LIFE SATISFACTION, VICTIMIZATION, AND DISCRIMINATION AMONG OFF-RESERVE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES IN CANADA

Abstract

This thesis reports on the distribution and responsiveness of various measures of life circumstances to the life satisfaction of off-reserve Indigenous Peoples and compares these findings to non-Indigenous Peoples in Canada. Novel measures are included in this study which are not commonly found in the life satisfaction literature, such as victimization, discrimination and being the legal responsibility of the government as a child. Although there are distributional differences in many variables related to wellbeing between these populations, the responsiveness of these indicators to life satisfaction are mostly similar. Exceptions to this are in the responsiveness of life satisfaction to gender, social support, and confidence in police. There are also significant differences found exclusively in the Indigenous population between females and males in the responsiveness of certain indicators to life satisfaction, such as having been divorced, confidence in police, and living in an overcrowded household.