Community organization as a basic social work method has taken on increasing emphasis during the past decade. There is a growing awareness of the contribution this method has to make in a variety of settings in social welfare and allied fields. This year, the School of Social Work, University of British Columbia, initiated courses and field work placements in this specialization for students in their second year of professional training. Partly because of the absence of this type of training in the past, there has been a dearth of studies of Vancouver neighbourhoods from a community organization point of view. Opportunity was provided through student placements to examine four disparate, dynamic and changing communities. The scarcity of previous studies denied access to any defined rationale. The examinations were based upon the tentative assumption that there should be a significant involvement of both physical and social planning at all stages of neighbourhood development. For the present studies, a variety of methods for obtaining information was employed. Primary among these were:- interviewing of key individuals in the communities and of representatives of agencies, institutions and associations knowledgable about the communities; an examination of pertinent agency records; attendance at a variety of meetings of local import; obtaining demographic statistical information. The findings of the West End study reveal it to be an area undergoing rapid change. The failure to establish decisive physical planning for the area creates uncertainty among local leaders otherwise well equipped to engage in social planning. A new community is thus evolving in haphazard response to this fact. Problems related to the behaviour of young people have given Fraserview, a veterans' housing area, a degree of notoriety which is not altogether deserved. Although the present density of teenagers was predictable seven years ago, the social planning process, at the agency as well as at the Community Chest and Councils level, was unable to marshall community resources to meet adequately the specific needs of this area. The mobilization of the professionals and their subsequent incorporation as the Fraserview Youth Services Society is designed to provide the needed local planning body. Skeena Terrace Public Housing is a major low-rental housing project located in an officially undefined community. Tenants have come from many parts of the city, but none from the area adjacent to the housing project. The findings indicate a degree of neighbourhood feeling developing on the project but little integration with the community of Sunrise Park. Strathcona, a severely blighted area, is presently undergoing planned physical redevelopment on a comprehensive scale. Results of this study which has been conducted in the very early stages of the changing environmental conditions indicate a need for extensive preplanning on the part of the governments, private agencies, and citizenry. Co-Ordination of all concerned is required so that satisfactory social arrangements for this community can be effected and thus ease the problems of relocation and redevelopment. These studies are of an exploratory nature - a deliberate effort to look at the communities without initial preconceptions. Although a few neighbourhood studies in Vancouver have been undertaken by students from this School, the value of this thesis may well stem from its community organization focus which could complement and supplement those with a case work and group work emphasis. These pilot projects may give rise to further analyses of Vancouver neighbourhoods and thus contribute to more comprehensive understanding of changing neighbourhoods within the city. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

This thesis is a study and analysis of the introduction of group work services to the Boys' Receiving Home of the Children's Aid Society of Vancouver, British Columbia. When the project began, no group work services and no adequate leisure time program were readily available for the boys living in the Home. The current philosophy of institutional care for children, the principles and potentialities of group living, and the concepts of environmental control are outlined. Within this frame of reference, the origin and development of the Boys' Receiving Home is traced, and the experiences and general behavior of the boys are described. The basic function of the group worker and the values of group experiences in this setting are discussed. This purely experimental project, that at first contained many negative elements, showed little initial promise of being very successful. Group process records are analysed to show the gradual process of developing a group work program providing a variety of experiences for the boys, and contributing to the total program of the Receiving Home in other ways. Particular attention is given to three areas: (1) the series of co-ordinated meetings involving (a) the staff of the Receiving Home; (b) the boys themselves as they planned and participated in the leisure time program; (c) the staff of Alexandra Neighbourhood House; (2) the general changes that were brought about in the boys' behaviour; (3) the progress of the boys towards more normal behaviour. Other specific contributions of the project, such as working with the case workers and the house parents are mentioned. The project indicates the need for continuing group work services and a greater variety of modern institutions with a range of social services. Finally, suggestions are made on the most appropriate function for the present Receiving Home, and the role of the Children's Aid Society in developing such new institutions. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

