Attending to immigrants’ everyday activities: A new perspective on ensuring Asian immigrants’ quality of life

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: The quality of Asian immigrants’ lives is significant to the harmony of New Zealand society where, at the 2013 Census, 11.8% of its residents identified as Asian. However, settlement can be stressful for new Asian immigrants because moving to a country with a different culture can disrupt most of their familiar routines, and it is strongly associated with marginalisation and isolation from society. Recognising these challenges, social workers have positioned themselves at the forefront of efforts to improve Asian immigrants’ quality of life.METHOD: An occupational perspective is applied to underpin an examination of Asian immigrants’ participation in Aotearoa New Zealand society. Occupational science is a basic social science grounded in the notion that people engage in occupations for their existence and that the drive to be occupied has evolutionary, psychological, social, and symbolic roots.CONCLUSIONS: This article suggests an occupational perspective as a new analytic framework which has the potential to give social workers clearer insight into the realities which Asian immigrants encounter; consequently, increasing their ability to support Asian immigrants’ full participation into a new society.

“Knocking on the door to integration”: Korean immigrants’ stories of seeking membership in Aotearoa New Zealand society

“…Despite immigration being a global phenomenon in the 21st century, there are replicated findings that the age of immigration (Castles & Miller, 2009) arrived without society's readiness to live together (Wright-St Clair et al, 2017), with the resultant socio-economic marginalisation of immigrants and ethnic divisions in society (Ho, 2015;Kim & Hocking, 2016).…”

“…The majority of Aotearoa New Zealand's Korean immigrants live in the greater Auckland region. Many are monolingual and rely heavily on ethnic resources to continue their lives in the host society (Kim & Hocking, 2016) with a hybrid Korean-New Zealand identity (Epstein, 2006). These demographic characteristics result in their encountering a range of constraints in transition, including language barriers, disruption of support networks, and difficulty in employment, leading to Korean immigrants' social isolation and economic marginalisation (Chang et al, 2006;Kim & Hocking, 2018).…”

“…It is therefore necessary to understand their unique challenges and needs in relation to facilitating their participation in society. Despite the availability of a small number of studies relating to the degree of acculturation, identity, cultural beliefs, and employment (Chang et al, 2006;Epstein, 2006;Kim & Hocking, 2016;Park & Anglem, 2012), the issues related to Korean immigrants' settlement have been sparsely heard or addressed. Questions concerning the meaning Korean immigrants attach to their life in their new country still remain unanswered.…”

“…Despite Aotearoa New Zealand's ethnic diversity, racial inequality still exists (Cheyne et al, 2008), limiting Asian immigrants' options for making healthy lifestyle choices. Scholars also report that discrimination, racism and even hostility prevail towards Asian immigrants, and this prejudiced social reception closely relates to their socio-political marginalisation, creating formidable barriers to equal citizenship (Ho, 2015;Kim & Hocking, 2016). In the light of this, the social work profession can offer itself as a strong ally to this population, reducing the inequalities faced by this group through its strong advocacy for social justice and human rights (Palattiyil et., 2019;Viola et al, 2018).…”

“…In response, the New Zealand Settlement Strategy was launched in 2004 with a belief that "New Zealand's prosperity is underpinned by an inclusive society, in which the local and national integration of newcomers is supported by responsive services, a welcoming environment and a shared respect for diversity" (Department of Labour, 2004, p. 9). Nevertheless, there are replicated reports that Asian immigrants find participation in society to be challenging due to the complexity of the acculturation process (Ho, 2015), coupled with a prejudiced social reception towards them (Kim & Hocking, 2016), while Aotearoa New Zealand's sociopolitical systems are ill-prepared to serve their needs for participation (Wright-St Clair et al, 2017).…”