RESUME DOCUMENT RC 003 014 ED 026 157 By-Abramson, Jane A. Rural to Urban Adjustment (Ontario). Canadian Minister of Forestry and Rural Development, Ottawa Branch, Edmonton (A1berta). Spons Agency-Canadian Agricultural and Rural Development Act Repor t No- ARD AP -37003; ARR -RE-4 Pub Date May 68 Note-172p. EDRS Price MF-$0.75 HC-$8.70 Economic Factors, Interviews, Participant Descriptors-*Adjustment (to Environment), Conflict Resolution, Farm Residents, Rural Urban Differences, Characteristics, *Predictive Measurement, *Relocation, *Rural *Urban Immigration Identifiers-*Saskatchewan . in Saskatoon, with 100 former farm operators living Personal interviews understand the nature of the Saskatchewan, were conducted in an attempt to to urban surroundings. rural adjustment process caused by migration from respondents had owned or in the study were that Requirements for inclusion left their farms within 10 years of the operated a farm for at least 3 years, had of and still in the labor force at the time interview, and were below retirement age process, and decision migration the characteristics, Pre-migration migration. determine if urban adjustment could be post-migration adjustment were analyzed to developed based on the predicted prior to migration. A predictive index was work experience, previous variables of educational level, previous non-agricultural and selectivity in choosing a geographic mobility, type of migration decision process, new location. (JH) - - ,. ANI, ) JUSTMENT URBAN RURAL TO U.S. DEPARTMENT Of HEALTH, EDUCATION & WELFARE OFFICE OF EDUCATION THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRODUCED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM THE PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIGIbilTING IT. POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT OFFICIAL OFFICE Of EDUCATION POSITION OR POLICY. RURAL TO URBAN ADJUSTMENT by JANE A. ABRAMSON, M.A. Canadian Centre for Community Studies, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan This project was initiated and financed by the RuraZ DeveZop- ment Branch, Department of For- estry and RuraZ DeveZopment, Ottawa, under the AgricuZturaZ and RuraZ DeveZopment Act. ARDA Project #37003 May 1968 Published under the authority of Minister of Forestry and Rural Development Ottawa, 1968. FOREWORD It is more Parliament. ARDA is more than an Act of planners and researchers; than policymakers, administrators, be de- than resources that need to more than problems; more of improving It is, above all, a means veloped or reorganized. the con- helping them to rise above the lot of rural people, of their and stifle their hopes for ditions that cramp their lives children. demands this, if it is to work well, A program such as communi- all levels - family, understanding and co-operation at needed, To know what is and national. ty, regional, provincial That demands research and study. and how the needs may be met, been federal and provincial, has is why so much effort, both That is also the reason why as many put into ARDA research. have involved in ARDA, should people as possible, among those of the research. access to the results administration has undertaken to The federal ARDA reports that provide useful publish and distribute research deci- only for those who make the background information, not those who out the decisions and sions, but for those who carry in this The research study reported them. are affected by Govern- Adjustment, was sponsored by the volume, RuraZ to Urban ment of Canada. /14 V* 110 g Maurice Sauvé Minister of Forestry and Rural Development Canada ii PREFACE This study provides a much needed understanding of what happens when families struggle with the decision to give up farming, and how this struggle carries over and influences adjustments following migration into an urban milieu. Students of urban poverty have been warning us that rural migrants are destined to become the new urban poor unless corrective measures are taken. As a social-psychologist, Mrs. Abramson has studied the decision-making process involved in a variety of situations in which choices are made by individuals. Her data suggest that the rural migrants of today and tomorrow are likely to be not only poor but socially and psychologically disadvantaged. Mrs. Abramson has gone to some trouble in spelling out the institutional and personal conditions necessary to make urban adjustment a rewarding experience for the rural migrant. Although governments have a vital role to play in both institu- tional and personal decisions to change, they are dependent upon community action to remove or reduce many crippling dis- advantages associated with migration. Governments and communi- ties must work together in developing new services, providing demonstrations, undertaking experiments, working out new methods and stimulating local understanding and support. This study is one of more than a dozen undertaken by the Centre for Community Studies and financed by ARDA. These studies, taken together, provide a useful overview of the physical, economic, social and psychological circumstances asso- ciated with rural development. W.B. Baker, President, Canadian Centre for Community Studies, May 16, 1966. iii CONTENTS Page Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 1 Context of the Research 4 Objectives of the Study 5 Methods of the Study Limitations of the Study 6 8 FARM SITUATION BEFORE MIGRATION II Interplay of Economic, Social and Personal 9 Factors 10 Characteristics of the Farms 10 Location 12 Distance from Services if 13 Tenure 14 Size 14 Type 14 Off-Farm Employment 15 Farm Income 0 17 Mechanization 19 Level of Living on the Farm 22 Farm Ecology 22 Family Roles Farm Family's Relation to Animals, 23 Crops and Land 24 Farmer's Sense of Independence 25 Time on the Farm 25 Identification of Self with Farm 26 Social Milieu 29 Social and Economic Changes 31 MIGRANT FAMILY CHARACTERISTICS III 31 Birthplace 32 Farm Backgrounds.. 