This study portrays the Social Service Department of the Vancouver General Hospital from the first days of its institution under the Women's Auxiliary, through the course of its growth to the present time. The history has been divided into three periods; the first, under the Women's Auxiliary; the second, after integration into the hospital administrative structure, and the introduction of trained workers; and finally, the present organization. An evaluation and comparison by standards has been included, together with suggestions for improvement of existing services. The Vancouver General Hospital has consistently maintained an "A" rating for medical service to patients. The Social Service Department is only one of the services offered by the hospital, and is not yet recognized as an essential component of the medical team. The study of its development explains the nature of the traditional ties from which the department is endeavoring to emancipate itself. The present policy is to build a gradually strengthening base upon which a truly professional service will be recognized, appreciated and sought. In order to obtain a picture as complete as possible, early documents, reports, records and files, both from the Hospital and from the Women’s Auxiliary, have been studied. Information was also secured from interviews with persons concerned with the department in the past and present. The existing department has been studied by personal observation and through contacts made while working in this setting. Inadequacies and problems which hamper the service have been revealed in the study, but also, there is indication that the department is healthily aware of these, and is planning its future with care. There is room for much interpretation of the profession of social work to the medical and administrative staff, and to the community, in order that full understanding and support may be obtained. Likewise, doubled staff will be required before the department will be able to operate as it would wish. There is a cumbersome involvement with administrative and clerical duties, particularly in Outpatients' Department, which will need to be eliminated before the staff may be free to perform its casework function. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

It has been said that the character of an institution is largely determined by its history and the personalities that shaped it. If this is so, the Frederic Wood Theatre has much to draw on, for it was founded in the spirit of cooperation and promise. This thesis traces the beginning of the university from the original petition for its formation, through its early struggle to be established. Concurrent with this expansion is the growth of theatre at the university, a development which helped to introduce the institution throughout the province. The current Frederic Wood Theatre is the outgrowth of a tradition of theatre at the University of British Columbia. The beginning of this historical retrospective is the original petition for the founding of the university. Subsequent to that initial and failed attempt, the University of British Columbia was created by legislation through the efforts of Henry Esson Young, the "Father of the university", and by organization through the works of Frank Fairchild Wesbrook, its first President. Professor Frederic Wood, a founding member of the faculty in 1915, formed the Players'Club which provided the university its theatrical foundation for the next thirty years. Dorothy Somerset, a Director of the Players'Club and the Vancouver Little Theatre (also co-founded by Prof. Frederic Wood) established accredited theatre courses at the university and founded the Summer School of the Theatre. In 1952, these achievements won her the university's first legitimate theatre: the Frederic Wood. With single-minded purpose, Dorothy Somerset further established the Department of Theatre in 1958, building the present 410 seat Frederic Wood Theatre five years later in 1963. More than a physical building, the Frederic Wood Theatre is a dynamic process responding to the energies and influences of its principals. Seven individuals (out of hundreds) who were fundamental in contributing to the accomplishments of the Frederic Wood Theatre are introduced: Henry Esson Young, ''Father of the University'; Frank Fairchild Wesbrook, first President of the University of British Columbia; Professor Frederic G.C. Wood, founder of the Players' Club; Dorothy Somerset, founder of the Department of Theatre; Jessie Richardson, in whose honour years later, the Jessie Awards were created; Norman Young, stage manager, publicizer and lobbyist, and John Brockington, Head of the Theatre Department for 23 years, the man who guided and developed its academic and degree granting programs. Few people realize how great a role the theatre has played in the establishment of the University of British Columbia. / Arts, Faculty of / Theatre and Film, Department of / Graduate

This study was undertaken to determine the status of the physical education programme, personnel, facilities, equipment and supplies in the parochial schools of the Archdiocese of Vancouver and to make recommendations for a more effective programme based on criteria derived from the British Columbia Administrative Bulletin for Elementary Schools, 1958, and from existing facilities, equipment and supplies. An attempt was made to answer the following six questions in order to gather the data needed to solve the problem. 1. How much time is allotted to the instructional programme each week? 2. Professionally speaking, how well prepared are the teachers of the instructional programme? 3. What activities and testing and measuring techniques are presented in the instructional programme? 4. What type of recreational programme is offered? 5. What facilities do the schools have? What types of equipment and supplies are used in the instructional programme? 6. What are the school policies regarding medical examinations and participation in the instructional programme? The data were collected by personal visits by the writer to thirty-eight parochial schools which represented the total number of schools in the Archdiocese. None of the schools went higher than grade eight and most finished at grade seven. Interviews were held with thirty-five principals and eighteen physical education teachers. For purpose of analysis, schools were classified according to enrollment and geographic area and the information was assembled into tables. One school allotted 100 minutes or more per week for a physical education programme as suggested by the Administrative Bulletin. The majority of teachers of physical education were classroom teachers. None had a degree but the majority had taken an undergrad physical education course. One third of the outside specialists had a physical education degree. A wide range of activities was included in the programmes of the schools and testing was done in a few schools. Approximately three-quarters of the schools offered intramural and interscholastic programmes. Softball, volleyball, basketball and track and field appeared with the greatest frequency in these programmes. More than one-half of the schools had gymnasiums although less than twenty-five per cent had dressing rooms. Indoor and outdoor facilities and equipment were inadequate. The majority of schools gave medical examinations once during the pupils' school years. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

