Hostname: page-component-6b989bf9dc-wj8jn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-14T23:02:12.826Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Do Canadians Distinguish Between Parties? Perceptions of Party Competence*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 November 2009

Richard Nadeau  and
André Blais
Richard Nadeau
Affiliation:
Université de Montréal
André Blais
Affiliation:
Université de Montréal
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This study examines perceptions of party competence in four issue areas: inflation, unemployment, international affairs and Canadian unity. Using Gallup poll data from a 35-year period, the study shows that in three of the four issue areas Canadians clearly distinguish between parties. These distinctions do not merely reflect party popularity and are durable rather than immutable; perceptions change slowly but do respond to government performance. Canadians see the greatest differences between parties with respect to international affairs and Canadian unity; the Liberals enjoy a substantial lead on these two questions. On inflation, perceived competence tends to reflect popularity while on unemployment, Canadians have greater confidence in the New Democratic party. On all issues, the Conservative party image has substantially improved under the Mulroney government.

R´sum´

Cet article traite des perceptions qu'ont les Canadiens de la compétence de trois principaux partis politiques concernant les quatre enjeux suivants: l'inflation, le chômage, les affaires internationales et l'unité canadienne. Les données de sondages Gallup sur une période de 35 ans démontrent que, sur trois des quatre enjeux, les Canadiens distinguent clairment les partis; ces distinctions ne reflètent pas simplement la popularité des partis et elles sont relativement durables sans être immuables; ces perceptions, malgré leur relative inertie, évoluent cependant en fonction de la performance des différents gouvernements. Ce sont les domaines des affaires internationales et de l'unité canadienne qui distinguent le plus les partis, le Parti libéral étant jugé nettement plus compétent en ces matières. En ce qui concerne l'inflation, les évaluations correspondent sensiblement à la popularité des partis. Pour ce qui est du chômage, enfin, les Canadiens expriment une plus grande confiance (relative) à l'endroit du Nouveau parti démocratique. Sur tous les enjeux, l'image du Parti conservateur s'est considérablement ameliorée sous le gouvernement Mulroney.

Type
Research Article
Information
Canadian Journal of Political Science/Revue canadienne de science politique , Volume 23 , Issue 2 , June 1990 , pp. 317 - 333
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Political Science Association (l'Association canadienne de science politique) and/et la Société québécoise de science politique 1990

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 Winn, Conrad and McMenemy, John, Political Parties in Canada (Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1976), 267.Google Scholar

2 Christian, William and Campbell, Colin, Political Parties and Ideologies in Canada (Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1983), xiv.Google Scholar

3 Moniere, Denis, Le discours électoral: les politiciens sont-il fiables? (Montréal: Québec-Amérique, 1988Google Scholar); and Irvine, William P., “Canada 1945–1980: Party Platforms and Campaign Strategies,” in Budge, Ian, Robertson, David and Hearl, Derek (eds.), Ideology, Strategy and Party Change (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987), 73–94.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

4 Simeon, Richard with Miller, Robert, “Regional Variations in Public Policy,” in Simeon, Richard and Elkins, David J., Small Worlds: Provinces and Parties in Canadian Political Life (Toronto: Methuen, 1980Google Scholar), chap. 8; Blais, André and McRoberts, Ken, “Public Expenditure in Ontario and Quebec, 1950–1980,” Journal of Canadian Studies 18 (1983), 28–54CrossRefGoogle Scholar; and Chandler, Marsha A., “State Enterprise and Partisanship in Provincial Politics,” this Journal 15 (1982), 711–40.Google Scholar

5 Guppy, Neil, Freeman, Sabrina and Buchan, Shari, “Representing Canadians: Changes in the Economic Backgrounds of Federal Politicians, 1965–1984,” Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology 24 (1987), 416–30.Google Scholar

6 Blake, Donald, “Division and Cohesion: The Major Parties,” in Perlin, George (ed.), Party Democracy in Canada (Scarborough: Prentice-Hall, 1988), 32–53Google Scholar; Richard Johnston, “The Ideological Structure of Opinion on Policy,” in Perlin (ed.), Party Democracy in Canada, 53–70; and Kornberg, Allan, Smith, Joel and Clarke, Harold D., Citizen Politicians—Canada: Party Officials in a Democratic Society (Durham, N.C.: Carolina Academic Press, 1979Google Scholar).

7 Ogmundson, Rick, “On the Measurement of Party Class Positions: The Case of Federal Political Parties,” Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology 12 (1975), 565–76CrossRefGoogle Scholar; and Pammett, Jon H., “Class Voting and Class Consciousness in Canada,” Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology 24 (1987), 268–90.Google Scholar

8 Gallup Report, August 2, 1984.

9 Meisel, John, Working Papers on Canadian Politics (Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 1972CrossRefGoogle Scholar); Ogmundson, Rick, “On the Use of Party Image Variables to Measure the Political Distinctiveness of a Class Vote: The Canadian Case,” Canadian Journal of Sociology 1 (1975), 167–77.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

10 Lambert, Ronald D., “Question Design, Response Set and the Measurement of Left/Right Thinking in Survey Research,” this Journal 16 (1983), 135–44Google Scholar; and Lambert, Ronald D., Curtis, James E., Brown, Steven D. and Kay, Barry J., “In Search of Left/Right Beliefs in the Canadian Electorate,” this Journal 19 (1986), 541–63.Google Scholar

11 Kiewiet, Roderick D., Macroeconomics and Micropolitics (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1982Google Scholar).

12 The 1980s are overrepresented in the data set because they constitute 25 of the 46 observations (see Appendix). The 1950s are as well represented as the 1970s, with eight observations in each case.

13 Scarrow, Howard A., “Distinguishing Between Political Parties—the Case of Canada,” Midwest Journal of Political Science 9 (1965), 73.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

14 Ibid.

15 Bothwell, Robert, Drummond, Ian and English, John, Canada Since 1945: Power, Politics and Provincialism (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1981), 144–46.Google Scholar

16 Newman, Peter C., The Distemper of Our Times (Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1968Google Scholar); and Beck, J. Murray, Pendulum of Power (Scarborough: Prentice-Hall, 1968Google Scholar).

17 Gallup Poll of Canada, May 15, 1963.

18 Irvine, William P., “Epilogue: The 1980 Election,” in Penniman, Howard R. (ed.), Canada at the Polls, 1979 and 1980 (Washington: American Enterprise Institute, 1981), 337–98Google Scholar; and Nadeau, Richard, “Modélisation et analyse empirique des fluctuations de court terme du comportement électoral: le cas canadien” (unpublished doctoral dissertation, Université de Montréal, 1987Google Scholar).

19 Regenstreif, Peter, The Diefenbaker Interlude: Parties and Voting in Canada (Don Mills: Longmans, 1965Google Scholar).

20 Shepsle, Kenneth A., “Comment,” National Bureau of Economic Research (1988), 59.Google Scholar

21 We also ran regressions in which popularity was lagged. The results were very similar.