Manlin Cai & Yue Qian
WPS 2022/1
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Abstract
In light of the growing racialized immigrant population in Canada and advances in dating technologies, this study examines Chinese immigrants’ partner preferences and partner selection processes through the lens of online dating. We draw on in-depth interviews with 31 Chinese immigrants who have used online dating services in Metro Vancouver to search for different-sex partners. Chinese immigrant online daters show strong preferences for dating Chinese. They emphasize permanent residency status and similarity in age at arrival when evaluating potential partners. Given their preferences, Chinese immigrants strategically choose the dating platforms they primarily use. Men exhibit higher selectivity in their preferences and choices of platforms. Notably, platforms catering to Chinese users create “digital enclaves” where Chinese immigrant daters congregate. The findings illuminate the intersection of race, gender, immigrant status, and age at arrival in shaping divergent experiences of partner selection and immigrant integration in the digital era.
KEYWORDS: integration, Chinese, gender, immigration, partner selection, online dating
“How has exposure to COVID-19 affected prejudice and discrimination towards refugees and migrants? While there have been several early studies of individual attitudes and behaviors in response to the pandemic, this research has almost all been limited to advanced economies in the Global North. We know very little about the impact of COVID-19 on everyday life in the Global South, where weaker healthcare systems and preexisting inequalities likely exacerbate negative health, economic, and social outcomes. Our proposed study will examine whether Colombian citizens have shifted their attitudes towards migration.
For this study, we conduct a panel survey (pre- and during COVID-19) in Colombia. In fall 2019, we conducted face-to-face surveys with about 1,000 Colombians on their attitudes about Venezuelan migrants. In winter 2021, we re-interview the same respondents using computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI). We assess how their COVID exposure has changed their attitudes, especially in light of the additional strain presented by COVID-19 on public healthcare systems and other public services as well as on the labor market. ”
Research Partners
Yang-Yang Zhou, UBC
Margaret Peters, UBC
Danial Rojas Lozano, UBC