| Summary: | The significance of the contemporary "winter dances" of the
Coast Salish has been explained in terms of the Indian's 'search for
status'. In this paper I attempt to establish the significance of
Indian institutions for the Cowichan's 'search for status'. On the
basis of informant interviews, I empirically describe the range of
institutions in which a sample of the members of the Cowichan Band
participate. Using a typology of institutions, I further delineate the
type of viable 'status sets' maintained by band members and characterize the individuals who maintain them. In addition I test a theory
which I feel might partially explain the differential participation
manifested in the Cowichan status sets but is hopefully applicable to
the members of any minority ethnic group. Briefly the theory assumes
that:
Actors who participate predominantly or exclusively in 'ethnic
institutions' do so because their perception or definition of
non-ethnics in terms of 'threat' prevents them from attempting
to acquire status in non-ethnic institutions.
A second hypothesis is also tested, namely that:
Actors who participate predominantly or exclusively in ethnic
institutions do so because they have failed in attempts to
acquire status in non-ethnic institutions.
The available data suggests that both the theory and the hypothesis
are invalid. Contrary to expectations based on the theory, the perception of non-ethnics in terms of threat is greatest among those actors
who negatively evaluate ethnic institutions but who have been unable to
acquire non-ethnic status. In order to explain this result new assumptions focusing on the concept of 'negative self-evaluations' are introduced.
With regard to the second hypothesis it would appear that predominant
or exclusive participation in ethnic institutions is not a
reaction to an initial failure to acquire non-ethnic status but more a
function of the fact that ethnic statuses are more highly valued than
non-ethnic statuses. === Arts, Faculty of === Anthropology, Department of === Graduate
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