A COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE ON RACIAL RESIDENTIAL SEGREGATION:

This article takes a first step to compare the residential segregation of blacks and Asians from whites in American and Canadian cities. The analysis is based on census data from 404 American and 41 Canadian cities. African Americans in the United States experience a higher level of residential segregation than Asians in U.S. cities. On the other hand, blacks in Canada experience the same low level of segregation as Asians. To explain the different experiences of blacks in the United States and Canada, a multivariate model is proposed and tested. The results reveal several patterns. First, African Americans are consistently obstructed much more than Asian Americans by their proportion in the city. In contrast blacks in Canada are not. Second, the residential segregation patterns of African Americans are affected strongly by the labor market and strucutral changes of the economy in the city. However, the structural change of the economy in the city has a very weak effect on the level of residential segregation of Asian Americans, black Canadians, and Asian Canadians.     

Ethnic,gender, and length‐of‐residency influences on sexual knowledge and attitudes

We examined potential differences in sexual knowledge and attitudes between 702 Canadian undergraduates of Asian (n = 356) and European (n = 346) ancestry. We also examined potential influences of length of residency in Canada on these variables among Asians, and the role of gender both across and within ethnic groups. The primary purpose was to examine whether length of exposure to North American sexual values influences sexual knowledge or attitudes among Asians living in Canada. Results revealed that compared to Europeans, Asians held more conservative sexual attitudes and demonstrated significantly less sexual knowledge. Recent Asian immigrants were significantly more likely than Canadian‐born or long‐term Canadian residents to hold conservative sexual attitudes on a number of sexuality items. Among Asians and Non‐Asians, males reported more negative attitudes toward homosexuals than did females; females held more conservative sexual attitudes toward uncommitted sexual relations than did males. The findings provide partial support for a cultural explanation of the frequently reported finding that, compared with North Americans, Asians are more restricted in their expression of sexuality.     

Canada as Reflected in her Participation in the Coronation of her Monarchs in the Twentieth Century

The evolution of the Crown from an institution imposed by colonial powers to one that has become uniquely Canadian is symbolised through the rituals and ceremonial of the Coronations of Canada's Monarchs in the twentieth century. This study reveals the development under the Crown of an indigenous honours system instituted to celebrate the achievements of Canadians. The granting of honours by the sovereign for the Coronation changed from British, to distinctively Canadian ones. In addition, the gradual evolution of the Canadian military from militia to regular army, navy and air force is seen in the Canadian military's participation in the Coronation Procession. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, through their various transformations, represented Canada's values of "peace, order and good government" and had a place of prominence at all four Coronations. Canadians saw themselves as an important and integral part of the British Empire in 1902 and transformed to an independent and respected people with considerable world power and influence by 1953. Through the Coronation ceremonies, Canadians publicly celebrated their ideals as a people and reflected their "national" character to the world while at the same time rooting the Crown more deeply in Canadian soil.     

Acceptance of International Students: Host and Sojourner Characteristics

This study was designed to investigate how both characteristics of the sojourner and of the host affect how American students regard and treat international students in the United States. Undergraduates (N=198) evaluated college admission applications. All applicant information was held constant except for gender, race, and nationality. After they completed a questionnaire evaluating the foreign applicant, they volunteered to offer various levels of hospitality to foreign students. In terms of host characteristics, the results indicate that women were more favorable than men in their ratings of foreign students, and Minorities (48% of the sample) were more favorable than Whites in their volunteerism. Regarding characteristics of the foreigner, American students responded equally to male and female foreigners; equally to White and Black foreigners; but they evaluated Canadian foreigners more favorably than Algerian ones. There was an interaction between gender of the host and foreigner in a few instances, and several instances of an interaction between race of the host and race of the foreigner. These results partially support the hypotheses and suggest that what makes a difference in how Americans respond to foreigners is cultural similarity and shared ethnic minority status.     

Cross-national gender differences in behavior in a threshold public goods game: Japan versus Canada

To investigate the effects of gender and national culture on economic behavior, we compare all-male and all-female groups from Japan and Canada in the context of a threshold public goods game with a strong free-riding equilibrium and many socially efficient threshold equilibria. Females and Canadians exhibit higher levels of conformity when compared with males and Japanese, respectively. However, such symmetric group behavior translates into significantly tighter equilibrium convergence only for Canadian females. Canadians, particularly Canadian females, are more successful at providing the public good than Japanese. The results suggest that the prevalence of different notions of self-construal may affect behavior.     

