The late 1980s saw the onset of a rapid expansion of Chinese immigration into Australia. While this influx of Chinese migrants has produced a proliferation of research on the more affluent migrants from Hong Kong and Taiwan, studies on migrants especially women from the People's Republic of China (PRC) have remained few and far between. Among those few studies on PRC-born migrant women, all of them identified settlement stress and its health implications as a major concern among PRC-born migrant, yet there has been little concerted effort on why this is the case, particularly in the area of health needs and solutions. Considering the increasing presence of PRC-born migrant women in Australia, there is a clear need for a comprehensive in-depth investigation into their settlement stress, to address their social and health needs and to provide solutions. This study aims to examine in-depth the PRC-born migrant women's settlement experience in Brisbane, focusing especially on their stress, social and health needs. This study employed both qualitative and quantitative methods. Since this study paid more attention to these migrant women's own life experiences, it is mainly a qualitative one, using informant interview, focus group and in-depth interviews to explore how best their stress could be alleviated. Quantitative method is based on secondary data analysis to provide a community profile of PRC-born migrant women in Brisbane and Queensland. This study firstly draws on literature reviews to explain historical, social, cultural and gender based factors underpinning PRC-born migrant women's settlement stress and health status. Findings reviews that settlement stress comes from social isolation and loneliness; cultural difficulties; lack of support prior to and after childbirth, as well as assistance with childcare; conflicts in both marital and familial relations; academic stress; and finally, problems in utilising public transport. Particularly, this study highlights that downward mobility; barriers to access health services; and language barriers are a major source of stress and the cause of health problems for PRC-born migrant women when settling in Brisbane. As strategies, this study adapts health promotion strategies named as empowerment framework and Ottawa Charter action framework to address the needs highlighted in this study. Settlement stress affects health particularly mental health. Strategies provided in this study can also help migrant women from other non-English speaking countries. More significantly, this study encourages governments and service providers to pay more attention to migrant women's settlement processes in order to help them integrate into Australian society smoothly and quickly.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Abstract This thesis examines the experiences of Korean migrant women (KMW) in the Australian labour market. A review of the extant literature leads to two propositions, both of which assert that KMW are likely to experience labour market disadvantage or barriers to entry. These propositions take into account two significant theories of the labour market: segmentation theory and human capital theory. Segmentation theory argues that unchangeable gender and racial / cultural differences have the greatest impact upon labour market value, human capital theory describes the labour market value of individuals as based upon apparently objective and attainable skills (here English language skills). Using narrative analysis and, more specifically, antenarrative analysis, the study examines the life stories of 33 Australian KMW. In so doing, it identifies hitherto unheard discourses concerning the experiences of KMW in relation to the Australian labour market — discourses that challenge established academic thinking regarding this issue. Identification and analysis of these new discourses generates a number of alternative understandings of the labour market experiences of KMW. These alternative understandings both demonstrate the limitations of, and go beyond, the existing two propositions. In particular, the research shows that the impacts of gender and culture (segmentation theory) vary over time for KMW, do not always prevent labour market participation, and are experienced in terms of identity within a gendered Australian labour market. The research also demonstrates that while many KMW are in fact sufficiently skilled in the English language (human capital theory) to enter the Australian labour market, they nevertheless experience a sense of inferiority about their English language capacity that discourages them from entering, and limits their opportunities to participate in, the labour market. This in turn contributes to their social isolation. The thesis concludes that within the Australian academic literature, KMW have either been given little space and voice or have been misrepresented, reflecting and contributing to an ongoing ignorance of the experiences of Asian women in Australian workplaces. The KMW examined in this study are subject to numerous forms of subordination in Australian workplaces and society that cannot be adequately explained in terms of their human capital or their gender and cultural differences. The covert nature of the politics of difference within the work place makes exclusionary practices more difficult to identify and discuss. The thesis argues that in order to overcome these problems new policies of multiculturalism and productive diversity need to be developed. It asserts that narrative analytic techniques are an important means by which to inform such policy development. Abstract This thesis examines the experiences of Korean migrant women (KMW) in the Australian labour market. A review of the extant literature leads to two propositions, both of which assert that KMW are likely to experience labour market disadvantage or barriers to entry. These propositions take into account two significant theories of the labour market: segmentation theory and human capital theory. Segmentation theory argues that