Gender, International Training and Ethnic Visibility: An Intersectional Approach to Studying Engineers in Canada.

Konnikov, Alla

Gender, International Training and Ethnic Visibility: An Intersectional Approach to Studying Engineers in Canada.

dc.contributor.advisor	Wallace, Jean Elizabeth
dc.contributor.author	Konnikov, Alla
dc.contributor.committeemember	Wong, Lloyd L.
dc.contributor.committeemember	McLean, Scott
dc.contributor.committeemember	Hughes, Karen E.
dc.contributor.committeemember	Sherer, Peter D.
dc.date	2019-11
dc.date.accessioned	2019-09-18T21:00:34Z
dc.date.available	2019-09-18T21:00:34Z
dc.date.issued	2019-09-17
dc.description.abstract	Engineering in Canada has a large proportion of internationally-trained professionals. This reflects the rapid globalization of many professional fields in nations that have migration policies designed to attract the "best and brightest". Engineering is also a highly male-dominated field where women are tokens (below 15%) who may face a "chilly climate" as a result of their numeric underrepresentation and perceived occupational "inappropriateness". Empirical research that examines the transferability of immigrants' skills often highlights the risk of occupational mismatch or underemployment. Research on immigrant engineers' careers is usually restricted to studying men, and the career prospects of immigrant women engineers are understudied. This dissertation aims to address this gap by using intersectionality as a framework to examine immigrant women's combined vulnerabilities as internationally-trained professionals re-establishing their careers in a new country and as female tokens in a male-dominated field. Drawing on the nationally-representative 2006 Canadian census data, a series of multinomial logistic regressions are carried out to predict the likelihood of individuals with engineering training being successful in gaining entrance to: (1) the Canadian labour market; (2) the field of engineering; and (3) advanced positions within the engineering field. The intersection of gender, origin of training and ethnic visibility is examined by modeling the combined interacting effects of these three status variables. The results demonstrate that gender and, immigration and visible minority statuses work as independent and intersecting forces. Women, immigrants and visible minorities, each, are at a disadvantage in obtaining these different career outcomes. The intersections between the statuses create complex and diverse trajectories of disadvantage showing that the experiences of immigrant women engineers cannot be understood by studying immigrant men or women as a homogeneous group. Specifically, immigrant women are at a cumulative disadvantage in their chances of obtaining any employment, employment in engineering, and securing advanced positions within the field. Moreover, the analysis suggests that the cumulative disadvantage of immigrant and visible minority female engineers is produced by different forces. The results of this study highlight the relevance of the intersectionality framework in studying immigrant women professionals and offers important methodological considerations in studying occupational match versus mismatch.	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Konnikov, A. (2019). Gender, International Training and Ethnic Visibility: An Intersectional Approach to Studying Engineers in Canada. (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.	en_US
dc.identifier.doi	http://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/37073
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/1880/111008
dc.language.iso	eng	en_US
dc.publisher.faculty	Arts	en_US
dc.publisher.institution	University of Calgary	en
dc.rights	University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.	en_US
dc.subject	engineers, immigrant women engineers, skilled immigrants, female tokens, intersectionality	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Sociology	en_US
dc.title	Gender, International Training and Ethnic Visibility: An Intersectional Approach to Studying Engineers in Canada.	en_US
dc.type	doctoral thesis	en_US
thesis.degree.discipline	Sociology	en_US
thesis.degree.grantor	University of Calgary	en_US
thesis.degree.name	Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)	en_US
ucalgary.item.requestcopy	false	en_US