Changes in an intellectual elite 1960–1990: The Royal Society revisited

This paper has attempted a partial replication of Porter's study of an anglophone intellectual elite, i.e. Section II of the Royal Society. It has found continuing, albeit reduced, institutional domination by the University of Toronto, along with a notable decline in the role of Oxford. It has also found that foreign influence has increased with possible negative implications for the mobility opportunities of Canadians born in Canada¹⁰ and for the elite's performance of its social role of articulating and advancing the interests of Canadian society. While the domination of those of British ancestry has declined, the elite remains unrepresentative in terms of many of its ascribed social characteristics. In particular, a seemingly low representation of females, Jewish people, and Canadians born in Canada is evident. While Canadian intellectuals are now much more critical of the status quo than they were when Porter wrote, the separation between anglophone and francophone intellectuals appears to be as great as ever. All this may help to explain a number of the weaknesses which characterize Canadian society.     

“Plus Ça Change…”: Graduates’ Views of Canadian Females’ Opportunities after 50 Years of Change

New‐Left Feminism emerged on Canadian campuses in 1967. While prior to that date some Canadian women had been concerned with their limited circumstances, by and large, university students expressed little visible support for their cause. In this article, I will show that prior to the debut of New‐Left Feminism, while they may not have been vocal, the 1967 graduates of Glendon College, York University, located in Toronto, Canada, were well aware of the barriers faced by Canadian women. In the intervening half‐century, although many impediments to the full social participation of Canadian women were removed, Glendon graduates of 2017 continued to recognize the existence of limits on female Canadians. Indeed, in some areas, these recent graduates saw more barriers than their counterparts 50 years earlier. This can be attributed, in part, to the attention currently given in curricula to the lives of Canadian women, large numbers of female faculty, a public discourse that includes sexuality and issues of interest to women, and the “relative deprivation” of Canadian females.     

The influence of gender and ethnicity on judgments of culpability in a domestic violence scenario

Using an experimental analog design, in this study we examined 503 European American, African American, and Latino undergraduate students' responses to a domestic violence scenario in which the ethnicity and gender of the perpetrator were manipulated. Results indicated that participants perceived perpetration of domestic assault significantly more criminal when committed by a man than when committed by a woman. That finding was robust across European Americans, African Americans, and Latinos and was expressed by both genders. Also, European American participants expressed significantly more criticism toward African American perpetrators of assault than they did toward European American and Latino perpetrators of the exact offense, suggestive of racial bias consistent with stereotypes about African Americans being excessively aggressive. Finally, Latino participants expressed significantly more sympathy toward women who assault their husbands than toward assaulting husbands. Implications of the findings are discussed.     

Trade unionism in Canada and the United States: a reply to Bowden

Gary Bowden's (1989) comprehensive report on opinion poll questions bearing on Canadian trade unionism is presented in the context of a criticism of my earlier comparative discussion of the reasons why union density in Canada is much higher than in the United States. He contends that my emphasis on value differences in trying to account for the greater strength of unionism (and socialism) in Canada is wrong since, countering my expectations, survey findings do not demonstrate that Canadians are more sympathetic to unions than Americans. These results, however, do not surprise me or serve as a basic challenge to my analysis (Lipset, 1986). In my recent effort to evaluate the many differences in institutions and values in the two countries, I, too, indicate:
Curiously, given the large difference in union strength across the border, questions inquiring about attitudes toward unions, their power, and the outcomes of strikes that have been posed by the Gallup polls, Decima and CRI, Harris, NORC, and the Wright-Myles studies do not show Canadians as more pro-union than Americans. Some even find the population in the north less approving of unions and more concerned about union power, which in fact is much greater there than in the northern [sic] nation. (Lipset, 1989; 1990a: 69). [I must apologize here for an obvious error, northern clearly should have read southern].     

Gender differences in the experience of violence,discrimination, and stress hormone in African Americans: Implications for public health

Violence is more prevalent in African American communities than in other American communities. This has impacts not only on criminal justice interventions but also on the physical and mental health of these communities including their risk for acquiring life-threatening diseases. While many studies have focused on the effects of violence on African American males, we sought to understand the relative gender effects that violence has on African American females. This is of particular interest given the wide array of scientific literature suggesting maternal health has inter-generational health effects. Understanding gender differences associated with exposure to violence, depression, and immune function is an important step in understanding how young women perceive and internalize societal violence directed toward and around them. We analyzed a cohort of 557 young African American adults aged 18–25 years old from the Washington, DC area. We use sociological, epidemiological, mental health, computational biology, and quantitative genetics approaches to build a predictive portrait of the effects of violence on African American health. This study demonstrates that African American males and females experience different constellations of societal violence, that African American women report greater perception of racial and gender bias, and that cortisol, an indicator of stress response, is correlated to perceived discrimination. This work contributes to current understandings of how violence contributes to negative health outcomes and lays the foundation for a predictive model for sociological, health, and behavior risk that young African Americans encounter.     

