Statistical Indicators of Ethno-Cultural Community Integration in Canadian Society = Indicateurs statistiques de l'integration des communautes ethnoculturelles dans la societe canadienne.

This paper addresses the issue of measuring the integration of various ethnocultural communities into Canadian society by means of statistical or social indicators. The overall philosophy of the study is based on the following principles: (1) indicators should have a clear meaning with respect to the underlying concept of integration; (2) indicators should be collected periodically and should be "distributive"; (3) indicators should largely be readily available, preferably as a byproduct of standardized data collection efforts; (4) obtained values should, as much as possible, be either standardized or in some other way adjusted, in order for the effects of factors other than ethnicity to be eliminated; and (5) indicators should have some demonstrated validity in the research literature. The paper discusses a list of dimensions indicative of ethnocultural community integration that have been grouped within the following major categories: (1) demographic and health indicators; (2) educational indicators; (3) economic indicators; (4) housing indicators; (5) legal and political indicators; (6) cultural indicators; and (7) psychological indicators. Much of the discussion relates to an analysis of the literature on community development and integration that emphasizes an approach based on equity and/or equality. The paper recommends an examination of the indicators discussed in terms of their availability, comparability, reliability, and validity for further research. (AF)