Abstract
The scholarship on immigrant integration has tended to focus on the early period of settlement and to position immigrants as responsible for adapting to the labour market and the values and practices of the mainstream society in the host country. Normative individualised perspectives have neglected the role of other actors, the ongoing nature of integration, and the need for support to sustain it over time. This chapter addresses often neglected organising processes involved in the maintenance of immigrants’ integration during later life when they need to interact with and navigate through organisational care systems and gain assistance to ensure continued connection with a range of communities in the host society. Focusing on an Australian case study, the chapter outlines how multicultural policy has shaped the organisation of immigrant integration since the 1970s, before showing how government policies, funding, and practices operate in ways that homogenise older immigrants and shape how migrant support organisations work to facilitate and sustain continued integration. By applying the life course perspective to analyse interviews with organisational representatives who manage and support activities for older immigrants living at home, we show that integration is a multifaceted, dynamic process involving immigrants, society, and the state, and not short-term, linear, or unidirectional.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
CALD is an acronym commonly used in Australia to refer to the cultural and linguistic backgrounds and characteristics of Australian residents (ABS, 1999). It replaced the previously accepted nomenclature of Non-English-Speaking Background (NESB) (Sawrikar & Katz, 2009). CALD is used instead of terms used in the international literature, such as ethnicity, BAME (Black and Asia Minor Ethnicity); minority ethnic groups; race; and specific names of cultural backgrounds such as African, Asian, and Hispanic (Pham et al., 2021).
References
ABS. (1999). Standards for Statistics on Cultural and Language Diversity. Australian Bureau of Statistics.
ABS. (2014). 4102.0 Australian Social Trends Where do migrants live? Retrieved June 10, 2022, from https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Main+Features102014#:~:text=As%20the%20city%20with%20the%20largest%20overseas-born%20population,and%20businesses%20which%20draw%20in%20overseas%20migrants.%205
ABS. (2016). Cultural Diversity in Australia: 2016 Census Data Summary. Retrieved July 10, 2022, from https://www.abs.gov.au
Aged Care Sector Committee Diversity Sub-group December. (2017). Aged Care Cultural Diversity Framework, 12028.
Ager, Alistair; and Strang, Alison (2008). Understanding integration: A conceptual framework. Journal of Refugee Studies, 21(2), 166–191.
Ali, Mehrunnisa Ahmad; Zendo, Shamiram; and Somers, Shaina. (2021). Structures and strategies for social integration: Privately sponsored and government assisted refugees. Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies, 1–13.
Allotey, Pascale; Reidpath,Daniel; and Manderson, Lenore (2002). Addressing cultural diversity in Australian health services. Health Promotion Journal of Australia, 13(2), 29–33.
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). (2022). Australia’s Population by Country of Birth. Retrieved June 24, 2022, from https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/australias-population-country-birth/latest-release#key-statistics
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). (2021). Older Australians. Retrieved May 10, 2022, from https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/a49cf1b5-0a25-46a1-804b-ef38fa805af4/Older-Australians.pdf.aspx?inline=true
Bastos, João L.; Harnois, Catherine E.; and Paradies. Yin C. (2018). Health care barriers, racism, and intersectionality in Australia. Social Science & Medicine, 199, 209–218.
Becker, Sascha O. (2022). Forced displacement in history: Some recent research. Australian Economic History Review, 62(1), 2–25.
Brandhorst, Rosa; Baldassar, Loretta; and Wilding, Raelene (2019). The need for a ‘migration turn’ in aged care policy: A comparative study of Australian and German migration policies and their impact on migrant aged care. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 47(1), 249–266.
Braun, Virginia; and Clarke, Victoria (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101.
Brotman, Shari; Ferrer, Iiyan; and Koehn, Sharon (2020). Situating the life story narratives of aging immigrants within a structural context: The intersectional life course perspective as research praxis. Qualitative Research, 20(4), 465–484.
Carlsson, Hanna; and Pijpers, Roos (2021). Diversity-mainstreaming in times of ageing and migration: Implementation paradoxes in municipal aged care provision. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 47(11), 2396–2416.
Castles, Stephen; Vasta, Ellie; and Ozkul, Derya (2014). Australia: A classical immigration country in transition. In Hollifield, James F.; Martin, Philip L.; and Orrenius, Pia M. (Eds.), Controlling immigration: A global perspective (pp. 128–150). Stanford University Press.
Cherti, Myriam; and McNeil, Clare (2012). Rethinking integration. Retrieved May 10, 2022, from https://www.ippr.org/research/publications/rethinking-integration
Cheung, Sin Yi; and Phillimore, Jenny (2014). Refugees, social capital, and labour market integration in the UK. Sociology, 48(3), 518–536.