unchangeable gender and racial / cultural differences have the greatest impact upon labour market value, human capital theory describes the labour market value of individuals as based upon apparently objective and attainable skills (here English language skills). Using narrative analysis and, more specifically, antenarrative analysis, the study examines the life stories of 33 Australian KMW. In so doing, it identifies hitherto unheard discourses concerning the experiences of KMW in relation to the Australian labour market — discourses that challenge established academic thinking regarding this issue. Identification and analysis of these new discourses generates a number of alternative understandings of the labour market experiences of KMW. These alternative understandings both demonstrate the limitations of, and go beyond, the existing two propositions. In particular, the research shows that the impacts of gender and culture (segmentation theory) vary over time for KMW, do not always prevent labour market participation, and are experienced in terms of identity within a gendered Australian labour market. The research also demonstrates that while many KMW are in fact sufficiently skilled in the English language (human capital theory) to enter the Australian labour market, they nevertheless experience a sense of inferiority about their English language capacity that discourages them from entering, and limits their opportunities to participate in, the labour market. This in turn contributes to their social isolation. The thesis concludes that within the Australian academic literature, KMW have either been given little space and voice or have been misrepresented, reflecting and contributing to an ongoing ignorance of the experiences of Asian women in Australian workplaces. The KMW examined in this study are subject to numerous forms of subordination in Australian workplaces and society that cannot be adequately explained in terms of their human capital or their gender and cultural differences. The covert nature of the politics of difference within the work place makes exclusionary practices more difficult to identify and discuss. The thesis argues that in order to overcome these problems new policies of multiculturalism and productive diversity need to be developed. It asserts that narrative analytic techniques are an important means by which to inform such policy development.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Abstract This thesis examines the experiences of Korean migrant women (KMW) in the Australian labour market. A review of the extant literature leads to two propositions, both of which assert that KMW are likely to experience labour market disadvantage or barriers to entry. These propositions take into account two significant theories of the labour market: segmentation theory and human capital theory. Segmentation theory argues that unchangeable gender and racial / cultural differences have the greatest impact upon labour market value, human capital theory describes the labour market value of individuals as based upon apparently objective and attainable skills (here English language skills). Using narrative analysis and, more specifically, antenarrative analysis, the study examines the life stories of 33 Australian KMW. In so doing, it identifies hitherto unheard discourses concerning the experiences of KMW in relation to the Australian labour market — discourses that challenge established academic thinking regarding this issue. Identification and analysis of these new discourses generates a number of alternative understandings of the labour market experiences of KMW. These alternative understandings both demonstrate the limitations of, and go beyond, the existing two propositions. In particular, the research shows that the impacts of gender and culture (segmentation theory) vary over time for KMW, do not always prevent labour market participation, and are experienced in terms of identity within a gendered Australian labour market. The research also demonstrates that while many KMW are in fact sufficiently skilled in the English language (human capital theory) to enter the Australian labour market, they nevertheless experience a sense of inferiority about their English language capacity that discourages them from entering, and limits their opportunities to participate in, the labour market. This in turn contributes to their social isolation. The thesis concludes that within the Australian academic literature, KMW have either been given little space and voice or have been misrepresented, reflecting and contributing to an ongoing ignorance of the experiences of Asian women in Australian workplaces. The KMW examined in this study are subject to numerous forms of subordination in Australian workplaces and society that cannot be adequately explained in terms of their human capital or their gender and cultural differences. The covert nature of the politics of difference within the work place makes exclusionary practices more difficult to identify and discuss. The thesis argues that in order to overcome these problems new policies of multiculturalism and productive diversity need to be developed. It asserts that narrative analytic techniques are an important means by which to inform such policy development. Abstract This thesis examines the experiences of Korean migrant women (KMW) in the Australian labour market. A review of the extant literature leads to two propositions, both of which assert that KMW are likely to experience labour market disadvantage or barriers to entry. These propositions take into account two significant theories of the labour market: segmentation theory and human capital theory. Segmentation theory argues that unchangeable gender and racial / cultural differences have the greatest impact upon labour market value, human capital theory describes the labour market value of individuals as based upon apparently objective and attainable skills (here English language skills). Using narrative analysis and, more specifically, antenarrative analysis, the