Migration-related Factors and Settlement Service Literacy: Findings from the Multi-site Migrants' Settlement Study

Andre M N Renzaho; Michael Polonsky; Adnan Yusuf; Ahmed Ferdous; Michael Szafraniec; Bukola Salami; Julie Green

doi:10.1007/s12134-023-01023-x

Migration-related Factors and Settlement Service Literacy: Findings from the Multi-site Migrants' Settlement Study

J Int Migr Integr. 2023 Mar 20:1-21. doi: 10.1007/s12134-023-01023-x. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Andre M N Renzaho^{1

2}, Michael Polonsky³, Adnan Yusuf³, Ahmed Ferdous³, Michael Szafraniec⁴, Bukola Salami⁵, Julie Green^{6

7

8}

Affiliations

¹ Translational Health Research Institute, School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown, NSW 2560 Australia.
² Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Program, Burnet Institute, Melbourne, 3004 Australia.
³ Deakin Business School, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, VIC 3125 Australia.
⁴ Multicultural NSW, 8/56 Station St E, Parramatta, NSW 2150 Australia.
⁵ Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB Canada.
⁶ Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Parkville, VIC Australia.
⁷ School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Penrith, NSW Australia.
⁸ Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC Australia.

Abstract

Migrants' access and effective utilisation of settlement services depend on their level of settlement service literacy (SSL). However, SSL is multi-dimensional in nature and has many facets that are influenced by demographic and migration-related factors. Identifying factors that drive various components of SSL, and thus allowing for more focused development of specific dimensions, is critical. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between components of SSL and migration-related and migrants' demographic factors. Using a snowball sampling approach, trained multilingual research assistants collected data on 653 participants. Data were collected using face-to-face or online (phone and via video platforms such as Zoom and Skype) surveys. Our findings suggest that demographic and migration-related factors explained 32% of the variance in overall SSL; and 17%, 23%, 44%, 8%, 10% of the variance in knowledge, empowerment, competence, community influence, and political components of SSL respectively. SSL was positively associated with pre-migration and post-migration educational attainment, being employed in Australia, being a refugee, coming from the sub-Saharan region but negatively associated with age and coming from the East Asia and Pacific region. Across SSL dimensions, post-migration education was the only factor positively associated with the overall SSL and all SSL dimensions (except the political dimension). Employment status in Australia was also positively associated with competency and empowerment, but not other dimensions. Affiliating with a religion other than Christianity or Islam was negatively associated with knowledge and empowerment whilst being a refugee was positively associated with knowledge. Age was negatively associated with the empowerment and competency dimensions. The study provides evidence of the importance of some pre- and post-migration factors that can assist in developing targeted initiatives to enhance migrants' SSL. Identifying factors that drive various components of SSL will allow for more focused development of specific dimensions and therefore is critical.

Keywords: Humanitarian migrants; Information; Literacy; Refugees; Settlement services; Settlement services literacy.