Colic-Peisker, Val (2009). Visibility, settlement success and life satisfaction in three refugee communities in Australia. Ethnicities, 9(2), 175–199.
Collins, Jock. (2013). Multiculturalism and immigrant integration in Australia. Canadian Ethnic Studies, 45(3), 133–149.
Crul, Maurice; Schneider; Jens; and Lelie, Frans (2013). Super-diversity. A new perspective on integration. VU University.
Daly, Mary; and Lewis, Jane (2003). The concept of social care and the analysis of contemporary welfare states. British Journal of Sociology, 51(2), 281–298.
Dannefer, Dale; and Settersten, Richard A. Jr. (2010). The study of the life course: Implications for social gerontology. In D. Dannefer (Ed.), The SAGE handbook of social gerontology (pp. 3–19). SAGE.
Department of Home Affairs. (2018). The multicultural access and equity policy guide for Australian government departments and agencies. Retrieved July 30, 2022, from https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/mca/PDFs/multicultural-access-equity-policy-guide.pdf#:~:text=The%20Multicultural%20Access%20and%20Equity%20Policy%20%28the%20policy%29,them%2C%20regardless%20of%20their%20cultural%20and%20linguistic%20backgrounds
Elder, Glen H. Jr. (1994). Time, human agency, and social change: Perspectives on the life course. Social Psychology Quarterly, 4–15.
Elias, Amanuel; Mansouri, Fethi; and Sweid, Reem (2021). Public attitudes towards multiculturalism and interculturalism in Australia. International Migration & Integration, 22, 1063–1084.
Entzinger, Han; and Biezeveld, Renske (2003). Benchmarking in immigrant integration: Report for the European Commission Immigration and Asylum Committee. European Research Centre on Migration and Ethnic Relations.
Erdal, Mardi Bivand; and Oeppen, Ceri (2013). Migrant balancing acts: Understanding the interactions between integration and transnationalism. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 39(6), 867–884.
Erel, Umet; and Ryan, Louise (2019). Migrant capitals: Proposing a multi-level spatio-temporal analytical framework. Sociology, 53(2), 246–263.
Ersanilli, Evelyn; and Koopmans, Ruud (2010). Rewarding integration? Citizenship regulations and the socio-cultural integration of immigrants in the Netherlands, France and Germany. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 36(5), 773–791.
Favell, Adrain (2001). Integration policy and integration research in Europe: A review and critique. In T. A. Aleinikoff & D. Klusmeyer (Eds.), Citizenship today: Global perspectives and practices (pp. 349–399). Brookings Institute/Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA). (2015). Review of Australian research on older people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. FECCA.
Ferrer, Illyan; Grenier, Amanda; Brotman, Shari; and Koehn, Sharon (2017). Understanding the experiences of racialized older people through an intersectional life course perspective. Journal of Aging Studies, 41, 10–17.
Fozdar, Farida; and Hartley, Lisa (2013). Refugee resettlement in Australia: What we know and need to know. Refugee Survey Quarterly, 32(3), 23–51.
Gońda, Marci; Pachocka, Marta; and Podgórska, Karolina (2021). Measuring the cultural dimension of migrant integration and integration policy in the European context: Dilemmas and discussions. International Migration, 59(1), 241–262.
Grenier, Amanda (2012). Transitions and the lifecourse: Challenging the constructions of ‘growing old’. Policy Press.
Harley, Kristen; Willis,Karen; Gabe, John; Short, Stephanie; Collyer, Fran; Natalier, Kristen; and Calnan, Michael (2011). Constructing health consumers: Private health insurance discourses in Australia and the United Kingdom. Health Sociology Review: The Journal of the Health Section of the Australian Sociological Association, 20(3), 306–320.
Hogan, Warren. P. (2004). Review of pricing arrangements in residential aged care. Commonwealth of Australia.
Holman, Daniel; and Walker, Alan (2021). Understanding unequal ageing: Towards a synthesis of intersectionality and life course analyses. European Journal of Ageing, 18(2), 239–255.
Karmel, Rosemary: Jenkins, Anne; Angus, Paul; Bowler, Evon; and Braun, Peter (2003). Ageing and aged care. In D. Gibson, Diane; Madden, Richard; and Stuer, Anny (Eds.), Australia’s welfare (pp. 275–329). Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
Kelaher, Margaret; and Manderson, Lenore (2000). Migration and mainstreaming: Matching health services to immigrants’ needs in Australia. Health Policy, 54(1), 1–11.
Kilkey, Majella; and Ryan, Louise. (2021). Unsettling events: Understanding migrants’ responses to geopolitical transformative episodes through a life-course lens. International Migration Review, 55(1), 227–253.
