A Strong Sense Of Belonging in Atlantic Canada & Ontario

Sense of belonging to a nation, specifically as an immigrant, has been a trusted method for measuring social integration, national identification, & feelings of acceptance that one is at home in Canada. 

The 2020 GSS, i.e., General Society Survey conducted by Statistics Canada, offers some insight into the Canadian territories & provinces where immigrants are likely to report a strong sense of belonging to the nation. 

According to the survey, newcomers in Ontario & Atlantic-Canadian provinces demonstrated a higher likelihood of reporting a strong sense of belonging to Canada. Meanwhile, the inverse was accurate for those who settled in Alberta & BC.   

Below is a detailed review of the 2020 GSS. 

Factors Influencing An Immigrant’s Sense Of Belonging  

Factors influencing an immigrant’s sense of belonging include post-migration experiences, which provide positive feedback, like the feeling of being accepted in the country & having opportunities for success. 

In addition, the survey suggests that other factors that might impact ‘cross-provincial variation’ among immigrants include the following: 

• Immigrant Sociodemographics

Sociodemographic factors include the number of years since immigration, the age of an individual at the time of immigration, immigration admission category, & population group they are immigrating into. 

Long-term differences in the settlement patterns of newcomers have led to differences in the sociodemographic composition of immigrant populations in every province. These compositional differences might have implications for cross-provincial variation.

• Immigrant Composition 

Other factors at play come under the ‘immigrant composition’ category. Every Canadian province has a different proportion of their total population, which comprises of recent immigrants. 

For instance, in 2021, the share of newcomers ranged from 14% in BC & Ontario to 30% in Atlantic provinces & Saskatchewan. 

Note: This survey represents that a region’s immigrant composition is impactful for the sense of belonging because such sentiment is weaker among newcomers as compared to long-term immigrants. This implies that the sense of belonging increases with time. Thus, the regional average for this might be stronger in provinces with more long-term immigrants. 

• Feelings Of Acceptance

Because of differences in the size of numerous ethnic groups within a province’s immigrant population, newcomers in some regions face ‘exclusionary experiences’, while others might feel the opposite. Since both exist on opposite poles, discrimination is a key factor in how likely a newcomer reports a sense of belonging in their home province.

• Structural Factors 

There is a major provincial difference across Canada with respect to ‘structural factors’, like employment, educational opportunities, economic diversity, etc. All of them influence the acculturation as well as the incorporation of newcomers. 

In addition, structural factors are also referred to as socioeconomic conditions in the territories & provinces. 

Results Of 2020 GSS 

The data from Statistics Canada 2020 GSS indicates considerable differences among immigrants concerning their sense of belonging. 

Here is a table indicating the percentage of probability of immigrants reporting this sentiment by province of residence. 

Immigrants residing in Ontario & Atlantic Provinces reported a strong sense of belonging, whereas this sentiment was relatively weak among immigrants in BC & Alberta. 

Moreover, the difference in this sentiment between immigrants in Ontario & Alberta is a function of Alberta’s immigrant composition. In simpler terms, the study suggests that if the factors mentioned above were equal, the proportion of immigrants in Alberta with this sentiment would have been similar to that in Ontario. 

Meanwhile, the difference in the reported sense of belonging between immigrants in Ontario & BC wasn’t just explained by the factors mentioned above. As per this study, immigrants in BC were about 11 percentage points less likely to report a strong sense of belonging as compared to immigrants in Ontario.