Social Mobility in Canada: The Current Picture

Abstract

k3tudies of social mobility in Canada would seem familiar and easily comprehensible to American readers; the basic methodologies and approaches are the same. What differs is the response to distinctive elements and problems within Canadian society and the exploitation of unique research opportunities that Canada presents. For example, studies of the elite are more feasible in a smaller nation since their number is small and manageable, and so swift progress in this area has been made in Canada. Beyond these kinds of differences, a high priority has also been given to the study of social mobility and social stratification. It is in the latter area that one of the first high quality books of readings on a specialized topic was produced (see Curtis and Scott, 1973). One of the best of the upper year textbooks in Canada deals with social mobility (Tepperman, 1975b). The reason for this emphasis is not that social stratification or restrictions in mobility are felt to be a greater social problem in Canada; rather it is because a significant minority of Canadian sociologists have had rather than American training and in Britain a high priority has always been given to studies of mobility and stratification. This British tradition is clearly evident in the work of John Porter, whose 1965 book The Vertical Mosaic quickly became and still remains the dominant work in Canadian sociology.