Sense of place attitudes and quality of life outcomes among African residents in a multicultural Australian society

Exploring the place attachments of older migrants in Aotearoa: A life course history approach

Migrants are faced with the task of creating a sense of home in a new context. As migrants grow older in their host countries, they are also making important decisions on where to live out the rest of their lives, making salient the places they attach themselves to. Place attachment, and its subcomponents of place identity and place dependence, are concepts that have been explored in the ageing and migration literature, demonstrating that positive, emotional attachments to places are positively correlated with better health outcomes. Although it has been established that individuals' attachments to places are dynamic, multidimensional and change over the life course, there is a paucity of research exploring the place attachments of migrants as they age using a life course approach. This study adopted a life course approach to investigate how the components of place attachment shifted over time for migrant people in Aotearoa New Zealand as they aged, and to better understand the mechanisms and barriers to establishing a sense of home in a foreign land. We examined the narratives of ten older migrants (65 years or older) who migrated to Aotearoa before the age of 50. Key findings illustrated that all participants had strong place identities (i.e., explicit self-identification and sense of belonging) to their countries of origin before migrating to Aotearoa, all participants developed strong place dependence (i.e., fulfilment of functional needs) to Aotearoa over their life course, but not everyone was able to develop place identity to Aotearoa. Mechanisms such as language, cultural attitudes, and values can both facilitate and prevent attachments to either home or host country. These results uncover how Aotearoa's ageing migrants negotiate their attachments to places over the life course.

Effects of Living Conditions, Subjective Integration, and Social Networks on Health-Related Quality of Life among the Migrant Elderly Following Children in Jinan, China

With accelerated urbanization in China, an increasing number of the migrant elderly following children (MEFC) have appeared. This study aims to explore the effects of living conditions, subjective integration, and social networks on the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of MEFC in Jinan, China. HRQOL was assessed by the 12-item Short-Form Health Survey, which included the mental component summary (MCS) and the physical component summary (PCS). Univariate analyses and binary logistic regression were used to investigate the association between the above indicators and HRQOL. A total of 656 MEFC were selected by multi-stage cluster random sampling, 25.2% and 25.0% of whom were defined as poor MCS and poor PCS, respectively. Those who understood the local dialect, could trust others, and connected with friends were more likely to have good MCS; those with a nanny, faulty elevator, and no support from their spouse were the reverse. MEFC who were trans-city, had no elevator or a faulty elevator, and went to the hospital alone were more likely to have poor PCS; those who approved of living conditions in their hometowns were the reverse. Results indicated that better living conditions, stronger subjective integration, and wider social networks led to higher HRQOL of MEFC. Implications of the government, communities, and families of MEFC were given to improve their HRQOL.

Definitions of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD): A Literature Review of Epidemiological Research in Australia

Objective: To identify how Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) communities are defined in epidemiological research in Australia and provide a definition of CALD status that aids the consistency and interpretability of epidemiological studies. Methods: Peer-reviewed literature from January 2015 to May 2020 was searched via four databases (Ovid Medline combined with PubMed, Embase, Emcare, and CINAHL) to identify quantitative studies of CALD people in Australia. Results: A total of 108 studies met the criteria for inclusion in the review. Country of birth was the most commonly used CALD definition (n = 33, 30.6%), with combinations of two or more components also frequently used (n = 31, 28.7%). No studies used all the components suggested as core to defining CALD status. including country of birth, languages other than English spoken at home, English proficiency, and indigenous status. Conclusions: There was considerable inconsistency in how CALD status was defined. The review suggests that CALD status would best be defined as people born in non-English speaking countries, and/or who do not speak English at home. Additionally, indigenous peoples should be considered separately. This recommended definition will support the better identification of potential health disparity and needs in CALD and indigenous communities.