Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / W. Richard Goe / The chief aim of this research is to assess the influence of rural amenities on population change amongst all non-metropolitan counties in the United States (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) from 1980 to 2000. Rural amenities, as defined by this research, are the attributes of a non-metropolitan locale that enhance the quality of life of the people living or visiting there. First, I discuss the general patterns of population change in non-metropolitan areas during these three decades as well as the possible influence of rural amenities during this time period. I then examine how rural amenities have been studied by past research in order for me to hypothesize their influence on non-metropolitan population change in the United States. Additionally, I draw on past research in order to guide my conceptualization and measurement of rural amenities. Using data from the United States Census of Population, the National Outdoor Recreational Supply Information System (NORSIS), and David McGranahan’s (1999) Natural Amenity Scale, a panel model data set was constructed for the aforementioned counties from 1980 to 2000. This research constructed a panel data set using data from the aforementioned sources for the years of 1980-2000. Accordingly, in this model the change scores on two measures of population change (absolute population change and percentage population change) were regressed on the amenity and control variables. Regression diagnostics were then used to examine the extent to which specific regression assumptions were validated by the data. Results suggest that climatic amenities, river and ocean based amenities, and warm weather recreational amenities were most significantly associated with increase in population amongst the counties examined by this study.

New Zealanders’ motivations for migrating to Australia and the effect of migration on their cultural and national identity were examined through analysis of interviews and surveys with New Zealand migrants and stayers. Factors influencing the move included economic pull factors, lifestyle factors, family reunification, some dissatisfaction with New Zealand society, the desire for a change, and a sense of adventure. Participants reported a high level of satisfaction with their new lives in Australia, and once resident there, initial motivating reasons merged with factors which reinforced and justified the decision to move. These included the benefits of a warmer climate, the perception that Australia was a more relaxed and tolerant society, and the belief by Maori that living in Australia freed them from negative stereotypes.New Zealand migrants to Australia revised their identity in light of their new experiences, and yet continued to view New Zealand positively, retaining aspects of their New Zealand identity as part of their ongoing evolving identity. However, while feeling at home in both countries, as time went on many migrants adopted a more Australian identity. Over time, they considered Australia was superior in a number of respects, and adapted and changed in response to Australian influences. Despite this, migrants maintained the boundary between New Zealand and Australian characteristics through a process of constant comparisons and, somewhat ambivalently, retained their strong positive regard for New Zealand. In the main, participants considered they could be happy in either country, but were happier in Australia. Migrants constructed positive reasons to justify their move and viewed themselves as adventurous and determined, while stayers constructed equally positive reasons for staying in New Zealand, seeing themselves as settled and stable.

New Zealanders’ motivations for migrating to Australia and the effect of migration on their cultural and national identity were examined through analysis of interviews and surveys with New Zealand migrants and stayers. Factors influencing the move included economic pull factors, lifestyle factors, family reunification, some dissatisfaction with New Zealand society, the desire for a change, and a sense of adventure. Participants reported a high level of satisfaction with their new lives in Australia, and once resident there, initial motivating reasons merged with factors which reinforced and justified the decision to move. These included the benefits of a warmer climate, the perception that Australia was a more relaxed and tolerant society, and the belief by Maori that living in Australia freed them from negative stereotypes.New Zealand migrants to Australia revised their identity in light of their new experiences, and yet continued to view New Zealand positively, retaining aspects of their New Zealand identity as part of their ongoing evolving identity. However, while feeling at home in both countries, as time went on many migrants adopted a more Australian identity. Over time, they considered Australia was superior in a number of respects, and adapted and changed in response to Australian influences. Despite this, migrants maintained the boundary between New Zealand and Australian characteristics through a process of constant comparisons and, somewhat ambivalently, retained their strong positive regard for New Zealand. In the main, participants considered they could be happy in either country, but were happier in Australia. Migrants constructed positive reasons to justify their move and viewed themselves as adventurous and determined, while stayers constructed equally positive reasons for staying in New Zealand, seeing themselves as settled and stable.

