Abstract

Today's modern world is experiencing a great exchange of people, which has implications for the immigrant identity as well as the national identity of the countries to which they move. Ethnic enclaves are neighborhoods in urban areas that have a high ethnic population and/or a specific cultural identity. Enclaves are predominately composed of immigrant populations and can provide them with networks of social capital, knowledge, economics, and culture and may impact their integration process into a new host society. This research study explores the influence of ethnic enclaves on the immigrant integration process and immigrants' navigation of personal and national identity through case studies in Columbus, Ohio and France. The research focuses on the degree of immigrants' integration based on six factors of the immigrant life experience: level of language proficiency of the host country, employment status, education level, income level, specific attachment to certain racial and/or ethnic groups, and amount of time spent in the host country. This study seeks to understand the diversity of the immigrant integration process and critically analyzes the differences of this process between the United States and France. By utilizing data collected through seven interviews, the present study indicates that not all immigrants need to rely on ethnic enclaves for such support, specifically those immigrants with high levels of educational attainment or skill as entrepreneurs.

Advisor

Kardulias, Nick

Department

Sociology and Anthropology

Disciplines

Demography, Population, and Ecology | Inequality and Stratification | Race and Ethnicity | Sociology

Keywords

immigration, immigrant(s), ethnic enclave, race, ethnicity, Columbus, France, identity, integration

Publication Date

2017

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis Exemplar

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© Copyright 2017 Caitlin Ziegert McCombs