The Role of Language in Immigrants Social and Psychological Integration

• In Event: Innovations and Applications in Qualitative Content Analysis

Abstract

In the face of ever-increasing global mobility, countries worldwide face a growing need to design and implement mechanisms for the integration of immigrants. One factor that has received increasing attention in numerous countries is the facilitation of integration by fostering the acquisition of “civic skills,” and in particular local language proficiency. Consequently, language training has become a pivotal component of many civic integration programs. Yet despite substantial investments in language training to promote immigrants' integration, the existing evidence on the impact of immigrants' language proficiency on overall integration remains limited and inconclusive. Moreover, the current literature primarily emphasizes economic outcomes, creating a notable gap in understanding the role of language in immigrants' socio-psychological integration. Limited studies suggest that civic integration policies, particularly the language training component, as well as language proficiency more generally, may not consistently contribute to immigrants' socio-psychological integration. While one perspective suggests that proficiency promotes integration by overcoming language barriers, another strain of research highlights the "integration paradox," proposing that more-educated immigrants with higher language skills may be more attuned to societal inequalities, leading to heightened perceptions of discrimination.
This paper aims to shed light on the debate the role of language in promoting immigrant socio-psychological integration by turning to the perspectives of the immigrants themselves. I draw on a year of fieldwork among non-Jewish migrants in Israel, including ethnographic participant observation as an instructor in Hebrew language classes facilitated by a local Israeli NGO for asylum seekers and refugees, as well as in-depth, semi-structured interviews with a diverse sample of non-Jewish immigrants, including both asylum seekers and migrant workers residing in Israel. The findings of this study illuminate the intricate relationship between immigrants' local language learning and proficiency and their socio-psychological integration, revealing both benefits and costs associated with language learning. On the positive side, individuals with enhanced local language proficiency exhibit a greater willingness to engage meaningfully with members of the host community, fostering an elevated sense of self-value and efficacy. However, this positive aspect is accompanied by notable costs, including heightened levels of perceived discrimination, frustration, and anger. This was particularly pronounced among immigrants with greater local language proficiency, as well as for those who held expectations that local language learning would positively impact the attitudes and behavior of receiving society members. Furthermore, while enhanced proficiency diminishes immigrants’ sense of foreignness by easing day-to-day interactions, it concurrently amplifies awareness of discrimination and social barriers, adding complexity to the overall impact on immigrants' socio-psychological integration.
This study contributes to debates on immigrant integration in several ways: It deepens our understanding of how language functions as either a bridge or a barrier in the establishment of meaningful intergroup connections, providing valuable insight into the influence of linguistic skills on immigrants' feelings of acceptance and belonging, a dimension that has received limited empirical attention until now. Second, the study investigates the role of local language learning and proficiency in immigrants' perceptions of discrimination and exclusion, highlighting how language skills can contribute to feelings of frustration, disappointment, and anger. Lastly, this research aims to present a more nuanced conceptualization of socio-psychological integration, expanding beyond narrow indicators that have traditionally measured this construct. This has implications both for theory and policy-making on civic integration programs to facilitate immigrant integration.

Author

• Amit Leibson, Hebrew University of Jerusalem