Le Canada à l’instar de plusieurs autres pays occidentaux fait face à une baisse importante du taux de natalité et à un vieillissement de sa population. La solution de l’immigration semble être retenue par ce pays pour combler le déficit en main d’œuvre afin d’éviter un ralentissement de la croissance économique. Nous nous intéressons dans cette étude aux immigrantes africaines accueillies par la province du Québec et cherchons à évaluer leur contribution à la fécondité. Pour ce faire, les données du fichier des naissances de l’Institut de la statistique du Québec et du recensement du Canada de 2006 ont été utilisées. Pour effectuer l’analyse, nous avons premièrement mesuré (avec les fichiers du registre des naissances) l’évolution dans le temps de la contribution des immigrantes africaines à la natalité au Québec. Et deuxièmement, nous avons évalué la relation entre la région d’origine des femmes et la variable "ayant un enfant de moins d’un an" (récente maternité). Nous avons procédé à une analyse descriptive, et également à une analyse multivariée en utilisant un modèle logistique, et en considérant des facteurs sociodémographiques. Nos résultats montrent que les immigrantes africaines affichent un niveau de fécondité plus élevé par rapport à celui des natives et des autres immigrantes. Nous avons constaté que la contribution à la natalité et à la fécondité au Québec des immigrantes venant de l’Afrique Nord était plus importante que celles des autres immigrantes africaines. En outre, les résultats du modèle logistique montrent que les femmes immigrantes africaines de la première génération sont plus susceptibles d’avoir un enfant que les natives du Québec. Nous avons aussi remarqué un effet de la durée de séjour sur la fécondité des immigrantes africaines. Les résultats montrent que les immigrantes de la deuxième génération ont un niveau de fécondité proche des natives du Québec. Nous avons enfin trouvé que la fécondité des immigrantes africaines arrivées très jeunes au Québec est inférieure ou diffère peu de celle des natives du Québec. / Like many other western countries, Canada is facing a dramatic decrease of its birth rate as well as an ageing of its population. Immigration was chosen as a solution to make up for the workforce deficit in order to avoid a slowdown of the economic growth. For the purpose of this study we focus on African women immigrants in Quebec and we assess their contribution to fertility. To reach this objective, data from files of the birth registry of the Institut de la Statistique du Québec and from the 2006 census of Canada were pooled and used. In order to perform the analysis, firstly, we have measured (with the files of the birth registry) the evolution over time of the contribution of African women immigrants to the Quebec birth rate. And secondly, we have evaluated the relation between the women’s region of origin and the variable “having a child less than 1 year old” (recent maternity) obtained from the census. We have done a descriptive as well as a multivariate analysis, by using a logit model and by considering socio-demographic factors. Our findings show that African women immigrants have a higher fertility level than native women or other immigrant women. Their contributions, mostly the contribution of those who are from North Africa, to the Quebec fertility rate were the highest among all immigrant women. In addition, results of the logit model highlight that African immigrant women of the first generation are more likely to have a child than Quebec native women. We also observed an effect of the duration of stay on the fertility of African women immigrants. The fertility behavior of African immigrant women of the second generation is relatively close to those of native women. Finally, we found that the fertility of African women immigrants who arrived at a very young age in Quebec tends to be lower than that of native women.

Basée sur l’analyse des données officielles, cette recherche propose une étude sur le lien entre les nouveaux flux migratoires internationaux des Chinois, qui se produisent à partir des années 2000, et l’évolution des profils et des performances économiques des immigrants chinois au Canada et au Québec. Le but de ce mémoire est d’observer la quantité et la qualité de ces nouveaux arrivants vis-à-vis leurs performances après l’immigration. Les nouveaux immigrants en provenance de la Chine continentale sont différents des précédents dans la mesure où les riches et les élites sont devenus majoritaires. Ces nouveaux flux sont aussi accompagnés d’une forte croissance du nombre d’étudiants chinois qui font leurs études à l’international et du nombre d’immigrants de retour. Néanmoins, les résultats ne démontrent pas que leurs performances au Canada et au Québec s’améliorent même s’ils ont des profils plus qualifiés et plus jeunes. Évidemment, l’arrivée de ces immigrants chinois récents a des conséquences importantes. À cause des forts changements de la condition économique et sociale interne en Chine, ces flux de personnes ne cesseront pas de croître dans le futur proche. Ainsi, les décideurs du Canada et du Québec doivent porter plus d’attention et réagir au mieux face à cette tendance. / Based on the analysis of official data, this research proposes a study on the relationship between the trend of new international migration flows from China after the 2000s and the economic and social performances of Chinese immigrants in Canada and Quebec. The purpose of this research is to observe the quantity and the quality of new Chinese immigrants as well as their performances after immigration. These new flows of people are different from the previous ones, because the rich and elites become the majority of the recent immigrants. The new immigration tide from China is also accompanied by a strong growth of the number of Chinese students who study abroad and by a significant flow of returnees. However, the results we got don’t show any improvement of their performance despite their more skilled and younger profiles. Indeed, the recent Chinese immigrants brought many influences to Canada and Quebec. Due to big changes in the internal economic and social conditions, the trend of these flows from China will not stop in the near future. Thus, the policymakers of the host country and region need to pay more attention and better react in front of this tendency.

