Social Capital and Ethno-Cultural Diverse Immigrants: A Canadian Study on Settlement House and Social Integration

With ethno-culturally diverse immigrants arriving in constantly increasing numbers, connecting newcomers to residents in the local community is a growing challenge. Settlement houses have traditionally been the “machinery of connection” that bridges such diverse groups. This article reports the results of a study on settlement houses in an urban center located in western Canada. The results show that by embracing bridging as their mission, promoting volunteering, and providing holistic services to meet needs, settlement houses have successfully helped newcomers build cross-group social ties and integrate into the community.