The Intergenerational Effects of Residential School Attendance on Cultural Retention among Indigenous Peoples

Abstract

In 1876 the Canadian government passed the Indian Act, allowing them to send Indigenous youth to Residential Schools. These schools continued to operate into the late 20th century, until they were finally closed. These schools were designed to culturally and economically assimilate Indigenous peoples into a Western worldview. Using three waves of the Aboriginal Peoples Survey, which asked respondents if their parents or grandparents attended a residential school, I study the intergenerational effects, residential schools had on cultural retention. Previous research has examined the intergenerational effects of residential school attendance on health and educational outcomes, but gaps remain in our understanding of cultural retention. Additionally, some studies of Native American boarding schools’ effect on cultural retention found that the children of those who attended the schools had stronger traditional cultural ties. My research explores if Canadian residential schools had a similar effect on the children of those who attended. I investigate this using multiple linear regression and other quantitative methods to prove a causal relationship.