King, Russell; Thomson, Mark; Fielding, Tony; and Warnes, Tony (2006). Time, generations and gender in migration and settlement. In Penninx, Rinus; Berger, Maria; and Kraal, Karen (Eds.), The dynamics of international migration and settlement in Europe (pp. 233–267). Amsterdam University Press.
Klarenbeek, Lea M. (2019). Reconceptualising ‘integration as a two-way process’. Migration Studies, 9(3), 902–921.
Koirala, Subhash (2016). Refugee settlement in Australia and the challenges for integration. In Fan, Si; and Fielding-Wells, Jill (Eds.), What is next in educational research? (pp. 119–129). Sense Publishers.
Koleth, Elsa. (2010). Multiculturalism: A review of Australian policy statements and recent debates in Australia and overseas. Research Paper no. 6 2010–11, Social Policy Section. Retrieved December 08, 2022, from https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1011/11rp06
Levey, Geoffrey B. (2019). The Turnbull government’s ‘post-multiculturalism’ multicultural policy. Australian Journal of Political Science, 54(4), 456–473.
Liebergreen, Marama. (2008). Meeting the challenges of multicultural service delivery under neo-liberalism. In H. Babacan & N. Gopalkrishnan (Eds.), The complexities of racism: Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Racism in the New World Order (pp. 140–161). Queensland, University of the Sunshine Coast.
Liu, Shuang; Dane, Sharon; Gallois, Cindy; Haslam, Catherin; and Tran Le Nghi, Tran. (2020). The dynamics of acculturation among older immigrants in Australia. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 51(6), 424–441.
Liu, Shuang; Maher, Jessica; and Sheer, Vivian C. (2019). Through the eyes of older Chinese immigrants: Identity, belonging and home in a foreign land. China Media Research, 15(2), 39–49.
Martinovic, Borja; Van Tubergen, Frank; and Maas, Ineke. (2009). Changes in immigrants’ social integration during the stay in the host country: The case of non-Western immigrants in the Netherlands. Social Science Research, 38(4), 870–882.
Meissner, Fran; and Heil, Tilmann (2021). Deromanticising integration: On the importance of convivial disintegration. Migration Studies, 9(3), 740–758.
Modood, Tariq (2011). Multiculturalism, ethnicity and integration: Struggling with confusions. In H. Mahamdallie (Ed.), Defending multiculturalism: A guide for the movement (pp. 61–76). Bookmarks.
Modood, Tariq (2013a). Multiculturalism (2nd ed.). Polity Press.
Modood, Tariq (2013b). Post-immigration cultural diversity and integration. EUI Working Paper RSCAS 2013/61. European University Institute: San Domenico di Fiesole.
Parekh, Bhikhu C. (2000). Rethinking multiculturalism: Cultural diversity and political theory. Harvard University Press.
Park, Hong-Jae; Morgan, Tessa; Wiles, Janine; and Gott, Merryn (2019). Lonely ageing in a foreign land: Social isolation and loneliness among older Asian migrants in New Zealand. Health & Social Care in the Community, 27(3), 740–747.
Penninx, Rinus. (2019). Problems of and solutions for the study of immigrant integration. Comparative Migration Studies, 7(1), 1–11.
Penninx, Rinus; and Garcés-Mascareñas, Blanca (2016). The concept of integration as an analytical tool and as a policy concept. In B. Garcés-Mascareñas & R. Penninx (Eds.), Integration processes and policies in Europe: Contexts, levels and actors (pp. 11–29). Springer.
Pham, Thi Thu Le; Berecki-Gisolf, Janneke; Clapperton, Angela; O’Brien, Kerry S.; Liu, Sara; and Gibson, Katherine (2021). Definitions of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD): A literature review of epidemiological research in Australia. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(2), 737.
Phillimore, Jenny (2012). Implementing integration in the UK: Lessons for integration theory, policy and practice. Policy & Politics, 40(4), 525–545.
Powell, Glen Brian (2017). Building leadership capacity for social inclusion: Three case studies. Doctoral dissertation, Macquarie University, Sydney. Available at: http://hdl.handle.net/1959.14/1268363.
Radermacher, Harriet; Feldman, Susan; and Browning, Colette. (2009). Mainstream versus ethno-specific community aged care services: It’s not an ‘either or’. Australasian Journal on Ageing, 28(2), 58–63.
Ryan, Louise; Kilkey, Majella; Lörinc, Magdolna; and Tawodzera, Obert (2021). Analysing migrants’ ageing in place as embodied practices of embedding through time: ‘Kilburn is not Kilburn any more’. Population, Space and Place, 27(3), e2420.