This is a study of the social adaptation of native Indian people in the city of Vancouver, British Columbia and the methodological implications for future research in this area. It was accomplished by reviewing the roots of the problem in history, exploring the reserve system, defining the problem as it now exists in Vancouver and outlining some programmes designed to facilitate this adaptation (in particular the Vancouver Indian Centre). In addition, it is an interview survey of the opinions of Indians and experts in Indian Affairs with respect to their perception of Indian problems and their suggestions for solution. The significance of this study is twofold. First of all, it illustrates that agencies which sponsor research may have a tendency to see its value only in pragmatic returns rather than in the contributions such research may make to generally improved understanding as a basis for sound planning. Secondly, it adds to our fund of knowledge of the urban Indian population and indicates possible future areas of research. The method consisted of highly unstructured interviews with the persons noted above. Whereas the content of the interviews with experts related primarily to the need for research, the areas of possible research, and the suggested solutions, those with Indian people focussed on specific topics such as reserves, types of schools, use of the native language, integration and amalgamation. It was suggested by officials and persons who have a great deal of contact with Indians that these were topics to which the Indian was particularly sensitive and that they were therefore not appropriate content for exploration after limited contact with subjects. We concluded that this is not necessarily true. These limited contacts with Indians who have come to the city also indicated that Indians are forsaking the reserves to seek opportunity and improved status in the urban community. In the process they are making valiant efforts to adjust to the white culture. This presupposes native strengths which should be recognized as a positive basis upon which to build welfare services. Because of the exploratory nature of this study, many of these strengths will have to be more positively identified, verified and correlated by future research. The main conclusion is that action-research in several specific areas would meet the needs and expectations of the Indians, the experts in Indian Affairs and the urban-White population. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

The phenomenon of urban fringe service centres and their relationship to patterns of existing and future metropolitan land uses constitutes the basic material of this thesis. It is considered that existing communities on the periphery of the central city grew because of the specific functions they performed. Whether or not these functions have diminished over time, these communities should be utilized in allocating future metropolitan land use patterns because of the investment in human and material resources represented within them, from both the public and the private sector. In this regard it is hypothesized that: In a metropolitan region where expansion from the core is still taking place, predominantly on a horizontal plane, older urban service centres on the metropolitan fringe demand consideration as foci for new urban growth, provided their suitability in terms of location vis-a-vis the core area, and general socio-physical environment can be demonstrated. An attempt is made to assess fringe communities in the light of regional considerations. It is recognized that these communities owe their original existence to specific factors, such as, an agricultural service centre to an agricultural hinterland, or a resort centre to a recreational resource, and that such communities are inextricably related to the core city of a metropolitan region. The community has evolved to satisfy the range of human needs and wants and has grown as a result of the process of industrialization with its attendant division of labour. The process of industrialization has manifested itself in an ambivalent manner. First, increased mechanization has eliminated much of the demand for farm labour but at the same time increased the demand for labour in factories. That this originally occurred in a time when mechanized transport was unavailable contributed to the growth of cities. The form of the city or the urban region has evolved from a dense arrangement of residential, commercial, and industrial functions to a sprawling decentralization of these same functions. Two major factors have contributed to this phenomenon. First, mechanized transportation, particularly in the form of the private automobile and second, the apparent universal goal of low density living, manifested by the single family house. The central city has "burst its container" and the periphery is becoming suburbanized at an alarming rate. Commensurate with this has been an apparent demise of the older urban service centres located on the periphery. There would appear to be a good opportunity to retain these communities and utilize them as the "centre" for expanded communities. Such utilization, if fringe communities were suitably located with respect to the metropolitan core, would theoretically result in a rational pattern of metropolitan land use. An investigation of the above possibility utilizes the Lower Mainland Region of British Columbia as a case study. The established communities of Cloverdale and White Rock are examined in detail so as to ascertain their viability from a socio-physical viewpoint and to assess their validity for retention and expansion as new metropolitan towns. The thesis is based on the regional development concept of the Lower Mainland Regional Planning Board which recommends the creation of a pattern of separate communities with an ultimate population of 100,000 persons each, to accommodate metropolitan population expansion in the Vancouver area. After analyzing physical and social criteria for Cloverdale and White Rock it is concluded that the viability per se of these communities is only a secondary asset if their location with respect to the metropolitan core is adequate. Rather it becomes the specific site that is deemed desirable as the locale for new communities. If their commercial cores are viable and in the case study communities it is felt that they are, then Cloverdale and White Rock could satisfactorily be utilized as the nucleus of new town centres. This assumes that potential problems regarding urban renewal and rehabilitation are not too great, although specific judgment of such is beyond the scope of this thesis. The conclusions are predicated on an improved system of local administration, that is, a regionally oriented system. New planning legislation in British Columbia and a conceptual regional administrative framework is assessed with a view to implementing regional land use proposals. Such a system is essential if metropolitan decentralization, virtually a necessity, is to proceed on a rational and efficient scale. Thus, it is felt the hypothesis has been adequately demonstrated. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

