Regional effects on the mental health of immigrant children: Results from the New Canadian Children and Youth Study (NCCYS)

Children in immigrant families from Hong Kong, Mainland China, and the Philippines living in Toronto and Montreal are at higher risk of Emotional Problems than children in immigrant families in Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver (Beiser et al., 2010). The current publication explores human capital, social capital, institutional receptivity, and perceptions of welcome as explanations for regional disparities. Parent's lack of linguistic fluency, and depressive symptoms provided the most likely explanation for Montreal's mental health disadvantage. Immigrant human and social capital, poor home-school relationships, marginalization, and lack of neighborhood organization contributed to the prediction of risk for emotional problems among immigrant children in Toronto, but may not fully account for differences between Toronto and Vancouver.