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Comparing Canada

Comparing Canada

Methods and Perspectives on Canadian Politics

Edited by Luc Turgeon, Martin Papillon, Jennifer Wallner and Stephen White

Published by: University of British Columbia Press

Imprint: UBC Press

356 Pages, 152.00 × 229.00 mm, 7 graphs, 21 tables

Paperback
9780774827850
Published: February 2015

£28.99

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Hardcover
9780774827843
Published: September 2014

£79.00

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Description
Contents
Authors
Praise

Debating how Canada compares, both regionally and in relation to other countries, is a national pastime. This book examines how political scientists apply diverse comparative strategies to better understand Canadian political life.

Using a variety of methods, the contributors use comparison to examine topics as diverse as Indigenous rights, Canadian voting behaviour, activist movements, climate policy, and immigrant retention. While the theoretical perspectives and kinds of questions asked vary greatly, as a whole they demonstrate how the "art of comparing" is an important strategy for understanding Canadian identity politics, political mobilization, political institutions, and public policy.

Ultimately, this book establishes how adopting a more systematic comparative outlook is essential – not only to revitalize the study of Canadian politics but also to achieve a more nuanced understanding of Canada as a whole.

1 Introduction / Luc Turgeon

Part 1: The Politics of Diversity

2 Framing Self-Determination: The Politics of Indigenous Rights in Canada and the United States / Martin Papillon

3 The Management of Nationalism in Canada and Spain / André Lecours

4 The Comparative Study of Race: Census Politics in Canada, the United States, and Great Britain / Debra Thompson

Part 2: Political Mobilization

5 The Comparative Study of Canadian Voting Behaviour / Éric Bélanger and Laura B. Stephenson

6 Canadian Immigrant Electoral Support in Comparative Perspective / Stephen White and Antoine Bilodeau

7 Between Hope and Fear: Comparing the Emotional Landscapes of the Autism Movement in Canada and the United States / Michael Orsini and Sarah Marie Wiebe

Part 3: Political Institutions and Public Policy

8 Parliamentary Politics and Legislative Behaviour / Jean-François Godbout

9 Comparing Federations: Testing the Model of Market-Preserving Federalism on Canada, Australia, and the United States / Jennifer Wallner and Gerard W. Boychuk

10 Climate Compared: Sub-Federal Dominance on a Global Issue / David Houle, Erick Lachapelle, and Barry G. Rabe

11 Putting Canadian Social Policy in a Comparative Perspective / Rianne Mahon and Daniel Béland

12 Economic Development Policies in Ontario and Quebec: Thinking about Structures of Representation / Peter Graefe

13 Governing Immigrant Attraction and Retention in Halifax and Moncton: Do Linguistic Divisions Impede Cooperation? / Kristin R. Good

14 Conclusion / Martin Papillon, Luc Turgeon, Jennifer Wallner, and Stephen White

Index

Luc Turgeon and Jennifer Wallner are assistant professors in the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa. Martin Papillon is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at the Université de Montréal. Stephen White is a Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Political Science at Concordia University.

Contributors: Daniel Béland, Éric Bélanger, Antoine Bilodeau, Gerard W. Boychuk, Jean-François Godbout, Kristin R. Good, Peter Graefe, David Houle, Erick Lachapelle, André Lecours, Rianne Mahon, Michael Orsini, Barry G. Rabe, Laura B. Stephenson, Debra Thompson, Sarah Marie Wiebe

This is a noteworthy edited collection which illustrates the benefits of comparative studies in political science in Canada. It will appeal more to specialist readers than general readers as some of the chapters are quite theoretical, but it is nevertheless highly recommended. - Jatinder Mann, University of Alberta (British Journal of Canadian Studies, Vol. 29 No. 2, Fall 2016)