32 Previous Mobility 33 Migration Age 34 Health 36 Family Composition 37 Retention of Farm Ownership 38 Education 39 Occupational Experience 41 Membership in Formal Social Organizations 44 Clustering of Disadvantages iv Chapter Page IV DECISION PROCESS IN MIGRATION 46 Motives and Attitudes 47 Reasons for Leaving the Farm 49 Employment Expectations in the City 50 Choosing a New Location 53 Types of Decision Processes 55 Long-Term Attempts at Problem Solving.. 1. 56 Short-Term, Low-Conflict Decision 2. Process 57 Long-Term, High-Conflict Decision 3. Process 58 V ADJUSTMENT TO URBAN ENVIRONMENT 61 Length of Time since Respondents Discontinued Farming 63 Employmerf 63 Additional Education or Training since Migration 70 Income 71 Housing 76 Social Integration 80 Adjustment to the Physical Setting 84 Psychological Problems 85 Changes in Attitudes toward Farm and City 87 VI PREDICTICN OF URBAN ADJUSTMENT BEFORE MIGRATION 92 Development of an Index of General Urban Adjustment 94 Problems of Adjustment Encountered by the Three Adjustment Groups 95 Relation between Duration of Urban Residence and Adjustment 99 Relation between Age and Adjustment 100 Relation between Education and Adjustment 100 Relation between Non-Agricultural Work Experience and Adjustment 101 Relation between Previous Mobility and Adjustment 103 Relation between Attitudes toward the Farm and Adjustment 103 Relation between Selectivity in Migration and Adjustment 106 Relation between Adjustment of Other Family Members and Respondents' Adjustment 106 Factors Not Significantly Related to Adjustment in the Present Study 108 A Feasibility Experiment with a Predictive Index to Urban Adjustment 108 v Page Chapter 111 SUMMARY VII Characteristics of the Farm and Community 111 Situation before Migration Personal Characteristics of Migrants 115 at the Time of Migration 117 Migration Decision Process Process of Adjustment to the Urban 119 Environment 122 Current State of Adjustment Prediction of Urban Adjustment before 123 Migration Appendix 126 AUTHOR'S COMMENTS I 146 INDEX OF GENERAL URBAN ADJUSTMENT II 147 PREDICTIVE INDEX TO URBAN ADJUSTMENT III 148 INTERVIEW SCHEDULE IV 158 REFERENCES Figure, 11 Location of the Respondents' Former Farms 1 Respondents' Location in Saskatoon of the 2 113 Homes, Spring, 1965 vi LIST OF TABLES Table Page Percentage of Farms at Various Distances 1 from Services 13 Respondents' Gross Income from Sale of 2 Farm Products 16 Respondents' Net Income from Farm and 3 Non-Farm Sources 17 Comparison of Mechanization of Respondents' 4 Farms with that of Commercial Farms in Saskatchewan - 1961 18 Comparison of Farm Home Amenities of Two 5 Groups of Farmers 20 Kinds of Help Given or Received from 6 Neighbours and Relatives 27 Participation in Farm Community Activities 28 7 Comparison of Migrants' Ages at Time of Moving 8 with Saskatoon Males in Labour Force 33 Respondents' Cash Balance from Sale of Farm 38 9 Education of Respondents Compared with Saskatoon 10 Males Aged 20-65 38 Work Done by Respondents before Leaving 11 the Farm 41 Respondents' Pre-Migration Memberships in 12 Voluntary Organizations Compared with Farmers in Two Census Division 16 Areas and U.S. Rural Farm Residents 42 Church Affiliation before Migration 13 43 Respondent's Age at Removal Related to 14 Pre-Migration Non-Farm Job Experience 44 Age at Removal Related to Respondent's 15 Educdtion 44 Education Related to Respondent's Pre-Migration 16 Non-Farm Job Experience 45 Reasons Given for Migration 17 51 vii page Table Respondents' Employment Expectations before 18 52 Migration Respondents' Reasons for Choosing Saskatoon 55 19 Respondents' Unemployment Experiences 65 20 Employed Respondents Compared with Employed 21 68 Men in Saskatoon Respondents' Post-Migration Education or 22 70 Training Respondents' Annual Family Incomes in 1965 23 72 Compared with Saskatoon Incomes, 1961 Employment of Wives in Various Income Groups 73 24 Annual Family Incomes Compared with Length 25 74 of Urban Employment. Respondents' City Incomes Compared with Gross 26 75 Income on Farm 75 City Income by Respondent Age Group 27 76 City Income by Respondent Educational Group 28 Comparison of the Number of Rooms in Farm 29 79 and City Homes Comparison of Informal Visiting with Relatives 30 83 and Friends in the Country and in the City Respondents' Attitude toward the City by 31 88 Length of Off-Farm Residence Respondents' Attitude toward Farm Life 32 89 by Length of Off-Farm Residence Number of Problem Areas Mentioned 33 96 by Adjustment Groups Reported Difficulties of Adjustment Groups 97 34 Relation between Duration of Urban Residence 35 99 and Adjustment 100 Relation between Age and Adjustment 36 Relation between Education and Urban 37 101 Adjustment Relation between Non-Agricultural Work 38 102 and Adjustment Relation between Pre-Migration Expectations 39 102 about Earnings and Adjustment viii AA_