University of Calgary PRISM: University of Calgary's Digital Repository Graduate Studies Legacy Theses 2000 Revisiting western alienation: towards a better understanding of political alienation and political behaviour in western Canada Henry, Shawn Henry, S. (2000). Revisiting western alienation: towards a better understanding of political alienation and political behaviour in western Canada (Unpublished doctoral thesis). University of Calgary, Calgary, AB. doi:10.11575/PRISM/15319 http://hdl.handle.net/1880/40774 doctoral thesis University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. Downloaded from PRISM: https://prism.ucalgary.ca THE UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY REVISITING WESTERN ALIENATION: TOWARDS A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF POLITICAL ALIENATION AND POLITICAL BEHAVIOUR IN WESTERN CANADA by Shawn Henry A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY CALGARY, ALBERTA DECEMBER, 2000 O Shawn Henry 2000 National Library Bibliotheque nationale 191 ofCanada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographic Sewices services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON KIA ON4 Ottawa ON KIA ON4 Canada Canada Your tile Votre r6Yrence Our file N0lr8 rdfdrence The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accord6 une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant a la National Library of Canada to Bibliothkque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, prgter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thkse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format electronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriete du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d'autew qui protkge cette these. thesis nor substantial extracts fiom it Ni la thkse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent etre irnprim6s reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. ABSTRACT Western alienation is a term used in Canadian politics to describe the four western provinces' sense of alienation from the Federal government and central Canada. To date, claims that it is a political phenomenon unique to Western Canada and distinct from more general forms of political alienation have not been adequately validated. Using the 1997 Federal Election Study data, the current study measures levels of 'western' alienation across Canada and takes a closer look at what drives political protest among those demonstrating high levels of this form of alienation. The results of the study show that high levels of 'western' alienation appear in other regions of the country and also vary significantly within the four western provinces. Logistic regression models focusing on respondents with high levels of regional alienation explore the impact of political efficacy and its correlates on predicting protest voting behaviour. The results suggest that western alienation may be more appropriately labelled Periphery Region Alienation and that this form of regional alienation will remain an issue in Canada until there are significant institutional changes designed to redress the imbalance of power inherent in Canada's political system. DEDICATION This work is dedicated to the memory of my Dad. Douglas Henry November, 11,1942 - November 25, 1997 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS While completing this degree has been my fixation and mine alone, there have been a number of individuals who have been very patient with me while I plodded towards its completion. In particular, I would like to thank my parents Doug and Sharon Henry, although my dad should be chastised for not having the patience to stick around until I was done (sure I took a while, but you could have waited). Without them, I would not have the tools required to achieve much of anything. My wife, Tamara, a patient soul who did stick around, has endured a great deal over the course of the last decade and my academic achievements are as much hers as they are mine. My son, Zach, has been there every time I needed a lift with his positive comments and support. And my daughter, Maddie, can always be counted on to give a boost with one of her craft projects, many of which contribute to my aura long after she has forgotten them. Thanks also go to my brother Marc for not killing me when given the opportunity. Finally, I would like to thank my adoptive parents Les and Nola Dyck and Ken and Linda Nicol, both for their support and allowing me to marry their daughter. I would also like to thank a number of people I have