Regional Identities, Culture and Risk: Applying Cultural Theory in Canada

Cultural theory (CT) has enjoyed a remarkable increase in scholarly and public attention in recent years, yet there remains considerable debate within scholarly circles about how to measure (and conceive of) the core concepts of group and grid affiliation. In this context, this paper explores recent efforts by various Canadian scholars to apply cultural measurement scales in a Canadian context. We show that, while these attempts have met with varying levels of success, they each provide insight into the regional specificities of Canadian political culture. We then discuss the implications of these findings for CT in general. In particular we explore 1) whether political cultures are sui generis despite CT’s more universal claims; 2) the interaction of group and grid commitments with commitments to regional identity, and; 3) the possible confounding role that the party system plays in structuring public opinion on group and grid dimensions.