While the proportion of Taiwanese female immigrants in Canada has
consistently surpassed the proportion of males, the Taiwanese female status in the labor force remains insignificant. Most of the women in this research study are middle-class women who had careers in Taiwan prior to emigration, but became full-time home-makers upon arrival in Canada. Based on a qualitative study of 43 Taiwanese women in 2005-2009, using in-depth interviews, focus group research and participatory observation, this study hopes to give voice to middle-class female immigrants who are engaged in volunteering as a major part of their civic
participation, as a significant aspect of citizenship. The women who belong to split households, with children in Canada and husbands in Taiwan, have played a particularly active role in volunteering.
The major questions raised for this research are: 1) What types of volunteering work do they do and why? 2) What does volunteering work mean for them and the Taiwan community? It is found that civic participation is a way for them to be integrated or incorporated into the host society, as a “Canadian experience” that may prepare them for formal employment, enable them to form new social networks in the host society, and raise their self-esteem. While experiencing pleasure in volunteering work, most of them found this as a way to engage with society, promote a good image
of and give back to Canadian society. The large diversity of volunteering activities is not only related to Taiwan organizations, but also linked closely with Canadian society. Further studies would be needed to compare differences in genders and places, between immigrants and non-immigrants, and impacts on the cultural and social fabric of Canada.

移居加拿大的臺灣移民中，女性數量向來多於男性。近年來多數婦女移民在移出前，擁有自己的職業與工作，但到了加拿大之後，轉而成為專職的家庭主婦，也因此在加拿大的臺灣女性移民勞動力參與情形並不顯著。本研究以質性方式為主，透過深度訪談、焦點團體訪談法、以及參與觀察的多元研究方法，來了解臺灣女性移民的社會參與情形。研究者在2005 至2009 年間，共在加拿大訪問了43 位從事志工的臺灣移民婦女，其中有不少婦女移民是先生在臺灣工作而自己獨自帶著孩子居住在加拿大的「單棲媽媽」。
本研究主要的發問為：1) 移民婦女參與義工活動的原因及主要從事哪些類型的義工活動？2) 參與義工活動對於婦女移民及華人社群的意義為何？由於在加拿大求職需要具備「加拿大經驗」，社會參與因而成為進入主流社會的重要管道；透過義工活動的進行，婦女移民可在加拿大構築新的社交網絡，從活動中，她們不僅得到了助人的喜悅，也提升了自信。婦女移民參與義工活動的機構相當具多元性，並不限於華人的社團與組織；婦女移民將從事義工視為回饋在地的實踐方式，並可藉此拉近與主流社會的距離，提升華人在當地的形象。後續的研究可比較在不同的地區、性別所造成的影響，以及移民與非移民參與義工的情形，以及義工活動對於加拿大社會文化的影響。