worked with over the last few years who have contributed to my success. First and foremost, I would like to thank Mike Heffring and Joan Bell from Environics West. They provided me with time to work on my dissertation, emotional support, as well as the necessary physical and financial threats to get me moving. Also from Environics West, I would like to thank my minions on the 7'h floor, and in particular, Nicole Smith and Jules Dorval, my personal damage control squad. I would also like to thank the members of the mighty Pareto Group: Todd Hirsch, Bob Roach, Darko Kulas and Desiree Lopez (honourary member). You have been with me from the beginning and I can't begin to thank you enough for your support. Finally, thanks to David Elton for giving this document its raison d' gtre. From the University of Calgary Sociology department, I would like thank first and foremost two special people: Linda Henderson and Lynda Costello. You have saved my bacon several times and stopped me from committing several "career limiting moves". Finally, I would like to thank my committee, Tom, Dick, and Harry (and Roger) - I still think this is very funny. To the other pesplz i:: the dapzr?mrnt:vhs have helped me a!ong the ~~:?.y- Thank you. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Approval Page ii Abstract iii Dedication iv Acknowledgements Table of Contents List of Tables List of Figures 1. Introduction 1.1 Defining Western Alienation 1.2 Is It Only Western? Is It Really Alienation? 1.3 Concluding Remarks and Dissertation Outline 2. Western Alienation 2.1 The Dominant View of Western Alienation 2.1.1 Political Inequality and Alienation 2.1.1.1 Inter-State Federalism - Division of Powers 2.1.1.2 Intra-State Federalism - The Canadian Parliament 2.1.2 Economic lnequality and Alienation 2.1.2.1 Control of Land and Resources 2.1.2.2 Tariff Policies and The Creation of a Resource Hinterland 2.1.2.3 Transportation Policies 2.1.2.4 The National Energy Program (NEP) 9 4 C' Farlarnl Prnm ~rarnontcnn~! L. I .2 ." I ""Y.U. I "CI-.. ".. .". .-L -. Spending 2.1.2.6Deficit and Debt 50 2.1.3Antipathy Towards Political Concessions to Quebec 52 2.1.3.1 Political Issues 53 2.1.3.2Cultural issues 58 2.2 Protest Tradition 60 2.3 Conclusion 66 3. Alternative Understandings of Western Alienation and Protest 3.1 Atlantic Alienation 3.1 .I Political lssues in the Atlantic Region 3.1 .I .I Inter-Governmental lssues 3.1 .I .2Intra-Governmental lssues 3.1.2 Economic lssues 3.1.2.1 Control Over Natural Resources 3.1.2.2Economic Policies 3.1.2.3Regional Economic Balance Sheet 3.1.3 Opposition to Political Concessions to Quebec 3.2 Alienation in Other Federal States 3.2.1 Western Alienation in Australia 3.3 Another View of the Protest Tradition 3.4 Conclusions and Next Steps 4. Western Alienation: A More Universal Issue 4.1 Previous Quantitative Studies 4.2 Data and Methods 4.3 The Periphery Region Alienation Index 4.3.1 Provincial Comparisons 4.3.2 Individual Variation 4.4 Conclusions 5. Exploring the Linkage Between Efficacy and the Protest Tradition 5.1 Efficacy 5.2 Data and Methods 5.2.1 Independent Variables 5.2.2 Statistical Method 5.3 Parties of Principle 5.3.1 Stage One Results 5.3.2 Stage Two Results 5.4 Parties of Accommodation 5.4.1 Stage One Results 5.4.2 Stage Two Results 5.5 Conclusions 6. Conclusions 6.1 Western Alienation - Is it Only Western? 6.2 Western Alienation - Is it Alienation? 6.3 Political Efficacy 6.4 The Prime Minister's Caucus Task Force 6.5 Concluding Comments Bibliography Appendix LIST OF TABLES Page Table 4.1 Periphery Region Alienation Index Distributions 134 Table 4.2 PRA Comparisons - Delta From Alberta 136 Table 4.3 Socio-Demographic Comparisons (PRA Index) 138 Table 4.4 lndicators of Conservatism 141 Table 4.5 lndicators of Efficacy 143 Table 4.6 Support for Governments and Voting Patterns 146 Table 5.1 Provincial Comparisons of Efficacy Measures (Total Pop) 171 Table 5.2 Provincial Comparisons of Efficacy Measures (HNH PRA 172 Table 5.3 Independent Variable Zero Order Correlations 176 Table 5.4 Logistic Regression Model - Reform Party - Survey Data 181 Table 5.5 Logistic Regression Model - NDP - Survey Data 184 Table 5.6 Logistic Regression Model - Parties of Principle - Survey Data 185 Table 5.7 Logistic Regression Model - Reform Party - Survey and Geo-Demographic Data Table 5.8 Logistic Regression Model - NDP - Survey and Geo-Demographic Data Table 5.9 Logistic Regression Model - Parties of Principle - Survey and Geo-Demographic Data Table 5.1 0 Logistic Regression Model - Liberal Party - Survey Data Table 5.1