study examines the life stories of 33 Australian KMW. In so doing, it identifies hitherto unheard discourses concerning the experiences of KMW in relation to the Australian labour market — discourses that challenge established academic thinking regarding this issue. Identification and analysis of these new discourses generates a number of alternative understandings of the labour market experiences of KMW. These alternative understandings both demonstrate the limitations of, and go beyond, the existing two propositions. In particular, the research shows that the impacts of gender and culture (segmentation theory) vary over time for KMW, do not always prevent labour market participation, and are experienced in terms of identity within a gendered Australian labour market. The research also demonstrates that while many KMW are in fact sufficiently skilled in the English language (human capital theory) to enter the Australian labour market, they nevertheless experience a sense of inferiority about their English language capacity that discourages them from entering, and limits their opportunities to participate in, the labour market. This in turn contributes to their social isolation. The thesis concludes that within the Australian academic literature, KMW have either been given little space and voice or have been misrepresented, reflecting and contributing to an ongoing ignorance of the experiences of Asian women in Australian workplaces. The KMW examined in this study are subject to numerous forms of subordination in Australian workplaces and society that cannot be adequately explained in terms of their human capital or their gender and cultural differences. The covert nature of the politics of difference within the work place makes exclusionary practices more difficult to identify and discuss. The thesis argues that in order to overcome these problems new policies of multiculturalism and productive diversity need to be developed. It asserts that narrative analytic techniques are an important means by which to inform such policy development.

This thesis aims to investigate and illuminate lived experiences, cultural representations, and organizational conditions that influence the way therapists in Swedish psychiatry receive and treat migrant women. This overall aim is pursued through two distinct but interlinked part-studies. The aim of the first of these is to examine migrant women’s perceptions of mental (ill-) health along with their actual experiences of therapy in Swedish psychiatry. The aim of the second part is to describe and explain how therapists, in their organizational work conditions, interpret and experience their professional encounters with migrant women.   The thesis is based on qualitative interviews with twelve migrant women and eleven therapists in psychiatry. The result show that the migrant women experience health and mental health through a sense of belonging. Non-belonging, isolation and estrangement will point to the other direction i.e. not having health. The migrant women may gain a sense of belonging to society through therapy. However there are also obstructions on this path to belonging. The therapists, in psychiatry, seeing migrant women are doing emotion work comparable to physical labor. As the production is expected to increase due to marketing principles it puts a demand of acceleration on the therapists emotion work. They, thus have to find strategies to manage their emotion work. Everyday resistance thus becomes a way to gain emotional energy and to avoid emotional numbing and burnout. It is also gives openings to be content with their work with their patients and thereby to be able to offer an adequate reception of migrants into treatment in psychiatry. The thesis contributes to the gap in research by focusing on the borderlands between migrant women’s lived experiences of social suffering and the receiving therapists’ possibility to meet their migrant patients’ request. / This thesis aims to investigate and illuminate lived experience and organizational conditions that influence the way therapists in Swedish psychiatry receive and treat migrant women. This overall aim is divided into two separate but interlinked part-studies. The main body of the thesis is based on interviews with migrant women as well as therapists in psychiatry. The result show that the migrant women are searching for belonging in the host society. One way of searching for belonging is through therapy in psychiatry. However the work pace in health care and psychiatry is increasing and the therapists are struggling with giving a decent reception of migrants. In order to manage the heavy emotion work the therapists oppose the accelerating work pace by doing resistance in their everyday work. This thesis contributes to gap in research on the borderlands between lived experiences of social suffering odf migrant women as well as the lived experiences of the work conditions that make it possible to care for another person

Sex trafficking is a global phenomenon affecting mainly women. This phenomenon is highly apparent in Greece, where thousands of migrant women end up trafficked. In order to understand why this happens, it is important to know the underlying causes of it. Therefore, this researched aimed to find the reasons why migrant women end up as sex trafficking victims in Greece. This was done through primary material gathering, in form of interviews with anti-trafficking agents in Greece, followed by a theme analysis, finding six key themes with reasons why migrant women are trafficked. These were, Vulnerability (of migrant women), Greece as the Portal to the EU, Government Deficiency, Hostility and Segregation (hostility of Greek national towards migrants which leads to their segregation), Trafficking as a Profitable Industry and Cultural Gender Oppression. To further analyze these themes, a triangulation method was used, which compared these results to previous literature on the issue and then further problematized it through different migration and gender-related theories.

