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Does Living in a Neighbourhood With Others of the Same Ethnic Background Contribute to Health of Canada’s Immigrant Children?

  • Quantitative Research
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Canadian Journal of Public Health Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objectives

To understand how neighbourhood characteristics affect the health of immigrant children in Canadian cities. We question whether the health of children is influenced by immigrants living in enclaves of people with similar ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds.

Methods

Two datasets were used: the New Canadian Children and Youth Study (NCCYS) and Statistics Canada census data. The NCCYS comprises children from Hong Kong, the Philippines and Mainland China living in Canada’s largest cities. Logistic regression was used to examine the influence of neighbourhood ethnic concentrations and mean income on health.

Results

Girls were more likely to be reported to have excellent health compared to boys, as were children living in neighbourhoods with lower mean parental education. Children from Hong Kong were less likely to have excellent health compared to the reference group. For the Mainland Chinese group only, there was an inverse relationship between reported health status and the concentration of people from the same ethnic background in the neighbourhood.

Conclusion

The health of children from different ethnic backgrounds is influenced by different social and economic factors. In practice and in research, “immigrants” and even broadly defined cultural groupings, such as “Asian immigrants”, should be considered as heterogeneous.

Résumé

Objectifs

Comprendre l’effet des caractéristiques du quartier sur la santé des enfants immigrants dans les villes canadiennes. Nous nous demandons si la santé des enfants immigrants est influencée par le fait qu’ils vivent dans des enclaves de gens aux antécédents ethniques et socioéconomiques semblables.

Méthode

Nous avons utilisé deux jeux de données: celles de la Nouvelle Étude canadienne sur les enfants et les jeunes (NECEJ) et celles du Recensement de Statistique Canada. La NECEJ comprend des enfants de Hong Kong, des Philippines et de la Chine continentale vivant dans les plus grandes villes du Canada. Nous avons procédé par régression logistique pour examiner les influences de la composition ethnique du quartier et du revenu moyen sur la santé.

Résultats

Les filles étaient plus susceptibles d’être déclarées en excellente santé que les garçons, tout comme les enfants vivant dans des quartiers avec un niveau moyen de scolarité parentale inférieur. Les enfants ayant émigré de Hong Kong étaient moins susceptibles d’être en excellente santé que le groupe témoin. Dans le groupe de la Chine continentale seulement, nous avons observé une relation inverse entre l’état de santé déclaré et la concentration de gens de la même ethnie dans le quartier.

Conclusion

La santé des enfants de différents antécédents ethniques est influencée par divers facteurs sociaux et économiques. Dans la pratique comme dans la recherche, les ªimmigrants« et même les groupes culturels au sens large, comme les ªimmigrants asiatiques«, devraient être considérés comme des groupes hétérogènes.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Room 9-387, 3333 University Way, Prince George, BC, V2N 4Z9, Canada

    M. Anne George PhD (Assistant Professor)

  2. Child & Family Research Institute, Vancouver, BC, Canada

    M. Anne George PhD (Assistant Professor)

  3. School of Population & Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

    M. Anne George PhD (Assistant Professor)

  4. University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, BC, Canada

    M. Anne George PhD (Assistant Professor)

  5. Sociology Department, Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Surrey, BC, Canada

    Cherylynn Bassani PhD

Authors
  1. M. Anne George PhD
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  2. Cherylynn Bassani PhD
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to M. Anne George PhD.

Additional information

Acknowledgements: This paper is a product of the New Canadian Children and Youth Study (Morton Beiser, Principal Investigator; Robert Armstrong, Linda Ogilvie, Jacqueline Oxman-Martinez, Site PIs), a national longitudinal survey of the health and well-being of more than 4,000 newcomer immigrant and refugee children living in Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver. The NCCYS is a collaboration between a large team of more than 25 investigators, two national coordinators, other research staff, community advisors, and students affiliated with four Canadian Metropolis Centres of Excellence for research on immigration and settlement, and community organizations representing 17 different immigrant/refugee populations across Canada. National project funding is provided by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). Site-specific funding is provided by: the federal departments of Canadian Heritage; Citizenship and Immigration Canada; Health Canada; Justice Canada; Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research; B.C. Ministry of Social Development and Economic Security; B.C. Ministry of Multiculturalism and Immigration; Conseil Québécois de la Recherche Sociale; OASIS (CIC); and the Montreal, Prairies, and Toronto Metropolis Centres of Excellence for research on immigration and settlement.

Conflict of Interest: None to declare.

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George, M.A., Bassani, C. Does Living in a Neighbourhood With Others of the Same Ethnic Background Contribute to Health of Canada’s Immigrant Children?. Can J Public Health 104, e482–e486 (2013). https://doi.org/10.17269/cjph.104.4101

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.17269/cjph.104.4101

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