Rytter, Mikkel (2018). Writing against integration: Danish imaginaries of culture, race and belonging. Ethnos, 84(4), 678–697.
Sagbakken, Mette; Storsein Spilker, Ragnhild; and Ingebretsen, Reidun. (2018). Dementia and migration: Family care patterns merging with public care services. Qualitative Health Research, 28(1), 16–29.
Sawrikar, Pooja; and Katz, Ilan (2009). How useful is the term “Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD)” in the Australian social policy discourse? Conference paper presented at the Australian Social Policy Conference, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 8 July.
Schinkel, Willem (2018). Against ‘immigrant integration’: For an end to neocolonial knowledge production. Comparative Migration Studies, 6, 31. Retrieved December 08, 2022, from https://doi.org/10.1186/s40878-018-0095-1
Scholten, Peter; Collett, Elizabeth; and Petrovic, Milica (2017). Mainstreaming migrant integration? A critical analysis of a new trend in integration governance. International Review of Administrative Sciences, 83(2), 283–302.
Settersten, Richard (2003). Normative structuring of the life course. In J. T. Mortimer & M. J. Shanahan (Eds.), Handbook of the life course (pp. 81–98). Kluwer Academic Press.
Spencer, Sarah; and Charsley, Katharine (2016). Conceptualising integration: A framework for empirical research, taking marriage migration as a case study. Comparative Migration Studies, 4(1), 1–19.
Spencer, Sarah; and Charsley, Katharine (2021). Reframing ‘integration’: Acknowledging and addressing five core critiques. Comparative Migration Studies, 9(1), 1–22.
Squires, Peter (2020). A scoping review of Australian studies of refugee integration: Popular definitions of integration in the Australian literature. Migration Studies, 8(1), 90–112.
Taksa, Lucy; and Groutsis, Dimitria (2010). Managing diverse commodities: From factory fodder to business asset. Economic and Labour Relations Review, 20(2), 77–98.
Taksa, Lucy; and Groutsis, Dimitria (2013). Managing diversity in the workplace: Considering the neglect of identity. In A. Jakubowicz & C. Ho (Eds.), ‘For those who’ve come across the seas ...’: Australian multicultural theory, policy and practice (pp. 183–197). Australian Scholarly Press.
Thomas, Trang (2003). Older migrants and their families in Australia. Family Matters, 66, 40–45.
Tonts, Matthew; and Haslam-McKenzie, Fiona (2005). Neoliberalism and changing regional policy in Australia. International Planning Studies, 10(3–4), 183–200.
Tran, Tran Le Nghi; Liu, Shuang; Gallois, Cindy; Haslam, Catherine; Jetten, Jolanda; and Dane, Sharon (2022). The diversity of social connectedness experiences among older migrants in Australia. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 89, 208–222.
Vacchelli, Elena; and Mesarič, Andreja (2021). Diversity as discourse and diversity as practice: Critical reflections on migrant women’s experiences of accessing mental health support in London. Identities, 28(4), 418–435.
Vertovec, Steven (2007). Super-diversity and its implications. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 30(6), 1024–1054.
Walsh, James. P. (2014). The marketization of multiculturalism: Neoliberal restructuring and cultural difference in Australia. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 37(2), 280–301.
Warburton, Jeni; Bartlett, Helen; and Rao, Visala (2009). Ageing and cultural diversity: Policy and practice issues. Australian Social Work, 62(2), 168–185.
Wessendorf, Susanne; and Phillimore, Jenny (2019). New migrants’ social integration, embedding and emplacement in superdiverse contexts. Sociology, 53(1), 123–138.
Willis, Eileen; Dong Xiao, Lily; Morey, Wendy; Jeffers, Lesley; Harrington, Ann; Gillham, David; and De Bellis, Anita (2018). New migrants in residential aged care: Managing diversity in not-for-profit organisations. Journal of International Migration and Integration, 19(3), 683–700.
Wilmoth, Janet (2004). Social integration of older immigrants in 21st century America. Center for Policy Research 14. Retrieved December 08, 2022, from https://surface.syr.edu/cpr/14
Wilson, Tom; Temple, Jeromey; Brijnath, Bianca; McDonald, Peter; and Utomo, Ariane. (2021). Projections of older European migrant populations in Australia, 2016–56. Journal of Population Ageing, 1–25.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Franklin, M., Taksa, L., Guo, F. (2023). Older Immigrants’ Integration: Organisational Processes and Practices in the Australian Context. In: Diedrich, A., Czarniawska, B. (eds) Organising Immigrants' Integration. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26821-2_12
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26821-2_12
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-26820-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-26821-2
eBook Packages: Business and ManagementBusiness and Management (R0)