This thesis examines the pop cultural representation of white-collar migrant women (WCMW) through the popular Chinese TV series Ode to Joy. Focusing on various aspects of their lives, this TV series raises many issues about the experiences of WCMW, including perceptions of them as “outsiders” in the megacity, gender inequality, and the tensions between female migrant identity and urban status. This study analyzes those issues by drawing on intersectional theories which examine structural inequalities from the perspective of the interactions of multiple axes of social categories. This thesis asks three major questions: In what way does Ode to Joy represent the experiences of WCMW?; To what extent do issues raised in Ode to Joy impact the wellbeing of WCMW in large cities?, and; What are the “joys” in Ode to Joy for WCMW? In addition to collecting data from the TV series, this study interviewed WCMW informants to provide first-hand accounts of their experiences in an urban culture. By critically analyzing the representation of WCMW characters’ experiences in Ode to Joy, this thesis provides insights on understanding the status of those women in a contemporary Chinese urban setting, thereby filling a gap in academic literature on the pop cultural representation of China’s white-collar migrant women in a Chinese megacity. / Graduate

This study set out to investigate how mobile money apps facilitate the maintenance of interpersonal relationships and transnational communication practices among migrant women entrepreneurs. Mobile money apps such as MamaMoney, MoneyTrans and Mukuru are a form of communication that are relevant and beneficial to the unbanked migrant women entrepreneurs in South Africa. The main research question was: how do mobile money apps facilitate the maintenance of interpersonal relationships and transnational communication practices among migrant women entrepreneurs? The methodology was informed by a feminist qualitative approach to three focus group discussions with fifteen participants from Nigeria, Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo. A thematic analysis of transcriptions of focus group discussions was conducted and two broad themes were identified. The first broad theme explores the communicative dimensions of money transfer through mobile money apps by migrant women entrepreneurs, particularly in relation to their roles as mothers, daughters, sisters and friends in the diaspora. The second broad theme is the use of mobile money apps to solicit emergency funds and financial support during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings indicate that mobile money apps have reshaped communication practices of migrant women entrepreneurs by enhancing interpersonal communication and facilitating social practices. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the two-way nature of bonds of mutual support amongst migrants. This study also draws on the idea of remittance scripts (Carling, 2014). Remittance scripts are a helpful way to conceptualise remittances as social transactions that take several different forms. The theoretical frameworks used in this dissertation are reverse remittances (Mazzucato, 2011), networked individualism (Raine and Wellman, 2012) and polymedia (Madianou and Miller, 2013). The importance of reverse remittances during the COVID-19 period highlights reciprocal bonds of social saving when eMWEs used mobile money apps to solicit financial help and emergency relief when they were unable to work due to the COVID-19 outbreak in South Africa. Reverse remittances also highlight the shift in power relations and the need for communication between eMWEs' and their families and friends at home. As suggested by Kusimba et al., (2015) the application of networked individualism in modern African societies is used in this study to understand how mobile money apps have afforded eMWEs with personal communication channels in addition to household-centred communication around money. Polymedia is used in this study to understand how eMWEs use mobile money apps in conjunction with the complementary affordances of other platforms such as WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook, which compensate for limitations of mobile money apps.

