Kyara Liu investigates the intersection of race and mental health for Canadian immigrants



Kyara Liu is a 4th-year Honours student with a minor in health and society. Her sociological interests are centered around health inequalities, particularly the intersections of race and immigration.

What was your project about? What are the main take-aways from your work?

My project is a quantitative analysis using ordered logistic regression, investigating the intersection of race on mental health outcomes for Canadian immigrants. The main premise I am trying to argue is that while the experiences of migration are already quite stressful on immigrants, the added experiences of racism can further negatively impact mental health for visible minorities. My main takeaways include contributing to the ongoing debate about the Healthy Immigrant Paradox versus the Healthy Immigrant Effect, as well as examining how the impacts of racial discrimination impact immigrants experiences in the labour market, social integration, and access to health care.

What inspired you? How did you get interested in this topic?

Throughout my sociology degree, topics around race and immigration as well as health always interested me. The idea for my thesis topic came up in the summer when I saw a news article reporting the death of an elderly Pakistani immigrant living with schizophrenia at the hands of the police in Toronto. This incident really made me reflect on racial injustice as an intersection of mental health and motivated me to pursue further research on this topic. In addition, growing up in Canada as an immigrant from Taiwan, I have first hand seen the struggles of migration on the mental health of my own family and community and hope to contribute work that could help those with similar experiences.

Kyara Liu

What was the most difficult part of this learning journey? What was most satisfying?

The most difficult part of this learning journey was probably the emotional labour it took to research a topic that has impacted my own life so deeply. However, this struggle has also made my experience very rewarding as I hope the work I am contributing to academia will help create action to decrease the struggles faced by my community.

What skills did you develop or strengthen as a result of this project?

This project pushed me to continue building my statistical skills as well as learning to use the software STATA. I also learned professional skills in developing a relationship with a supervisor, collaboration as well as presenting my research at multiple conferences.

What assistance did your supervisor provide to help you succeed with this project?

My supervisor, Gerry Veenstra was great to work with. We had bi-weekly meetings throughout the year where he checked in on my progress, edited my writing, and helped develop my ideas. He was very supportive and constructive throughout the whole process.

What advice would you give to students who are interested in a similar project (e.g. directed studies, honours thesis, quantitative or qualitative research)?

Definitely pick a topic you are very passionate about. You’re going to be thinking about your research constantly for a year and it can get overwhelming a lot of the time, but remembering why you’re passionate about it can help you make it through.