The social resources of immigrants, effects on the integration of independent and family class immigrants to Toronto, Canada from South Asia

grantor: University of TorontoThe central goal of this thesis is to examine the importance of a range of immigrant resources--not only human capital, but also social, financial cultural and psychological resources--in the process of immigrant integration, and to determine how these resources affect the relative success of independent and family class immigrants. Most immigration research conceptualizes integration in objective economic terms to the exclusion of other domains, with a concurrent preoccupation with immigrants' human capital resources; only recently has a competing explanation in the form of social resources emerged, though it remains understated. Using economic and well-being measures of integration, this thesis therefore addresses policy debates about the relative adaptability of these two immigrant classes, and contributes to a theoretically underdeveloped area by extending the definition of integration, and of the integration process, beyond the human capital model. The analysis uses data from the 'South Asian Newcomer Study' collected for this thesis, in which 109 face-to-face interviews were conducted with family and independent class South Asian immigrants. Findings indicate slight differences in human capital resources by immigrant class, though independent class respondents have higher levels of financial and cultural resources. Respondents' network structures vary by class, with family class respondents reporting smaller, more dense, kin-dominated networks, and higher overall levels of social support. In terms of economic integration measures, independent immigrants are more successful, though high levels of certain types of human capital are a liability to achieving economic integration. Moreover, family class respondents' poorer economic performance is linked to the composition of their networks, which disadvantage them in this domain of integration, and not to their human capital levels. Overall, social network and human capital variables are the strongest predictors of economic integration, challenging researchers' preoccupation with the latter. In terms of levels of well-being, family class respondents report higher levels despite poorer economic outcomes; this is explained by their superior levels of social support, which are the strongest predictors in conjunction with a measure of cultural capital. Results support a multidimensional conceptualization of integration that acknowledges the independence of different domains. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed.Ph.D