Yes

Yes / Introduction Despite the interconnectedness of the European Union, there are significant variations in pregnant women’s legal status as migrants and therefore their ability to access maternity care. Limited access to maternity care can lead to higher morbidity and mortality rates in migrant women and their babies. This study aimed to investigate and compare maternal health access policies and the context in which they operate across European countries for women who have migrated and are not considered citizens of the host country. Methods The study adopted a mixed-methods research design exploring policies on migrant women’s access to maternity care across the migration regimes. Data were extracted from legal documents and research reports to construct a new typology to identify the inclusiveness of policies determining access to maternity care for migrant women. Results This study found inconsistency in the categorisation of migrants across countries and significant disparities in access to maternity care for migrant women within and between European countries. A lack of connection between access policies and migration regimes, along with a lack of fit between policies and public support for migration suggests a low level of path dependency and leaves space for policy innovation. Discussion Inequities and inconsistencies in policies across European countries affect non-citizen migrant women’s access to maternity care. These policies act to reproduce structural inequalities which compromise the health of vulnerable women and newborns in reception countries. There is an urgent need to address this inequity, which discriminates against these already marginalised women. / This article is based upon work from COST Action IS1405 BIRTH: “Building Intrapartum Research Through Health—An interdisciplinary whole system approach to understanding and contextualising physiological labour and birth” (http://www.cost.eu/COST_Actions/isch/IS1405), supported by EU COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology). The work of Alena Pařízková was supported by project Migration and maternal health: pregnancy, birth and early parenting (The Czech Science Foundation, grant 16-10953S). Open access publishing supported by the National Technical Library in Prague.

The main purpose of this study was to investigate factors and mechanisms of resilience among Turkish migrant women in the UK. For this purpose, qualitative and quantitative methods were used in combination. The quantitative study examined the role of perceived discrimination and social support, psychological distress, and integration acculturation attitude in predicting empowerment scores as the indication of resilience among Turkish migrant women in the UK. Demographic characteristics of education level, perceived English language level and residence status were controlled. The quantitative sample of the study consisted of 248 Turkish migrant women in London, while the qualitative sample of the study included 11 women who were selected among the participants of the quantitative study. Data collection instruments used in the quantitative study included, a demographic data form, Social Support Scale (Cohen &amp / Willis, 1985 / Soyg&uuml / t, 1989), General Health Questionnaire (Goldberg, 1972 / Kili&ccedil / , 1996), Acculturation Attitudes Scale (Ataca &amp / Berry, 2002), and Empowerment Scale (Sciarappa, Rogers, &amp / Chamberlin, 1994). The qualitative data were collected through narrative interviews by using an interview schedule that consisted of topics like migration story/process, experiences in the UK, coping processes/mechanisms, opportunities, discrimination, language and relationships, gender related experiences, changes in life, and social support networks. Results of the hierarchical regression analysis revealed that the model of linear combinations of educational level, perceived English language level and residence status of participants, perceived discrimination, perceived social support, distress level and integration acculturation attitude significantly explained 38.5% of the total variance in empowerment scores. Among all individual predictor variables, having medium and high educational level, having higher levels of perceived social support and integration attitude, and having lower level of psychological distress were found associated with higher empowerment scores, and thus with higher resilience among Turkish migrant women in the UK. In the qualitative study, the documentary method was used to analyse the transcribed interviews. Results revealed that migration process, language, accommodation, marriage and relationship with husband, social relationships, ties and friends, children and motherhood, losses, husband&rsquo / s family, loneliness and belongingness, Turkish community, health problems and experiences with health services, and discrimination are the important risk and/or protective factors in the resilience of Turkish migrant women. Results also revealed that having or developing an educational orientation is an important protective factor for Turkish migrant women in the host country. Qualitative findings also showed that although almost all women used some strategies to cope with the demands of their lives in a new country, this process went beyond coping and corresponded to transformation and, in turn, resilience for some women.