Integration into Canadian Society: Immigration, Language and Sense of Belonging
Date
2021-05-04
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Abstract
Language allows individuals to place themselves in the world, telling others about who they are and allowing them to claim membership to multiple groups (Skinner et al., 2001, pp. 14-15). People engage in a never-ending process of claiming, rejecting, searching for and constructing an identity. In the context of immigration, identity negotiation is affected by language and structures of expectations that regulate how discourse is organized. This study examines narratives of immigration through the theories of sense of belonging and structures of expectation to understand the role of language in immigrants’ sense of belonging. The research focused on understanding to what extent language influences the establishment of immigrants’ relations of belonging to Canadian society and determines the ways in which immigrants’ feelings of belonging are affected by their structures of expectations. Data was collected through five digital storytelling workshops with 19 immigrants in the city of Calgary. NVivo (Qualitative Data Analysis Software) and Critical Narrative Analysis (CDA) were used to organize, code and analyze the data collected. The findings shed light on how language affects immigrants’ sense of belonging and how multiple frames, such as integration discourses and individuals’ experiences, affect everyday interaction. This study presents an argument against integration and in favor of developing a sense of belonging for immigrants based on the need for a joint effort of all members of the community to create a safe space in which differences and diversity are recognized, celebrated and encouraged.
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Keywords
immigration, integration, sense of belonging, structures of expectation, digital storytelling
Citation
Barrios Gomez, H. R. (2021). Integration into Canadian Society: Immigration, Language and Sense of Belonging (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.