Les études effectuées sur l’intégration économique des migrants au Canada ont jusqu’ici été réservées aux migrants internationaux. Le présent document fait état des résultats et des caractéristiques des migrants ayant effectué une migration à l’intérieur de leur propre province entre 1996 et 2007. En opposition aux difficultés d’intégration économique des migrants internationaux, notre recherche démontre que les migrants intraprovinciaux s’intègrent dans leur nouvel environnement à un niveau économique légèrement supérieur à la population d’accueil. Les résultats obtenus à l’aide du volet longitudinal de l’Enquête sur la dynamique du travail et du revenu (EDTR) dévoilent que les migrants intraprovinciaux ont un revenu annuel médian de 38 017$, soit un revenu légèrement supérieur à celui des non-migrants. Notre étude permet toutefois de constater que les caractéristiques personnelles des migrants sont des déterminants bien plus importants du revenu. Les hommes gagnent en moyenne un peu plus de 10 000$ de plus par année que les femmes, et ce, autant chez les migrants que chez les non-migrants. Le niveau d’éducation est aussi une variable significative du revenu. L’écart entre le revenu médian des migrants ayant complété le secondaire et ceux ayant un niveau universitaire est de près de 12 000$. Finalement, on remarque que le groupe d’âge des 46-55 ans est celui qui affiche les plus hauts revenus alors que le groupe de 16-25 ans est celui qui présente les plus bas revenus. Cette recherche démontre que l'expérience de la migration peut être très différente selon les points d'origine et de destination. Toutefois, les caractéristiques personnelles telles que le sexe, l’âge et le niveau d’éducation ont un impact significatif sur le revenu. / Studies on the economic integration of migrants in Canada have so far been oriented on international migrants. This paper is focusing on the results and characteristics of migrants who migrated within their own province between 1996 and 2007. In contrast to the difficulties of economic integration of international migrants, our research shows that intraprovincial migrants integrate into their new environment at an economic level slightly higher than the host population. The results obtained using the longitudinal component of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) reveal that intraprovincial migrants have a median annual income of 38 017$, an income slightly higher than that of non-migrants. Our study demonstrates that personal characteristics of migrants are much more important determinants of income. Men earn on average just over 10 000$ more per year than women, and this, among both migrants and non-migrants. The level of education is also a significant variable of income. The difference between the median income of migrants who have completed high school and those who have completed university is nearly 12 000$. Finally, we note that the age group 46-55 is the one that has the highest income while the age group 16-25 is the one with the lowest income. This research shows that the experience of migration can be very different depending on the point of origin and destination. However, personal characteristics such as gender, age and education level have a significant impact on income.

