The Experiences of Lesbian and Gay First Generation Immigrants to Canada: Negotiating Identities Post-Migration

Abstract

The present study explored the experiences of lesbian and gay first generation immigrants to Canada by conducting semi-structured interviews with 10 participants and by employing Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Experiences pertaining to the negotiation of sexual identity and other central identities post- immigration in the context of diverse, and at times, contrasting cultural influences and social belongings were the focus. The psychological literature on sexual minority first generation migrants is rare on this topic (Huang et al., 2010), especially within the Canadian research terrain (O’Neill & Kia, 2012). Participants offered rich discourse around four main themes: (A) Post-immigration change around sexual identity, (B) Negotiating sexuality post-immigration-intrapersonally, (C) Negotiating sexuality post-immigration-interpersonally, and (D) Post-immigration reflection. Implications are discussed with regards to the study’s potential in enriching psychological research on both immigration and sexual identity domains. Furthermore, thoughts on potential future venues in research and practical implementation of the study results are offered.

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