Immigrants’ Attitudes toward their Children's Inter-Ethnic Marriages in a Canadian Community *

Abstract

In this investigation, it was found that the higher percentage of favorable responses toward children's inter-ethnic marriages came from the Dutch ethnic group. The Greek and Slovak groups indicated higher rates of negative responses. However, marked differences, especially among the Dutch and Slovaks were observed when religious endogamy was presented as an alternative. The females, in all three minority groups, indicated a higher percentage of objection and reluctance for their children's inter-ethnic marriage than the males. The educational background was not an important factor among the Dutch. But, among the Greek and Slovak groups the higher percentage of immigrants objecting to inter-marriage came from the lower educational levels. With respect to the immigrant's rural-urban background in the home country it was found among the Greeks and Slovaks that the larger the community they came from the higher the rate of objection to inter-ethnic marriage. There were no marked differences in such attitudes among the Dutch. It was also found that some of the immigrants who already had practised exogamy (married outside their ethnic group) definitely objected or at least showed indifference for having their children married to someone outside their ethnic group.