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Thesis (Ph.D.)--McGill University, 1997. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [453]-467).

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This thesis is a comparative analysis of nationalism in Quebec, Scotland, and Catalunya and the perspectives of nationalist parties towards questions of constitutional change within the broader Canadian, United Kingdom, and Spanish states. It is the goal of this thesis to analyse how minority national groups view themselves within the constitutional framework of multinational states and what arguments they make for greater recognition for their national communities. All of the nationalist parties under discussion argue that the distinct position of the minority national group is not sufficiently recognised within the state. How this recognition can be achieved is of primary concern to nationalists and shapes their approach towards constitutional dialogue. Nationalist parties adopt various approaches towards constitutional reform in an effort to achieve either a reform of the existing state or the secession of the minority national group's territory from the state. This thesis analyses these approaches as advocated by the parties themselves and by other political and academic participant-observers. In examining the Catalan, Quebecois, and Scottish cases this thesis compares the unique asymmetrical arrangements that each state has adopted as a means to accommodate the minority national groups. Many nationalists argue that this evolving asymmetry is insufficient to meet the goal of greater recognition, leading to their advocating various federal, con federal, and secessionist options. After considering the various constitutional options that are presented this thesis argues that promoting a higher degree of constitutional and administrative asymmetry is an effective means of bringing greater recognition to Scotland, Quebec, and Catalunya within the state. The qualitative analysis in this thesis is based upon original research and a review of available secondary source material. The original research consists largely of data obtained from personal interviews and from an analysis of party documents. The personal interviews were conducted in Scotland, Quebec, and Catalunya with political participant-observers, including members of nationalist parties and individuals involved in developing constitutional policy and with academic participant-observers who specialise in constitutional politics. The thesis is divided into four sections. The first section includes the introduction that outlines the research method and Chapter 1 that examines various theoretical approaches to nationalism. The second section lays the groundwork for the following two sections. It consists of chapters two to four, which examine the historical evolution of nationalism in Quebec, Catalunya, and Scotland from its antecedents to the late twentieth century, paying particular attention to the evolution of nationalist political thought. The third section consisting of chapters five to seven is the main analytical section. In each of these chapters the constitutional framework of each state and the nationalist response are analysed through an examination of constitutional documents and party manifestos, leaders' speeches, and other policy material. Data obtained from interviews is analysed here. The fourth and final section is made up of the conclusion and a comparative analytical chapter that draws the three cases together through an analysis of various constitutional options in the three multinational states.

This study examines Scottish migration to Quebec and more particularly to Montreal.  It studies the public community the Montrealers of Scottish origin or heritage have developed, focusing on members of Scottish associations and interest-based groups and examining how their identities have been shaped in the city, from the eighteenth century to the present day.  Using historical and anthropological concepts, methods and sources, it places Scots within the history and anthropology of the city and of the province, and examines the distinctive case of Quebec within the wider Canadian Scottish diaspora. The thesis first examines Scottish migration to Quebec and to Montreal between the eighteenth and the late twentieth century by studying the push and pull factors involved, and by exploring Scottish migration at both ends of the migration process.  A key finding is that, in the Canadian context, Quebec and Montreal have attracted an atypical type of Scottish migrant; semi-skilled, and skilled workers of urban, industrial Lowland origin. The thesis then examines key Scottish associations of the city.  Firstly, it focuses on the Saint Andrew’s Society, founded by Montreal’s Scottish elite, which aimed to establish rules to guide the rest of the Scottish population in the city, to create a strong community and, ultimately, to disseminate its values and ideas within the host society.  Secondly, the thesis examines the Sons of Scotland Benevolent Association, arguing that, by the turn of the twentieth century, Scottish workers had gained their autonomy from the elite and had developed their own socio-cultural institutions and modes of charitable support and assistance. The last part of the thesis examines the identities of members of the contemporary Scottish public community of Montreal.  It discusses the main factors that contribute to the social and cultural shaping of these people’s identities.

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Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a sensorimotor disorder that often starts at a young age and has a chronic progression throughout life. It has a very high incidence, affecting 10% of the general population. The majority of cases are familial and the genetic nature of the disorder has been demonstrated in twin studies. RLS segregates in an autosomal dominant way in the majority of families. This data has incited a search for genetic factors responsible for RLS using linkage as the approach. Dr. Rouleau's laboratory has one of the world's largest collections of RLS pedigrees. These families are mostly of French Canadian (FC) origin. / Using these families, two novel candidate loci, on chromosomes 16p and 20p, were discovered. Also, previously described candidate loci on chromosomes 9p and 14q were replicated in this cohort of families. / A duplication of a large part of a functional candidate gene in the locus on chromosome 20, Signal Regulatory Protein beta 1 (SIRPB1), was discovered in individuals affected with RLS from a FC pedigree, in which linkage to this locus was described. The duplication segregates with the disease status in the family, but its role in RLS pathogenesis has yet to be demonstrated. / No disease-causing mutations were discovered in the chromosome 16 locus. Analysis of several functional and positional candidate genes in previously described loci on chromosomes 12 and 14 did not reveal disease-causing mutations. / A follow up of these studies is necessary in order to confirm the implication of SIRPB1 in RLS pathogenesis, and to detect novel gene(s) whose deregulation leads to this disorder.

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This thesis considers the use of independence referendums in state-creation. It investigates whether and how an independence referendum affects secessionist dynamics, and may increase or decrease the likelihood of secession. The analysis consists of a quantitative and qualitative mixed-methods approach, which includes the creation of a new dataset on secessionist movements and independence referendums from 1905 to 2014, and an in-depth comparative study of Quebec and Montenegro. Independence referendums, as sovereignty referendums, ask the ‘people’, symbolic holders of the sovereign authority of a state under a democratic regime, whether their sovereignty should remain represented by the current state, or by a new independent sovereign state. A distinction between unilateral and agreed independence referendums is made in order to consider when and how ‘the will of the people’ determines state-creation. It is argued that only an agreed independence referendum can ensure that the referendum itself determines the secessionist outcome. The thesis argues that independence referendums are an important legitimisation tool and their outcome’s binding effect is primarily a result of political, rather than legal, dynamics. The reasons behind the calling and holding of an independence referendum, and why a state government would consent to it, are analysed to account for a possible problem of endogeneity whereby the presence of an independence referendum might be determined by how likely the secessionist movement is to secede in the first place, regardless of the plebiscite. An institutional arrangement that allows for internal self-determination (such as ethnic-federalism), and access to executive powers at the regional level, was found to facilitate the mobilisation of the population in favour of secession, and the ability to call and hold a plebiscite. It is not in itself sufficient however to secure a majority in favour of independence, and other societal, political and economic contextual factors need to be taken into account to explain why a population would wish to secede. Focusing on consensual independence referendums agreed by both the government of the existing state and secessionist leaders, the thesis further explores when and how an independence referendum affects the likelihood of secession, notably existing popular support for independence. The thesis finds that the design and campaign in particular are important elements in deciding whose support counts, how much of it is needed, and how it can be mobilised. Nonetheless, the referendum process, who participates in it and to what extent existing preferences on the question of independence can be altered are context-dependent. Finally, the perceived legitimacy of the referendum process and outcome are argued to be essential for the voting result to be binding on actors operating at the sub-state level, state level and international level and the independence referendum to successfully answer the question of secession. The review of independence referendums since the turn of the 20th century and the thesis findings suggest that independence referendums not only create important precedents within the state they are held, but also have international consequences. As democratic norms compete with the principle of state integrity and becomes entangled with a nationalist narrative, independence referendums may have an increasingly important role to play in state-creation.