Albertans’ Views on Immigration

Michelle Maroto | University of Alberta | maroto@ualberta.ca 

Lori Thorlakson | University of Alberta | thorlaks@ualberta.ca 

June 12, 2020

Introduction

The following presents results from the 2019 Viewpoint Alberta Study (1) regarding perspectives around immigrants and immigration in Alberta. The survey data highlight some conflicting views around immigration in Alberta. While we see general support for immigration and recognition of its benefits to Canada, as well as an acknowledgment of the discrimination that immigrants face, we see support for policies such as automatic citizenship for the children of immigrants and concerns that immigration might harm job prospects to be divided by party affiliation.

Survey data highlight conflicting views around immigration in Alberta.

Discrimination and Government Help

Figure 1 presents survey results regarding perceptions of discrimination against immigrants and government  help for immigrants in Alberta. Most participants believed that immigrant groups experienced at least some  discrimination on a regular basis. Approximately 55% of respondents indicated that immigrants experienced a  "little" or a "moderate" amount of discrimination. Thirty-five percent thought that immigrants experienced "a  lot" or "a great deal" of discrimination, and 9% thought that immigrants experienced no discrimination at all.  

In terms of government support for immigrants, 44% of respondents believed that government was providing  about the right amount of help, 19% thought that the government was providing not enough help, and 37%  thought that the government was providing too much help.

Figure 1: Perceptions of discrimination against immigrants and government help for immigrants in Alberta

These views were divided by political affiliation. Figure 2 breaks down these responses by respondent's political  affiliation in terms of whether they supported the United Conservative Party (UCP), New Democratic Party  (NDP), Liberal Party, or another party. This figure highlights important disparities in views around discrimination  and government support, as well as similarities across certain parties. 

UCP and Other party supporters tended to view discrimination against immigrants as less of a problem than NDP  and Liberal supporters. Among UCP, Liberal, and Other party supporters, respondents were most likely to report  that immigrants experienced a moderate degree of discrimination. Of NDP supporters, however, 56% responded  that immigrants faced "a great deal" or "a lot" of discrimination, with 26% reporting a moderate degree.  

NDP supporters were the most likely group to indicate that the government does not do enough to help  immigrants, and UCP supporters were the most likely to say that the government does too much. Thirty-two percent of NDP supporters said that the government did not do enough, compared to 29% of Liberals, 23% of  other party supporters, and 7% of UCP supporters. In contrast, 48% of UCP supporters said that the government  does too much, compared to 34% of other party supporters, 27% of NDP supporters, and 21% of Liberals.

Figure 2: Perceptions of discrimination against immigrants and government help for immigrants in Alberta by political affiliation

Broader Views on Immigration

In addition to questions about discrimination and government help, the survey also asked about views regarding immigration's effects on job prospects for Canadians, whether immigration was good for Canada, and whether respondents supported automatic citizenship for children of immigrants. Figure 3 summarizes these responses.

Although most respondents thought immigration was good for Canada, many were 

concerned that immigration would hurt job prospects for Canadians.

Most respondents believed that immigration was good for Canada. Sixty-two percent answered "somewhat good" or "very good" to this question. Respondents also supported automatic citizenship for the children of immigrants. Sixty-two percent answered "somewhat support" or "strongly support" to this question. However, responses were more varied for the question of how likely it is that immigration hurts job prospects for Canadians. Although 25% of respondents thought it was not likely at all that immigration hurt job prospects, 38% thought it was either very or extremely likely. The rest of the respondents were split between answers of "a little likely" (17%) and "moderately likely" (21%).

Figure 3: Views on Immigration in Alberta

Figure 4: Views on immigration in Alberta by political party affiliation

Figure 4 breaks down these responses by political party affiliation. The top panel presents the results for the question of, "does immigration hurt job prospects for Canadians?", the middle panel presents results for the question of, "is immigration good for Canada?", and the bottom panel presents results for the question of, "do you support automatic citizenship for children of immigrants to Canada?". Here, we see that Liberal party identifiers are the most likely to agree that immigration is ‘very good’ for Canada; we also see that Liberal identifiers are most likely to either strongly or somewhat support automatic citizenship for the children of immigrants. At the same time, it is NDP identifiers who are least likely to report that immigration harms job prospects.

Summary

Overall, we see a mixed picture of views on immigration, marked by clear partisan divisions. While a majority of respondents across all party affiliations believe that immigration is good for Canada, a majority of respondents who identify as UCP, Other, or Liberal party supporters believe it to be at least moderately likely that immigration hurts job prospects. While a majority of respondents support automatic citizenship for children of immigrants, only 48% of UCP identifiers agree with this.

Methodology of the Viewpoint Alberta Survey

The Viewpoint Alberta Survey was conducted between October 22 and November 21, 2019. The survey was deployed online by Qualtrics. A copy of the survey questions can be found here: https://bit.ly/2PvQV2C. Qualtrics coordinates the survey with an online panel system that targets registered panelists who meet the demographic criteria for the survey. Survey data are based on 820 total responses (number varies across questions) with a 17-minute average completion time. The Viewpoint Alberta Survey was led by co-principal investigators Jared Wesley and Loleen Berdahl. It was funded by an Alberta-Saskatchewan Research Collaboration Grant from the Kule Institute for Advanced Study at the University of Alberta and the College of Arts and Science at the University of Saskatchewan.

Endnotes

1. The Viewpoint Alberta Survey was funded by an Alberta-Saskatchewan Research Collaboration Grant from the Kule  Institute for Advanced Study (University of Alberta) and the College of Arts and Science (University of Saskatchewan). The survey was completed for the research team, led by co-principal investigators Loleen  Berdahl and Jared J. Wesley. Neither the funding bodies nor the research team is responsible for the analyses  or interpretations presented here.