Western Settlement
Outcomes Survey
Leah Hamilton, Victoria Esses, Lori Wilkinson, & Li Zong
with Janine Bramadat & Jill Bucklaschuk
Pathways to Prosperity 2013 Annual Conference
November 16, 2013
Objectives

To examine immigrants’ settlement and integration
experiences and outcomes

Four provinces of the new Western CIC region

To provide information that may inform policies,
programs, services, and resources to improve settlement
outcomes

Focus today on use of internet, desire for pre-arrival
information, economic integration, and feelings of
belonging
Methodology

2936 immigrants

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
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British Columbia: 744 respondents
Alberta: 729 respondents
Saskatchewan: 713 respondents
Manitoba: 750 respondents


Minimum 18 years of age
Living in one of the western provinces for 3-60 months
Permanent resident in Canada within last 5 years
Margin of error +/- 4%; confidence level of 95%
Contact information provided by CIC
Methodology
Computer-assisted telephone interviewing
 Social Sciences Research Laboratories (U Sask)



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Manitoba
British Columbia
30,060 calls (27% response rate)
Population Research Laboratory (U of A)



Alberta
Saskatchewan
18,103 calls (38% response rate)
Methodology
Survey Instrument
 Subset of questions from Alberta Settlement Outcomes
Survey (edited to CLB5)


6 new questions added
Majority used 7-point scales

English, French, Mandarin, Punjabi, Spanish
PRL surveys: 90% completed in English

23 minutes to complete

Respondents
Respondents


Age range 18-85 years (M = 37, SD = 10)
51% women, 49% men
Length of Time in Province
30
25
Percent
20
15
10
5
0
Under 12 months
12-23
24-35
36-47
48-59
60 months & over
Immigration Category
40
35
30
Percent
25
20
15
10
5
0
Skilled worker or
professional
Family class
Provincial nominee
Refugee
Other
Information Needs & Use;
Use of Internet
Where Settlement Information was
Accessed
70
60
Percent
50
40
30
20
10
0
Where Family and Friends Obtained
Information
50
45
40
Percent
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Ease of Internet Use Pre-Arrival
70
60
Percent
50
40
30
20
10
0
1 (not at all
easy)
2
3
4
5
6
7 (extremely
easy)
Ease of Internet Use Within First 6
Months After Arrival
70
60
Percent
50
40
30
20
10
0
1 (not at all
easy)
2
3
4
5
6
7 (extremely
easy)
Services Useful Prior to Arrival
60
Percent
50
40
30
20
10
0
Economic Integration
Current Employment Status
60
50
Percent
40
30
20
10
0
Hourly Income
35
30
Percent
25
20
15
10
5
0
Skill Utilization
30
25
Percent
20
15
10
5
0
1 (not at all)
2
3
4
5
6
7 (extremely)
Difficulty in Finding a Job that Makes
Use of Qualifications
25
20
Percent
15
10
5
0
1 (not at all
difficult)
2
3
4
5
6
7 (extremely
difficult)
Sense of Belonging
Sense of Belonging to Local Community
30
25
Percent
20
15
10
5
0
1 (very weak)
2
3
4
5
6
7 (very
strong)
Sense of Belonging to Canada
35
30
Percent
25
20
15
10
5
0
1 (very weak)
2
3
4
5
6
7 (very strong)
Recommendations for Further Analyses

Additional analyses are required before definitive program
and policy advice can be provided


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Cross-tabulations by demographic and other factors
Multivariate analyses
Comparisons across provinces
Acknowledgements



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


CIC, Western Region
CIC, NHQ
Martin Gaal, Project Coordinator
Joseph Garcea, Project Facilitator
SSRL
PRL
Intergovernmental advisory committee
Questions?
The full report is available on the P2P website:
http://p2pcanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Western-Settlement-Outcomes-Survey.pdf