Measuring Nonverbal Bias Through Body Language Responses to Stereotypes

Although research has demonstrated the manifestation of racial bias by measuring overt attitudes and behaviors, there has been little examination of the subtle nonverbal cues that may also characterize such bias. The present study investigates implicit racial bias by analyzing nonverbal behaviors of individuals shown video of a criminal suspect whose ethnic identity is manipulated to be Black or White. Participants appeared significantly more uncertain about what they were saying when describing the White suspect than when describing the Black suspect. Participants were also more likely to display “open” posture when describing the Black suspect but “closed” posture (e.g., crossed arms) when describing the White suspect. The results indicate that biases in attitudes and beliefs might be reliably detected and measured through body language. The findings are discussed in terms of how nonverbal behaviors may reveal more subtle forms of prejudice and miscommunication. Contextual correlations between specific nonverbal behaviors and affective states are also discussed.     

Fertility expectations and ethnic identity among Mexican-American adolescents: an expression of cultural ideals

1980 survey data from 2 secondary schools in Arizona are studied to explain the differences in expected fertility of Mexican American and Anglo adolescents. Mexican Americans have maintained higher fertility rates than the national average, and this study helps clarify how cultural heritage and socioeconomic status relate to family formation patterns. The model, which is based on expected fertility rates of adolescents which parallel those of adults, predicts higher fertility rates for minority group members at every level of socioeconomic status. Male adolescent Anglos expect an average of 2.27 children, whereas female adolescent Anglos expect only 2.11. In both instances for Mexican Americans, the expected number is higher: 2.78 for males, 2.68 for females. Mexican American adolescents who speak Spanish at home are more likely to expect 3, 4, 5, or more children, whereas those who speak English at home are more likely to remain childless or to expect less than 2 children. Similarly, the adolescent with a Mexican born father is more likely to expect more children than the adolescent with a native born father. Tucson residents are less likely to expect 2 or more children, while Nogales (80% Mexican origin) residents are more likely to expect 3, 4, or 5 children. The acculturation factors that help to explain the high birth rate expectations of Mexican Americans are: 1) language, 2) generation, and 3) neighborhood. At every level of expected educational attainment and occupational level, Mexican Americans expect more children than Anglos. Socioeconomic status of the family of origin is the crucial variable linking fertility to socioeconomic status. The actual fertility of minority groups should not be mistaken for the expected fertility of minority groups; both are subject to different influences. However, differences in fertility expectations of Mexican American adolescents and their Anglo counterparts parallel the differences in the actual fertility rates of these groups.     

‘The Hidden Holocaust’: The East Timor Alert Network (ETAN) and Human Rights Claims in Canada, 1985–1998

This article examines the East Timor Alert Network's (ETAN) claims-making strategies regarding support for human rights and self-determination of East Timor during the Indonesian occupation from 1975–1998. This research seeks to understand how ETAN attempted to persuade Canadians to care about a geographically distant horror. I examine various claims-making strategies that ETAN used to encourage Canadian audiences to evaluate the problem as an object of public concern, the Timorese as victims deserving of their sympathy, and Canadian government as condemnation-worthy.     

Encoding-decoding of nonverbal emotional messages: Sex differences in spontaneous and enacted expressions

Male and female encoding-decoding of spontaneous and enacted nonverbal affective behavior was evaluated using the Buck (1977) slide-viewing paradigm. The eliciting stimuli were carefully selected and evaluated to insure a comparable emotional impact on both sexes, and all subjects received the same decoding task. Consistent with previous research, females were superior decoders overall. Also as predicted, females were superior encoders, principally when reacting spontaneously to the slides. Given no evidence of differential affective arousal, this sex difference for spontaneous encoding is interpreted to reflect differences in male-female display rules. Contrary to several previous findings spontaneous and enacted encoding measures were not strongly related, especially for males, where display rules may modify their spontaneous and enacted expressive behavior in comparison to females. There was no consistent positive or negative relationship between dimensional or category measures of encoding-decoding for either sex. Future investigations should separately evaluate encoding-decoding phenomena for each sex, employing more precise methods to evaluate the specific nonverbal behaviors actually important to the encoding-decoding communication process.     

