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K. Victor Ujimoto and Gordon Hirabayashi (eds.), Visible Minorities andMulticulturalism: Asians in Canada. Toronto: Buttcrworths, 1980, 388 pp., paperback. The papers in this book were originally presented at the Canadian Asian Studies Association meetings of 1977 and 1978. It is a large collection (twen-' ty-five papers) and the volume attempts to cover most of the Asian communities in Canada. The majority of papers deal specifically with individual ethnic groups and only a few (regrettably) address comparative or theoretical issues. There are eleven chapters dealing specifically with South East Asian peoples; eight on the Chinese and Japanese and one each on the Filiponos, Vietnamese and the Koreans. Using Chinese government bonds sale records Lai skilfully reconstructs the demographic structure of Victoria's Chinatown in the late 1930s. Wickberg demonstrates that, contrary to what scholars have believed, there was considerable development in numbers as well as in kind of Chinese associations in Canada in the period 1923 to 1947. Chan, in a finely argued piece, explodes the "myth of the Chinese sojourner in Canada". It was this sojourner myth that a generation of whites used to rationalize discrimination against the Chinese; it "duplicates the logic Nazi's used to justify anti-Semitism in Europe" (p. 35). In her paper Roy documents that the tolerance that white opinion seemed to show towards Chinese and Japanese in the period 1929-1937 was, in fact, an "illusion". Sunahara deals with the Federal government's decision to evacuate Japanese Canadians in 1942. She shows that this act of blatant discrimination was not purely a function of Britsh Columbian xenophobia; that "Social Darwinist doctrines" were shared by Ottawa politicians and bureaucrats as well. Shibata reports preliminary findings from her research on Japanese women in Vancouver. Li analyses 1971 Census data to show that large gross income differences between Japanese and Chinese Canadians, which have been used as evidence for the greater "cultural adaptability" of the former, can be accounted for "by a number of variables, including nativity, age, sex, education, occupation and SocialIndicators Research 10 (1982) 449-451. 0303-8300/82/0104-0449500.30 Copyright 9 1982 by D. Reidel Publishing Co., Dordrecht, Holland, and Boston, U.S.A.

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frequency of employment (weeks worked)" (374). Li argues convincingly that ethnic differences in economic achievements are more related to "unequal opportunity structures" than to cultural differences. Baar, in one of the few theory-oriented papers, points out (using Japanese Canadian data) that contexts where the ethnic dimension is peripheral require different conceptualizations and research strategies than when it is central. Baar advocates "an open systems perspective" which would have a better understanding of social change; that "change is a prerequisite for persistence not an indicator of non-persistence" (344). This is a thoughtful contribution but, unfortunately, it is marred by repetitiveness and excessive use of sociological jargon. There are also a brief paper on settlement problems of the Vietnamese in Canada (Bong) and a socio-demographic profde of the Filipinos of Canada (Chen). And Kim looks at the Koreans in Canada in relation to patterns of assimilation and the parent-child relationship. There are eight papers dealing with South Asian Canadians. Bhatti compares the British and Canadian experiences in relation to South Asian immigration. Raj goes over familiar ground in a fresh and interesting way in his account of the early "struggle" of South Asian immigrants. Bowerman reports (all too briefly) on the work of the Alberta Human Rights Commission, especially concerning "East Indian" grievances. Naidoo compares "East Indian" and "Anglo-Saxon" women in Canada, in terms of role perceptions, sense of accomplishment and achievement aspirations. Her findings suggest that, although there are differences between them, there are even greater similarities. Wood gives an account of how the Hindu population of Vancouver "are adjusting their religious practices and beliefs to the realities of their new environment" (278) and Filteau explores imaginatively the concept of love in Hindu ideology. There is also a brief note on Pakistani immigrants by Awan. On a more general vein Buchignani reflects on the South Asian experience in Canada and comes up with perceptive recommendations for public policy. There are five papers dealing with broader issues. Groberman writing on foreign students in Canada warns that current policies rather than promoting "intercultural communication" is moving in the direction of "catering to a very elite group of International students" (160). Indra examines changes in Canadian immigration patterns to demonstrate that "immigration follows trade, and not vice versa" (170). Kogawa shares with the reader some creative moments of an Asian novelist and Dabydeen looks at the trials and trepida-