Le Canada à l’instar de plusieurs autres pays occidentaux fait face à une baisse importante du taux de natalité et à un vieillissement de sa population. La solution de l’immigration semble être retenue par ce pays pour combler le déficit en main d’œuvre afin d’éviter un ralentissement de la croissance économique. Nous nous intéressons dans cette étude aux immigrantes africaines accueillies par la province du Québec et cherchons à évaluer leur contribution à la fécondité. Pour ce faire, les données du fichier des naissances de l’Institut de la statistique du Québec et du recensement du Canada de 2006 ont été utilisées. Pour effectuer l’analyse, nous avons premièrement mesuré (avec les fichiers du registre des naissances) l’évolution dans le temps de la contribution des immigrantes africaines à la natalité au Québec. Et deuxièmement, nous avons évalué la relation entre la région d’origine des femmes et la variable "ayant un enfant de moins d’un an" (récente maternité). Nous avons procédé à une analyse descriptive, et également à une analyse multivariée en utilisant un modèle logistique, et en considérant des facteurs sociodémographiques. Nos résultats montrent que les immigrantes africaines affichent un niveau de fécondité plus élevé par rapport à celui des natives et des autres immigrantes. Nous avons constaté que la contribution à la natalité et à la fécondité au Québec des immigrantes venant de l’Afrique Nord était plus importante que celles des autres immigrantes africaines. En outre, les résultats du modèle logistique montrent que les femmes immigrantes africaines de la première génération sont plus susceptibles d’avoir un enfant que les natives du Québec. Nous avons aussi remarqué un effet de la durée de séjour sur la fécondité des immigrantes africaines. Les résultats montrent que les immigrantes de la deuxième génération ont un niveau de fécondité proche des natives du Québec. Nous avons enfin trouvé que la fécondité des immigrantes africaines arrivées très jeunes au Québec est inférieure ou diffère peu de celle des natives du Québec. / Like many other western countries, Canada is facing a dramatic decrease of its birth rate as well as an ageing of its population. Immigration was chosen as a solution to make up for the workforce deficit in order to avoid a slowdown of the economic growth. For the purpose of this study we focus on African women immigrants in Quebec and we assess their contribution to fertility. To reach this objective, data from files of the birth registry of the Institut de la Statistique du Québec and from the 2006 census of Canada were pooled and used. In order to perform the analysis, firstly, we have measured (with the files of the birth registry) the evolution over time of the contribution of African women immigrants to the Quebec birth rate. And secondly, we have evaluated the relation between the women’s region of origin and the variable “having a child less than 1 year old” (recent maternity) obtained from the census. We have done a descriptive as well as a multivariate analysis, by using a logit model and by considering socio-demographic factors. Our findings show that African women immigrants have a higher fertility level than native women or other immigrant women. Their contributions, mostly the contribution of those who are from North Africa, to the Quebec fertility rate were the highest among all immigrant women. In addition, results of the logit model highlight that African immigrant women of the first generation are more likely to have a child than Quebec native women. We also observed an effect of the duration of stay on the fertility of African women immigrants. The fertility behavior of African immigrant women of the second generation is relatively close to those of native women. Finally, we found that the fertility of African women immigrants who arrived at a very young age in Quebec tends to be lower than that of native women.

Contemporary research on immigrant economic integration identifies growing economic disadvantages faced by immigrants and probes sources of the disadvantages by focusing on immigrants’ pre-migration and ascriptive characteristics. However, little empirical evaluation exists on how immigrants overcome their initial economic disadvantages over time. This dissertation departs from previous research by studying the roles of two post-migration factors – schooling (formal education and language training) and the employment of female spouses – in the exits from low wages and low family income (poverty) among recent immigrants. The analysis of the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada (LSIC) – a three-wave survey of immigrants who arrived in Canada in 2000-2001 – produces three main findings. First, investing in host country formal education is beneficial for the economic advancement of new immigrants – especially highly educated ones. This finding confirms the role of skill upgrading programs for adult immigrants as an effective immigrant settlement policy, given that the majority of recent immigrants have postsecondary education but that their initial economic hardships are growing. Second, the benefits of English/French language lessons are real. This finding counters a common criticism that language lessons for adult new immigrants, which are often funded by the governments, are not helpful. Indeed, standard logistic regression analysis of the LSIC data shows that immigrants who enrolled in language lessons have no advantage in exiting poverty or low wages. However, the bivariate probit model demonstrates that this is because unmeasured characteristics of the language lesson participants confound the true benefit of language lessons. Third, this dissertation research highlights the role immigrant women play in lifting their families out of poverty when they work. This finding has an implication particularly for women of Arab and Middle Eastern origins as their notably lower labour force participation rates explain much of their high poverty rates.

