In recent decades, the Aboriginal population in Canada has become increasingly urbanized. Urbanization has been accompanied by high rates of mobility between reserve/rural and urban areas, as well as within cities. While research has documented Aboriginal peoples’ mobility rates, little attention has been given to mobility experiences, and an understanding of the socio-political and historic context in which mobility is set remains underdeveloped. Furthermore, little is known about the impact of mobility on movers’ holistic health (i.e., physical, mental, emotional, spiritual), and while research has suggested that mobility may impact access to urban social and health services, little is known in this area. The objectives of this dissertation are therefore to examine: the broader motivations that shape mobility, the link between mobility and health as well as service use, and to produce a more comprehensive understanding of the relationship between service providers and movers. These objectives are addressed using multiple methods. Quantitative analyses of the 2006 Aboriginal Peoples Survey identified mobility as a significant correlate of conventional (physician/nurse) and traditional (traditional healer) health care use. In order to explore nuanced links between mobility, health, and urban service delivery, a collaborative, community-based research relationship was established with an urban Aboriginal-led organization and 46 in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with Aboriginal service providers, non-Aboriginal service providers, and urban Aboriginal movers in the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. These research findings reveal the importance of service delivery that actively supports urban Aboriginal movers, and demonstrates the relationship between mobility and holistic health as well as service access in urban areas. Furthermore, current scales of service delivery are found to be insufficient for meeting the needs of mobile urban Aboriginal populations. Despite these findings, urban Aboriginal movers are maintaining important networks of support between their points of origin and destination, and are creating new spaces of engagement within cities.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:OTU.1807/43739 |
| Date | 14 January 2014 |
| Creators | Snyder, Marcie Rachel |
| Contributors | Wilson, Kathi |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | en_ca |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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