Five immigrant single mothers were interviewed to explore the dynamics of the relationship between immigrant single mothers and their children when they reunite in Canada. Difficulties, in attachment, parenting, and the transition into the new culture were identified. Immigration policies about foreign domestic workers and delays in emigration process were factors that prolonged separation between mothers and their children. The mothers agreed that separation from their children contributed to the difficulties, but physical and psychological preparation before reunification lessened the challenge. Loving and listening to children, and involvement in the Christian mono-ethnic community churches were identified as effective coping strategies. Culturally sensitive approaches by social workers with these clients are recommended.

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As people continue to immigrate to Canada, it is becoming more important to consider the many social challenges that migrant youth face upon their arrival. The purpose of this MSW thesis was to evaluate the subjective experience of adolescents in a welcoming class who participated in a video art pilot project. Twelve adolescents were interviewed using a semi-structured qualitative format after the end of the project. They reported enjoying the group work process, discovering each other's talents and learning new skills such as how to use a video camera. All of these responses echo the goals of the Positive Youth Development model. It is hoped this study will contribute to the social work literature regarding programs for migrant youth.

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Thesis (M.A.) - Carleton University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 96-100). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Little scholarly research has been done on the function of Germanism among Mennonites who immigrated to Canada from Russia in the 1920's, and what has been done often relies on an oversimplified "desire for separation" to explain the phenomenon. At the same time, it has been argued that the enthusiasm for Nazi Germany among Mennonite immigrants in Canada is to be understood as part of a larger "Volks-German awakening". In fact, the Mennonite experience of brutal treatment during the Bolshevik Revolution, the economic conditions of the Great Depression, and assinflationist pressures from Canadian society put them in a naturally receptive position for the cultural, political and ethnic ideas associated with the "new Germany". The Mennonite ethno-religious culture which had emerged in Russia appeared to be breaking down, more rapidly in some areas than others; at the same time, distinctions between political and cultural Germanism were just beginning to be understood, as they were bound up in a single "package" which seemed to offer answers to the problems of fragmentation, instability and loss of identity. Germanism, and the German language in particular, functioned as an instrument of socio-religious integration for the Russlaender Brethren in the 30 years after their arrival in Canada. In the interwar years, Mennonite Germanism took on certain political, "Volkish", and nationalistic overtones; by the end of the Second World War, these elements had largely faded. In the postwar period Germanism becomes more clearly identifiable in its primary role as symbol and agent of the distinctive configuration of religious faith, sense of peoplehood, and way of life which had emerged in Imperial Russia. The Germanism which was expressed in the Canadian context was in large part a conservative response to the challenges posed by the forces of assimilation and acculturation, the effects of anti-Germanism brought on by two World Wars, and an inherent tendency of the Brethren to identify with North American "English" evangelicalism and to denigrate their cultural heritage because it was felt to detract from effective evangelism. A variety of sources have been used in writing this thesis, including church records, newspapers, personal papers, interviews, conference minutes and school committee minutes, as well as a wide range of secondary sources, including unpublished theses, dissertations and papers. In addition to outlining the contours of Brethren Germanism itself, efforts have been made to portray adequately the context in which Brethren Germanism was expressed, including that of the Brethren constituency as a whole, other "evangelical" groups, and the larger social and political currents of Canadian society. Extending the analysis into the decades after 1945 adds conclusive evidence that the Brethren Germanism of the 1930's was related more to Mennonite goals and aspirations than those of Nazi Germany, despite the presence of a significant (misguided) sympathy for the Hitler regime. / Arts, Faculty of / History, Department of / Graduate

This study explores the psychological and social aspects of the experience of being disowned. Disownment can arise at two levels. At the intrapersonal level disownment is characterized by: the repression of emotions, needs, and aspects of one's personality. At the interpersonal level, disownment involves the complete break in social, emotional, economic, familial support and community relations. This paper examines the relationship between the two. Ten Indo-Canadian women who had experienced an aspect of disownment were interviewed. Results revealed that a variety of factors can precipitate this stressful event. How these women cope with the experience was determined by factors which either facilitated or hindered the adjustment process. From the analysis of the data, disownment not only resulted as a consequence of a life transition but it also emerged as a transitional process. The disownment model is presented to provide a framework for understanding this underlying process. The three stage model of disownment describes the: 1) anticipation of shift, 2) adjustment and 3) re-integration. Implications of the model for counseling and research are also discussed. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

A majority of refugee-immigrants experience a variety of psychological difficulties during their resettlement in a new country. Using a sentence completion method, this study tested a hypothesis that in a majority of refugee-immigrants the manifested difficulties were of temporary and transitional character. Eighty subjects completed 51-item Incomplete Sentence Blank questionnaires: 20 Canadian-born individuals, 20 refugee-immigrants living 1-3 years in Canada, 20 refugee-immigrants living 5-7 years in Canada, and 20 refugee-immigrants living in Canada over 8 years. All refugee-immigrants were of Czechoslovakian origin. Sample groups were matched in sex, age, and education of subjects. The questionnaire was designed to reflect different levels of satisfaction with self, others, and the whole environment. The responses were quantified and evaluated blindly by three independent judges; the higher score was expressing the higher subject's dissatisfaction. Analysis of variance and consequent multiple comparisons showed that the mean score of the sample of refugee-immigrants living in Canada 1-3 years was significantly higher than the mean scores of all other investigated samples; the differences in mean scores between other samples were not significant. In all sample groups, t-tests did not indicate significant differences in scoring between females and males. Fifty-one analyses of variance and multiple comparisons identified separate questionnaire items on which "new" immigrants scored significantly higher than all or some of other sample groups. These items highlighted the adaptive nature of difficulties experienced by the majority of "new" immigrants. Three brief case studies supported these results. Other related findings included suspicious attitudes found mainly in new immigrants, comments on questionnaire forms differentiating between samples, and the topic of "refugee dreams". All findings seem to indicate that for the majority of new refugee-immigrants the psychological difficulties experienced during their resettlement are of temporary and transitional character, a natural expression of their coping adaptive struggles in a new environment. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

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