African American Adults' Perceptions of the Effects of Parental Loss During Adolescence

The purpose of this study was to examine twenty African American adults' perceptions of the effects of parental loss during their adolescence, examine their grief reactions at the time, and identify how they were assisted through the grieving process. The study results indicated that males experienced significantly more delinquent behavior than females following the loss of the parent. Respondents who had grief reactions for more than a year experienced multiple problem and behavioral reactions. The study found that most participants did not receive professional help but relied on informal help for their grief. Implications of the results are discussed.     

Interpersonal Contact and Racial Prejudice: a Comparative Study of American and Chinese Students*

The extent of the causal relation between interpersonal contact and racial prejudice is examined with emphasis on how this relation is intervened by the effects of family socioeconomic status. A cross-cultural, comparative study of American and Chinese students is attempted using a stereotype questionnaire adapted, with some modifications, from Katz and Braly's adjective list. The data indicate that (a) family socioeconomic status is significantly related to cross-national contact among both the Americans and Chinese, (b) increased contact does not linearly reduce prejudice for both the Americans and Chinese and (c) family socioeconomic status is, relatively speaking, more important than interpersonal contact in its relation to prejudice and significantly so in the American sample.     

LATIN AMERICA

Abstract

This article draws on theories of colonial discourse, cultural representation, subjectivity, feminist studies, cultural studies, and historical analysis to examine how the representations of American Indians in 1990s television fiction are constructed, especially in the American television fictions Northern Exposure, Twin Peaks and Paradise. Central to this analysis is the discussion of colonial discourse and representations of American Indians as Other on popular American television and, more generally, in mainstream American discourse. This examination is set in the context of the issues surrounding the treatment of Indian people in mainstream history, in film, and in contemporary television fiction. It is the authors' position that in the easy acceptance of a stereotyped cultural construction, mainstream America has come to little knowledge or understanding of American Indian nations, their contemporary concerns, or their discrete identities. For the mass market, their contemporary concerns, or their discrete identities. For the mass market, the Indian is either the Vanishing Race of Edward Curtis's photographs or the savage of the captivity narratives, and the process by which that imaginary functions to contain American Indian identity continues in our most popular narrative today: television fiction.     

A Case Study of Mortgage Refinancing Discrimination: African American Intergenerational Wealth*

A case study approach is taken to examine differences between African Americans and white Americans in their respective approval/denial rates for home mortgage refinancing. Data from a regional banking institution is used for the case analysis. These data indicate that African Americans are significantly more likely to be turned down for mortgage refinancing than their white American counterparts. We suggest that refinance discri‐mination is one contributing factor to the continuing wealth or net worth gaps between blacks and whites. The inability to access the potential capital resident in one's home impedes the ability of African Americans to transmit advantage from one generation to the next.     

Decreasing the Recent Immigrant Earnings Gap: The Impact of Canadian Credential Attainment

It is well documented that newly arrived immigrants face a significant earnings gap relative to native‐born workers. One way for new immigrants to improve their relative labour market position upon arrival in a host country is to improve their educational credentials. According to signalling theory, a host‐country credential should provide employers with a proxy for true productivity on the job, leading to higher earnings. Using data from a Canadian longitudinal survey, we employ longitudinal growth‐curve techniques to estimate the effect of receiving a Canadian educational credential on the income growth of racial‐minority recent immigrants compared to native‐born Canadians. The results indicate that the earnings gap between recent immigrants and native‐born Canadians is significantly reduced with the attainment of a Canadian educational credential.     

An asset-building agenda for the twenty-first century: giving families something to live for

Though studies have clearly illustrated that education is one of the primary paths to upward mobility, a growing body of research is beginning to show that the returns on education are determined more by initial wealth than innate ability and exerted effort in school. This accounting directly contradicts Americans’ understanding of the promise of the American Dream: a level playing field and a path towards a more prosperous future. Currently, this contradiction goes largely unchecked by researchers because of their reluctance to engage in a discussion about values. As a result, the mere discussion of wealth transfer, a policy about thriving, is seen as taboo, and we are left with conversations about how to provide the poor with enough merely to survive. However, in this paper, the conversation about wealth transfer is revived and articulated as an American idea consistent with American values. It goes on to offer Children’s Savings Accounts, in combination with a substantial progressive wealth transfer into these accounts, as a means of leveling the playing field and restoring education as an equalizer in society.