immigration and Settlement Issues for Ethno-Racial People with Disabilities: An Exploratory Study

This research project represents the first phase of a longer term research endeavour targeted at increasing awareness and understanding of the issues faced by ethno-racial immigrants with disabilities and promoting policies and strategies to support and enhance their participation in Canadian society. Utilizing in-depth qualitative interviews and focus groups, the study will explore: (I) the barriers faced by immigrants with disabilities; (ii) the extent to which immigrants with disabilities are aware of and able to exercise their rightful access to services; and (iii) the kinds of information and supports they feel would assist them in this regard

Research Team:

Dr. Judith Sandys, Dean, Faculty of Community Services, and Associate Professor, School of Social Work, Ryerson Polytechnic University, (lead researcher)

Dr. Budd Hall, Professor and Chair, Department of Adult Education, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

Shaheen Ali, Co-Director, Across Boundaries

Naz Husain, Co-Chair, Ethno Racial People with Disabilities Coalition of Ontario (ERDCO) Kay Ray, masters student, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (research assistant)

1 doctoral student (research assistant)

2 masters students (research assistants)

2 undergraduate students (research assistants)

1 community research assistant

Amount Funded: $10,000

Towards Respiratory Health Among Immigrants in South East Toronto:
Life Histories of Chinese and Caribbean Immigrants

This research project builds on a community-initiated process in South East Toronto to investigate the problem of respiratory illness among poor, inner-city immigrants. There are many determinants of health, such as genetic, biological, social, psychological, economic, and environmental. We will use the life history qualitative research technique with 40 inner-city immigrants to examine the meaning of respiratory illness, including how affected individuals perceive the role these determinants and the immigration experience play in their illness, the barriers to health, and the coping strategies used. Relevant program and policy implications will be developed from these findings which address the concerns of a low-income, inner-city, immigrant community.

Research Team:

Dr. Esme Fuller-Thompson, I. Anson Assistant Professor of Health Policy, Faculties of Social Work/Nursing/Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto (lead researcher)

Dr. Ann Robertson, Assistant Professor, Department of Behavioural Science, University of Toronto Nita Chaudhuri, Environmental Health Promoter/Researcher, South Riverdale Community Health Centre

Lorraine Purdon, Coordinator, South East Toronto Project

Maureen Thompson, Health Promotion, Regent Park Community Health Centre

Student research assistants

Community research assistants

Amount Funded: $15,000