Rather than aging gracefully, the majority of the cities of North America have been assailed by a chronic disease which has produced deterioration, decay, and obsolescence of portions of their central core. In most cases, the centre of this decay has been the oldest, historic sections of the city. Many of these cities have reacted to the premature death of these areas with harsh and disruptive methods --the offending buildings have been torn down to be replaced by dismal public housing developments, or impersonal glass and steel skyscrapers. However, a counter-reaction has gained force in recent years, and has succeeded in some cities in slowing and even completely halting the spread of "bulldozer renewal." This new philosophy maintains that the charm and uniqueness of the old sections of the city must be preserved in order to maintain the diversity and vitality of the downtown. The most successful method of saving these districts and individual structures has been to renovate and revitalize them so that they are again economically and structurally sound. This process is known as commercial rehabilitation. Vancouver, British Columbia, has felt the influence of both of these forces—decay of its oldest districts and commercial rehabilitation. Gastown (the Old Townsite), the birth place of the city and the site of its oldest structures, has been neglected and allowed to decay to such an extent that, by 1940, it had become the centre of the city's skid road. However, since 1968 various groups have undertaken the rehabilitation of the area and have turned it into a rapidly expanding commercial district. The basic objective of the thesis is to examine in detail the economic situation in Gastown in order to isolate the trends and forces which have shaped its development, particularly as related to commercial and real estate investment in the district. Based upon these findings, implications for the future of the Old Townsite are then suggested. The assumption upon which the investigation is based is that Gastown will be able to expand and prosper as a commercial district in which customer appeal is based upon historic charm. In order to test this, two hypotheses are formulated: 1. The area defined herein as "Gastown will be economically viable as a retail-entertainment-restaurant district in which customer attraction is based upon the unique appeal created by historic and commercial rehabilitation activities; and 2. Gastown, as a retail-entertainment-restaurant district,will not be merely a short-term phenomena, but rather, the functional changes presently taking place will survive and prosper over the long run. . Three major research techniques are employed. First, an extensive literature search is used to determine the theory and practice of commercial rehabilitation and to obtain a limited amount of data about the economic situation in Gastown. Second, a questionnaire study is conducted to produce information about the operating results of those retail firms located in the study area that are considered to be compatible with the character of an historic district. This data is evaluated in relation to comparable industry standards in order to determine the economic health of these firms and is also employed as a basis for prediction of future trends in Gastown. Finally, an unstructured personal interview technique is employed to obtain economic data from persons generally recognized as leaders of the business community in the Old Townsite. With one exception, the research findings are found to be supportive of the hypotheses. It is determined that pronounced changes in land use have occurred over the past give years but that the major functional changes related to rehabilitation activities have taken place only since October 1969. Total sales volume for all businesses adjudged to be compatible with the character of a rejuvenated Gastown is estimated to be $5.5 million in 1970 and $11.6 million in 1971. However, there is a disportionate number of very small merchants operating in the Old Townsite with, the result that 12 percent of the businesses account for 80 percent of total sales volume in the area. In general, only the large-scale, experienced operators are attaining a reasonable return on investment. The prediction is made that a high proportion of business failures will occur among the small retailers and that future additions to the Gastown business-mix will consist almost entirely of large-scale firms. The analysis suggests that the opportunity exists for a reasonable rate of return on both speculative and long term investment in Gastown real estate. Even though one of the supporting criteria to the retail-entertainment-restaurant definition is found to be unsound, the hypotheses are considered to be valid. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

