Aboriginal Conditions: Research As a Foundation for Public Policy

What role does social science research play in public policy decisions on Aboriginal issues? How can policymakers, Aboriginal organizations, and social scientists collaborate to best serve Aboriginal communities and the policymaking processes that affect them? Aboriginal Conditions considers such questions, with an aim to promote policymaking that is firmly based on social scientific evidence. Aimed at three main constituencies - Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal social scientists, government and Aboriginal policymakers, and Aboriginal communities - the book has multiple purposes. First, it presents findings from recent research, with the goal of advancing research agenda, and stimulating positive social development. Second, it encourages greater links between the social scientific and external research communities and demonstrates the kind of research needed as a foundation for public policy. Finally, it acts as a guide to research methods for Aboriginal communities and organizations, and promotes cooperation between researchers and Aboriginal peoples in an effort to ensure that research decisions serve both groups equally. A vital addition to public policy and Native studies, Aboriginal Conditions will be welcomed by social scientists, policymakers, and academics working in these fields.

Table of Contents:
Tables and Figures Acknowledgments Introduction: The Focus of Aboriginal Conditions / Jerry P. White Part 1: Thinking Outside the Box: Building Models Based on Communities / Jerry P. White 1. Social Capital, Social Cohesion, and Population Outcomes in Canada's First Nations Communities / Jerry P. White and Paul S. Maxim Part 2: The Limits of Our Knowledge and the Need to Refine Understandings / Jerry P. White 2. Perils and Pitfalls of Aboriginal Demography: Lessons Learned from the RCAP Projections / Don Kerr, Eric Guimond, and Mary Jane Norris 3. Impacts of the 1985 Amendments to the Indian Act on First Nations Populations / Stewart Clatworthy 4. Changing Ethnicity: The Concept of Ethnic Drifters / Eric Guimond 5 . Aboriginal Mobility and Migration Patterns and the Policy Implications / Mary Jane Norris, Marty Cooke, and Stewart Clatworthy Part 3: Confronting Culture with Science: Language and Public Policy / Jerry P. White 6 . Aboriginal Language Retention and Socio-Economic Development: Theory and Practice / Erin O'Sullivan 7. Aboriginal Language Transmission and Maintenance in Families: Results of an Intergenerational and Gender-Based Analysis for Canada, 1996 / Mary Jane Norris and Karen MacCon Part 4: Measuring and Predicting Capacity and Development / Jerry P. White 8. An Application of the United Nations Human Development Index to Registered Indians in Canada, 1996 / Daniel Beavon and Martin Cooke 9. Dispersion and Polarization of Income among Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Canadians / Paul S. Maxim, Jerry P. White, and Dan Beavon 10. Toward an Index of Community Capacity: Predicting Community Potential for Successful Program Transfer / Paul S. Maxim and Jerry P. White Conclusion: The Research-Policy Nexus -- What Have We Learned? / Jerry P. White Index

About the Author :
Jerry White is Chair of the Sociology Department at the University of Western Ontario. Paul Maxim is Associate Dean (Research) at the University of Western Ontario, and Dan Beavon is Director of the Strategic Research and Analysis Directorate, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada.

Review :
The authors of Aboriginal Conditions are unapologetically quantitative in their approach, and, it must be said, sophisticatedly and successfully so. Ultimately, I think this book represents an important addition to any serious discussions regarding Aboriginal issues in Canada and I highly recommend its adoption in any number of courses with Aboriginal issues content. - Chris Anderson, School of Native Studies, University of Edmonton (The American Review of Canadian Studies, Spring 2005) Grounded in recent research, this book successfully identifies key issues bearing on the current social challenges Aboriginal people face in Canada. - Nathalie Piquemal, Faculty of Education, University of Manitoba (Great Plains Research, Spring 2005)