Measuring the spatial integration of the China-born population in Australia, 1981-2016
Date
2019
Authors
Guan, Qing
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Springer
Abstract
The China-born population have a long history of migrating to and settling in Australia,
and have recently grown to become the third largest overseas-born population.
To measure their integration in Australia, a spatial perspective is adopted in this
paper. Spatial distribution is an important indicator of immigrants' integration in the
host country and is linked to their socioeconomic integration. It is generally agreed
that the more concentrated immigrants distribute, the less integrated socioeconomically
they are; the more immigrants' spatial distribution patterns mirror the local
population, the more integrated they are. Distributions of mainland Chinese population
at sub-national levels are examined. Using coefcient of variation and index of
dissimilarity, spatial integration patterns of the China-born population in Australia
are analyzed over time, across age groups and immigrant cohorts, and against those
of other birthplace groups using 1981-2016 Australian census data. Changes in the
distribution of China-born immigrants substantiate the 'contrasting' dispersion-concentration
picture uncovered in earlier Australian censuses. With the infux of international
students and skilled migrants, results from spatial integration analyses show
a slow but uninterrupted improvement in the China-born immigrants' spatial integration
after the 2001 Census. In the spatial analysis across immigrant cohorts, it is
found that the interaction between cohort characteristics and lengths of residence in
Australia is likely an important factor infuencing the spatial distribution patterns of
mainland Chinese. Findings of the study contribute to the knowledge of immigrants'
spatial distribution and integration in the host country, especially in the context of
Australia and a context of broader Chinese diaspora in major immigration countries.
Description
Keywords
Citation
Collections
Source
Journal of Population Research
Type
Journal article
Book Title
Entity type
Access Statement
License Rights
Restricted until
2037-12-31
Downloads
File
Description