Having identified the need to provide services to elderly, homebound people with arthritis, the Social Work Department at the Vancouver Arthritis Centre initiated an Arthritis Telephone Contact Program in Autumn, 1989. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether or not a weekly telephone call from volunteers would impact positively on subjects' physical and psychological functioning, level of pain and perceived level of social support. The 11 subjects in this study were elderly, Caucasian women identified by health care professionals as being socially isolated due, in part, to the limits placed on them by either osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis. The one-group pretest-posttest research design was employed for this study. Quantitative measures used were the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales (AIMS) and the Perceived Social Support From Friends and From Family Scale (PSS-Fr & Fa). Interviews of subjects were conducted in order to describe the efficacy of the Telephone Contact Program from more than one perspective. Over 16 weeks, paired t-test found that the physical functioning of subjects had improved significantly. It was noted that there was a trend towards improved health status for the experimental group in that seven out of the eight subscales of AIMS measured improvement, while one subscale showed no change. Contrary to prediction, perception of social support from family members decreased significantly, as measured by the PSS-Fa scale. Pearson correlation coefficients found no association between changes in perception of social support and changes in health status. Interview data suggests that callers were perceived as sources of social support. Specifically, callers seemed to provide participants with emotional support, informational support, and positive social interaction. Overall, the data suggested that the Telephone Contact Program had the capability to evoke small, but clinically meaningfully improvements in the health status of elderly women with arthritis. Further investigation into the use of telephone contact programs as a minimal intervention is advised. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

This study investigates the impact of intense development pressures on the low-rise rental stock in Vancouver's Kerrisdale neighbourhood. In a neighbourhood which has changed little over the last twenty years, Kerrisdale changed rapidly during 1988 and 1989. Starting in late 1988, the neighbourhood has been inundated with new luxury condominium projects. In the process, 17 rental buildings have been or will be demolished to make room for the new condominium and over 300 tenants (many elderly) will be evicted. This study analyzes why this is happening and investigates what impact the demolitions and evictions have had on the displaced tenants. The case is especially interesting because forced evictions do not generally take place in a city's exclusive neighbourhoods. The study also examines the rationale for the demolitions, the key players involved, and the city and provincial government's response. The impact of the redevelopment pressure has been primarily social. Social impact refers to loss to self-esteem, uncertainty, anxiety, loss of control, and stress. Although there is a perception that Kerrisdale residents are very wealthy, tenants tend to be less well off. An analysis of Statistics Canada income data show that more than 40% of the tenants in the low-rise rental stock earned less than $20,000 per year in 1985. Ironically, it is the tenants in the low-rise buildings who tend to be the least able to cope financially who are the most at risk of eviction. It is the low-rise stock which is the target of redevelopment pressures. While still relatively early in the eviction process (only 7 of 17 buildings have been demolished), this study found that evicted tenants moved to all parts of the Lower Mainland. Younger tenants tended to moved further while the elderly tended to stay nearby. The study found that more than 65 percent of the elderly were able to stay in the neighbourhood. Evicted renters who found places in Kerrisdale generally paid more rent for the same space. Many had no choice but to seek accommodation in the more expensive high-rises. Due to the fixed income of many of the elderly, it is unclear how many would be able to withstand another round of rent increases. An analysis of the development economics of construction in Kerrisdale indicates that the primary rationale for the demolition of the rental stock is economics—there is a much greater profit margin in developing luxury condominiums than there is for maintaining or constructing rental housing. Strong demand from Eastern, local and off-shore investors combined with a severe lack of land zoned for multiple residential development has increased the incentive to demolish the low-rise stock. Two thirds of the developers currently pursuing luxury condominium projects in Kerrisdale are from off-shore and are new players in the Vancouver market. The remaining developers have are from Vancouver. It is the local developers who are developing the majority of the units proposed. They are also the later entrants into the Kerrisdale market. This study has found that the sale of the new luxury condominium units in Kerrisdale will be promoted in both local and offshore (particularly Hong Kong) markets. Many of the projects have been designed with the offshore buyer in mind. The provincial government's response to the Kerrisdale situation has primarily been to avoid market intervention. The city's response has been to slow the rate of change. This has been accomplished by implementing demolition delays, amendments to current building by-laws, rental demolition fees, and the creation of a Vancouver Land Corporation (VLC Properties Limited) with a mandate of building affordable rental housing as a replacement for stock lost throughout the city. The success of these strategies can only be determined over the long term. The results of this study suggest that the rental housing sector is unlikely to improve without substantial subsidies from third parties or from government. Citizens need to be aware that there is a cost to be paid for the status quo. One fact to consider is that there is tremendous demand to live in Vancouver, yet more than 70% of it is zoned low-density. In order to relieve some of the pressure for demolitions, selected rezoning to higher densities is required. At the same time, municipalities need to look at improving transportation access so that new land can be made available to accommodate growth. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate