Despite a rash of proposals for structural change in the government of Canada, the constitutional changes of 1982 did not bring it about. There continues to be pressure for change, especially on the part of those desiring regional representation in a strengthened second chamber. The argument of the article is that only some changes, at the limit a Bundesrat-type chamber, are compatible with the majority principle on which parliamentary government is based. An elective Senate creates problems for parliamentary government in Australia and is basically incompatible with majority rule; the introduction of such a chamber may well require the adoption of something like the United States or Swiss model. A constitutional mini-convention is proposed to negotiate such a chamber, if desired, with the first ministers prior to the employment of the new amending process.

The social and political involvement of political scientists illustrates issues and compromises the discipline has had to come to grips with throughout its development. A comparison of political science with other scientific disciplines reveals a genuine technology affecting the discourse of political scientists: the evolution of the discipline reflects the changing but privileged relationship specialists have with policy-makers. This article uses electoral studies to show the relevance of this approach and to demonstrate how the construction of political objects is dependent upon technical considerations.

The authors tested predictions concerning the effects of respondents' identification with governing versus opposition political parties on feelings of political efficacy and trust, using data from the 1984 Canadian National Election Study. Dependent variables were political competence, perceived system responsiveness, and political trust, each measured federally and provincially. Respondents who supported the party in power scored significantly higher on perceived responsiveness and trust than those who supported opposition parties, although mainly at the provincial level. Whether respondents' preferred party was in power or not interacted with strength of party identification on the responsiveness and trust measures, both federally and provincially, as expected. Effects were much less pronounced for feelings of political competence. The authors suggest an interpretation to explain the weaker and inconsistent federal results. The article concludes with some observations concerning the relationship between partisanship, on the one hand, and efficacy and trust, on the other.

This article uses some of the fundamental conceptualizations of Antonio Gramsci to understand the political process in Senegal. It analyzes how the ruling class responded to the “organic crisis” generated by a dependent type of capitalist underdevelopment. It contends that this response embodied a “passive revolution” whereby potentially revolutionary forces were decapitated through the co-optation of their leading cadres in a reformed framework of political representation. The article suggests also that the contours and substance of the passive revolution reflected the “hegemonic project” elaborated by the “organic intellectuals” of Senegal. These intellectuals sought to establish a new “hegemony” capable of legitimizing the rule of a reinvigorated ruling class. Yet, because this new hegemony was founded on the basis of the passive revolution it never reached the masses and it generated therefore widespread popular scepticism and cynicism.

The renewal of the Canada-US North American Aerospace Defence (NORAD) agreement in March 1986 will not end the debate on the relationship between NORAD and trends in American strategy, including the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI). This article reviews and explains the various strains of that debate. It points out why some in Canada argue that participation in NORAD will inevitably lead to Canadian involvement in the ballistic missile defence objective of the SDI. It also notes, however, why the military and other observers are concerned that strategic and technological trends in the US may make it difficult for Canada to remain active in North American aerospace defence, and indeed, even to provide for its own air sovereignty.

One of the most distinctive concepts for the study of public policy in Canada is that of policy or governing instruments. This article describes the origins of this literature, provides an overview of its theoretical claims, and evaluates some of these claims. It is argued, first, that the literature is too directly tied to particular theories of the state and of the policy-making process and that those ties are both unnecessary and constrain the usefulness of the concept of policy instruments. Second, the treatment of coercion as the central feature differentiating policy instruments is questioned and an alternative formulation is proposed.

Abstract. This study provides data to answer a number of important questions concerning the financing of the three main political parties at the federal level between 1974 and 1984. It analyzes both the regulated campaign expenditures by parties and candidates and the unregulated party expenditures outside official campaign periods. The main focus is on the importance of different sources of contributions to each party: individuals, corporations, trade unions, and interest groups. New details are provided on large contributions by individuals and corporations, and on the contributions of the largest 500 nonfinancial enterprises in Canada. Finally, the study notes that despite new federal legislation concerning political contributions and expenditures in 1974 the relationship between contributions and influence remains shrouded in secrecy.