Contemporary research on immigrant economic integration identifies growing economic disadvantages faced by immigrants and probes sources of the disadvantages by focusing on immigrants’ pre-migration and ascriptive characteristics. However, little empirical evaluation exists on how immigrants overcome their initial economic disadvantages over time. This dissertation departs from previous research by studying the roles of two post-migration factors – schooling (formal education and language training) and the employment of female spouses – in the exits from low wages and low family income (poverty) among recent immigrants. The analysis of the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada (LSIC) – a three-wave survey of immigrants who arrived in Canada in 2000-2001 – produces three main findings. First, investing in host country formal education is beneficial for the economic advancement of new immigrants – especially highly educated ones. This finding confirms the role of skill upgrading programs for adult immigrants as an effective immigrant settlement policy, given that the majority of recent immigrants have postsecondary education but that their initial economic hardships are growing. Second, the benefits of English/French language lessons are real. This finding counters a common criticism that language lessons for adult new immigrants, which are often funded by the governments, are not helpful. Indeed, standard logistic regression analysis of the LSIC data shows that immigrants who enrolled in language lessons have no advantage in exiting poverty or low wages. However, the bivariate probit model demonstrates that this is because unmeasured characteristics of the language lesson participants confound the true benefit of language lessons. Third, this dissertation research highlights the role immigrant women play in lifting their families out of poverty when they work. This finding has an implication particularly for women of Arab and Middle Eastern origins as their notably lower labour force participation rates explain much of their high poverty rates.

Les études effectuées sur l’intégration économique des migrants au Canada ont jusqu’ici été réservées aux migrants internationaux. Le présent document fait état des résultats et des caractéristiques des migrants ayant effectué une migration à l’intérieur de leur propre province entre 1996 et 2007. En opposition aux difficultés d’intégration économique des migrants internationaux, notre recherche démontre que les migrants intraprovinciaux s’intègrent dans leur nouvel environnement à un niveau économique légèrement supérieur à la population d’accueil. Les résultats obtenus à l’aide du volet longitudinal de l’Enquête sur la dynamique du travail et du revenu (EDTR) dévoilent que les migrants intraprovinciaux ont un revenu annuel médian de 38 017$, soit un revenu légèrement supérieur à celui des non-migrants. Notre étude permet toutefois de constater que les caractéristiques personnelles des migrants sont des déterminants bien plus importants du revenu. Les hommes gagnent en moyenne un peu plus de 10 000$ de plus par année que les femmes, et ce, autant chez les migrants que chez les non-migrants. Le niveau d’éducation est aussi une variable significative du revenu. L’écart entre le revenu médian des migrants ayant complété le secondaire et ceux ayant un niveau universitaire est de près de 12 000$. Finalement, on remarque que le groupe d’âge des 46-55 ans est celui qui affiche les plus hauts revenus alors que le groupe de 16-25 ans est celui qui présente les plus bas revenus. Cette recherche démontre que l'expérience de la migration peut être très différente selon les points d'origine et de destination. Toutefois, les caractéristiques personnelles telles que le sexe, l’âge et le niveau d’éducation ont un impact significatif sur le revenu. / Studies on the economic integration of migrants in Canada have so far been oriented on international migrants. This paper is focusing on the results and characteristics of migrants who migrated within their own province between 1996 and 2007. In contrast to the difficulties of economic integration of international migrants, our research shows that intraprovincial migrants integrate into their new environment at an economic level slightly higher than the host population. The results obtained using the longitudinal component of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) reveal that intraprovincial migrants have a median annual income of 38 017$, an income slightly higher than that of non-migrants. Our study demonstrates that personal characteristics of migrants are much more important determinants of income. Men earn on average just over 10 000$ more per year than women, and this, among both migrants and non-migrants. The level of education is also a significant variable of income. The difference between the median income of migrants who have completed high school and those who have completed university is nearly 12 000$. Finally, we note that the age group 46-55 is the one that has the highest income while the age group 16-25 is the one with the lowest income. This research shows that the experience of migration can be very different depending on the point of origin and destination. However, personal characteristics such as gender, age and education level have a significant impact on income.