Post-War Immigrants in Canada

One of the cardinal assumptions of Canadian immigration policy in the post-war period was that British immigrants would be more readily absorbed than those from other countries. In accordance with this belief, the Canadian government offered special encouragement to these immigrants in the form of fewer formalities, speedier procedures for obtaining visas and an active promotional campaign in England.

This study compares and contrasts the economic and social integration of British immigrants in Canada with those from other countries. Based on two surveys, the first covering a representative cross-section of post-war immigrants of all nationalisms throughout Canada, the second conducted in Britain following up a sample of British immigrants who had returned home, this investigation offers explanations for the low rate of naturalization and high rate of return to the United Kingdom of the British in Canada. The surveys show that these people remained ambivalent towards Canada although outwardly they successfully fulfilled their economic and social roles in Canadian society; they were not dissatisfied with life in Canada; rather they are part of a growing labour force of well-educated people who are internationally mobile and have no deep roots anywhere.

The author questions whether traditional ideas of “assimilation” and “integration: can be applied to migrants of this kind, whether British or of another nationality. These people who were most satisfied and identified closely with Canada were often those who had experienced the hardest struggle to establish themselves in the new country. In this study the author puts forward an entirely new sociological theory to support his observations.

An important contribution to the sociological study of immigration, this book will be of interest to all those in Canada concerned with the practical implications of Canada’s immigration policy, and especially to immigrants themselves. Its findings are also of relevant to readers in Britain, the United States, Australia and elsewhere who are concerned about their own country’s policy.