Miu Chung Yan joined the School in 2004. Prior to joining UBC, he studied, practiced and taught social work in Hong Kong, London, England, Toronto and San Francisco. His sojourner’s experience has influenced his major research interests covering settlement and integration of immigrants and refugees, critical cross-cultural and antiracist practice, internal dynamics in Chinese community, place-based community development and policy, globalization and social development, and North-South social work knowledge transfer.

As an applied qualitative researcher, he adopts a collaborative community-based approach in his research works. He works closely with local immigrant and refugee serving agencies and neighbourhood houses to generate new knowledge to improve policies, services and practice in serving newcomers to Canada. Working collaboratively with colleagues in China and Hong Kong SAR, he has been investigating and writing extensively on social work and social work education development in China. He is also interested to explore how to apply social theories in social work practice and how social work practice can inform social theories. In terms of teaching, his pedagogy is informed by the ideas of critical inter-subjectivity, reciprocal engagement, reflexive reflectivity and critical pragmatism.

Ongoing Projects

• Intra-group dynamics and social inclusion: experience of mainland Chinese immigrants to Canada

In this four-year study funded by SSHRC, we examine the inner group interaction and dynamic within the Chinese communities in Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto.

Recently Completed Projects (Last five years)

1. The Possibilities and Challenges of a Place-based Approach to Strengthening Urban Communities: A Case Study of Neighbourhood Houses in Vancouver (SSHRC Insight Grant)

This was a four-year project funded by SSHRC to study all the fourteen neighbourhood houses in Metro Vancouver. Key findings can be found on http://www.yournh.ca/.

2. Immigration, Integration and Social Transformation in the Pacific Rim.

This was an international collaborative study to examine the migration and settlement processes of Chinese and South Asian immigrants in Vancouver, Singapore and Los Angeles. The project was led by Dr. Shaohua Zhan at Nanyang Technological University of Singapore. Professor Min Zhou at UCLA led the LA study.

Selected Publications (Last five years)

2019    Yan, Miu Chung, Karen Wong and Daniel Lai, Subethnic interpersonal dynamic in diasporic community: a study on Chinese immigrants in Vancouver. Asian Ethnicity, 20(4): 451-468. DOI: 10.1080/14631369.2019.1613885 (Open Access)

Reported by South China Morning Post, OMNI TV, CBC Radio One.

2019    Yan, Miu Chung and Rory Sutherland, A place-based alternative approach to food security: lessons learned from a neighborhood house. Community Development Journal, 54(4): 643–659, doi:10.1093/cdj/bsy009.

2018      Francis, Jenny, Miu Chung Yan and Hartej Gill, Exploring Community-Based Research Values & Principles: Lessons Learned from a Delphi Study. Gateways; International Journal of Community Research and Engagement, 11(1):1-19. http://dx.doi.org/10.5130/ijcre.v11i1.5584.

2017      Yan, Miu Chung, Sean Lauer and Pilar Riaño-Alcalá. Incorporating individual community assets in neighbourhood houses: Beyond the community building tradition of Settlement Houses. International Social Work. 60(6): 1591-1605. DOI: 10.1177/0020872816633889/

2017      Liang, Jian Qiang, Guat Tin Ng, Ming Sum Tsui, Miu Chung Yan and Ching Man Lam. Youth unemployment: Implications for social work practice. Journal of Social Work. 17(5) 560-578. DOI: 10.1177/1468017316649357.

2017      Yan, Miu Chung, Chun-Sing Johnson, Cheung, Ming-Sum Tsui and Chi Keung Chu. Examining the neoliberal discourse of accountability: The case of Hong Kong’s social service sector. International Social Work, 60(4): 976-989. First published in 2015 DOI: 10.1177/0020872815594229.

2017    Yan, Miu Chung and Sean Lauer, An inhospitable transition: Immigrant youth and the labour market. Immigrant Youth in Canada: Theoretical Approaches, Practical Issues, and Professional Perspectives. Ed. Wilson-Forsberg, Stacey and Andrew M. Robinson, Toronto, ON: Oxford University Press. Chapter 9,

2017    Yan, Miu Chung and Uzo Anucha (Ed.), Working with Immigrants and Refugees: Issues, Theories, and Approaches for Social Work and Human Service Practice. Toronto, ON: Oxford University Press. 1-20.

2017    Yan, Miu Chung and Uzo Anucha, Introduction: Setting the context for human service practice with immigrants and refugees in Canada. Working with Immigrants and Refugees: Issues, Theories, and Approaches for Social Work and Human Service Practice. Ed. Yan, Miu Chung and Uzo Anucha. Toronto, ON: Oxford University Press. 1-20.

2017    Yan, Miu Chung. Theories of migration. Working with Immigrants and Refugees: Issues, Theories, and Approaches for Social Work and Human Service Practice. Ed. Yan, Miu Chung and Uzo Anucha. Toronto, ON: Oxford University Press. Chapter 1, 21-42.

2017    Yan, Miu Chung and Uzo Anucha, Conclusion: Human service practice with immigrants: Challenges, gaps, “good” and promising practices. Working with Immigrants and Refugees: Issues, Theories, and Approaches for Social Work and Human Service Practice. Ed. Yan, Miu Chung and Uzo Anucha. Toronto, ON: Oxford University Press. 351-360.

2016    Yan, Miu Chung. Multiple Positionality and Intersectionality: Towards a Dialogical Social Work Approach. Diversity and Social Work in Canada. Ed. Al-Krenawi, Alean, John Graham and Nazim Habibov. Toronto, ON: Oxford University Press. Chapter 6, 114-138.

2016      Lam, Ching Man, Miu Chung Yan and Yan Liang; Continuing Education for the Emerging Social Work Profession in China: Exploring the Experiment in Shenzhen. Journal of Teaching in Social Work. 30(4): 390-406.

2016      Francis, Jenny and Miu Chung Yan. Mind the gaps: Barriers to service for young newcomers in marginalized communities. Canadian Ethnic Studies. 48(1): 75-98.

2015      Lam, Ching Man and Miu Chung Yan, Driving ducks onto a perch: The experience of locally trained Shenzhen supervisor. China Journal of Social Work. 8(2): 182-194.

2015      Yan, Miu Chung. 以社区为本的互助机制：加拿大邻舍中心及其对中国社区建设的启示 (A Community-Based Mutual Help Mechanism: Neighbourhood Houses in Canada and Their Implications to China’s Community Construction). 社会科学（Social Sciences）2015(1):91-97.

Areas of Scholarship: Immigration and settlement; youth from immigrant families; place-based community development; social work internationalization and indigenization; social policy and process

Areas of Practice: Working with immigrants and refugees; critical cross-cultural social work practice; group work in community setting; community development and organization; case management