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tions of "Third World" writers, in exile in Canada. Beck opens the volume with a brief introduction in which she attempts valiantly to point to "convergences" among papers that may not be evident to most readers (including this reviewer). She also has suggestions for future research; looking more at the cultural domain and in greater depth, through (for example) the study of metaphor. It is ironic that the paper that closes the volume (by Hirabayashi and Saram) comes to more or less the opposite conclusion. The authors draw attention to the limitations of the prevailing "cultural" conception of ethnicity and argues cogently for "a politically weighted" definition of ethnicity which avoids the "cultural bias". The paper by Hirabayashi and Saram can be seen as (unintentionally perhaps) a critique of the volume itself. Taken as a whole this is a motley collection, mostly slight but with the kind of variety that should appeal to the general reader. The serious student of ethnicity, however, is likely to be disappointed with the uneven quality of the papers; with the incogruous juxtaposition of first class scholarly contributions with what are at best preliminary research reports and journalistic reflections. There are also some curious omissions. Although the title of the book is 'Visible Minorities and Multiculturalism', no paper deals directly with the implications of visibility, no does any apaper review or evaluate the policy of multiculturalism in relation to Asians. Also, most of the papers deal with "cultural" aspects of ethnic groups only and the political and economic dimensions are for the most part ignored. Although many of the papers are insightful and most, interesting, the collection as a whole has neither theoretical nor thematic focus and this is probably its major weakness. Despite these limitations the volume is rewarding reading. It is a sincere portrayal (albeit incomplete) of the Asian odyssey in Canada and is much welcome as such. Having read the book one is likely to share Josephine Naidoo's lament as well as her hope: People of non-western origin have made impressive adaptations to western culture; the reverse cannot be said of people of western origin. Except for a minority, western people remain relatively uninformed about non-western cultures, philosophies, languages and religions adhered to by millions around the world. In a pluralistic society some compromises, some degree of tolerance, and enlightenment on the part of established Canadians can surely be expected by new Canadians (216).

University of British Columbia

TISSA FERNANDO

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Philip E. Converse, Jean D. Dotson, Wendy J. Hoag, and William H. McGee III, American Social Attitudes Data Sourcebook 1 9 4 7 - 1 9 7 8 , Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1980, 441 pages, $25.00. General Appraisal

* Recommended

When asked by the editor to review this book I accepted because 1 value the importance of book reviews and consider the request a form of recognition as well as an academic obligation. However, I should have looked more closely at the kind of book I was to review which was casually described to me as 'a book on attitudes'. What I soon discovered was that Converse, Dotson, Hoag and McGee have written a reference book of data sources which contains no less than 544 tables and related figures (if I have added correctly). Reading source books is not my usual past-time, however, the task in this case was not as dry and boring as I had anticipated. The authors objectives were to provide a reference book for the causal reader who wants to browse through tables describing contemporary "trends in the social and economic attitudes and situations of the American population". In addition, the authors hoped to provide an organized data base of little-known empirical sources which might serve to stimulate the serious researcher. The unique contribution of this book, which differs from most short-term sample surveys, was to assemble certain questions and data of high social interest from national surveys which have been repeated at one time or another over the last 25 years. Thus, the volume presents the diligent research efforts of the editors and their colleagues of time-series data on American social attitudes. Each of the nine chapters is prefaced by a page or two of introductions. These introductions are not written as critical analyses, nor were they meant to be. Instead, the editors tell the reader why the items were categorized as they are, and what the clustering of information represents. The following materials and information are found in chapters one through nine. Chapter 1. Attitudes toward self and others. To give one example of the kinds of questions asked, the first question states: "Taking all things together, how would you say things are these days - would you say that you're very happy, pretty happy, or not too happy these days?" Data is presented first from samples of the total population for the years Social Indicators Research 10 (1982) 453-454. 0303-8300/82/0104-0453500.20 Copyright 9 1982 b.v D. Reidel Publishing Co.. Dordrecht, Holland, and Boston, U.S.A.

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1957, 1971, 1972. The data is then broken down for comparisons between males and females; whites and blacks; grade school, high school and college educated respondents; and seven different age groups between 18 and 75 years and older. Chapter one consists of 57 tables and figures summarizing the results of 11 questions. An appropriate question, of course, is: "How valuable are these summaries?" If the serious researcher finds one or more questions in which he or she is interested then the questions probably are useful. In my own case, I am currently interested in attitudes toward policemen and, 1o and behold, Tables 1.44 and 1.45 present data for 1966, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1974 and 1976. Consequently, for me at least, Chapter one is a success. Chapter 2 analyzes racial attitudes on issues relevant to blacks and whites, i.e. segregation, neighborhoods, friends, local schools and employment. Chapter three looks at the role of women. Chapter four focuses loosely on activities related in some way or other to family living, e.g., the ideal number of children for the average family, and family church-attendance habits. Chapter five looks at work and retirement, and chapter six reviews trends in consumer confidence about the state of the national economy. Chapter seven centers on the national economic outlook. Chapter eight concentrates on attitudes toward government spending, and the final chapter deals with attitudes toward war and peace. In my opinion the goals of the authors have been met for the serious researcher but I doubt that the first goal of attracting browsers will be successful. I cannot imagine anyone browsing through 544 tables unless their lives are a lot duller than I think possible. On the other hand, researchers should find the topics interesting and provocative. I am sure that many issues of importance have not been included, but I do not fault the editors in the questions they selected as a reflection of contemporary American concerns. The tables are rich in detail and easy to understand. Similarly, the figures are clear and simple. The volume is a worthy reference book and the editors deserve praise for their impressive research and summaries of valuable and remote information.

University of Guelph

A. DANIEL YARMEY