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Instant download (eBook PDF) Understanding Social Problems 5th Canadian Edition pdf all chapter

The document promotes various eBooks related to social problems, including multiple editions of 'Understanding Social Problems' and 'Social Problems: A Canadian Perspective.' It provides links for instant downloads in different formats such as PDF, ePub, and MOBI. Additionally, it outlines topics covered in the eBooks, including issues related to health care, crime, family problems, youth, gender inequality, and poverty.

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© © All Rights Reserved
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Racial and Ethnic Minority Status 53 Substance Abuse and Canada’s Most Vulnerable
Problems in Canadian Health Care 56 Groups 93
Canadian Health Care: An Overview 56 Substance Abuse and Mental Health 95
Needs Assessment and Access to Health Care Treatment Alternatives 96
for Canadians 60 Inpatient/Outpatient Treatment 96
Access to Dental Care 61 Peer Support Groups 96
The High Cost of Medications 62 Strategies for Action: Canada Responds 97
Organ Replacement 62 Report of the Auditor General of
Strategies for Action: Improving Health and Canada—2001 97
Health Care 62 Government Regulations 98
Improving Maternal and Infant Health 62 Harm Reduction 99
HIV/AIDS Prevention and Alleviation Deregulation or Legalization: The Debate 100
Strategies 64 Collective Action 101
Health Promotion 65 Understanding Alcohol and Other Drugs 102
Programs for People with Disabilities 65 Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 103
Telemedicine: Computer Technology in Health What Do You Do Next? 103
Care 66
Understanding Illness and Health Care 67 ChaPter 4
Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 68 CrIme anD VIolenCe 104
What Do You Do Next? 68
A Theory of Justice 105
CHaPter 3 Sources of Crime Statistics 107
Official Statistics 107
alCoHol anD otHer Drugs 69 Victimization Surveys 108
The Global Context: Drug Use and Abuse 71 Social Problems Research Up Close: Safe Streets
Drug Use around the World 72 for Whom? Homeless Youth, Social Exclusion, and
Drug Use in Canada 73 Criminal Victimization 109
Sociological Theories of Drug Use and Self-Report Offender Surveys 112
Abuse 74 Sociological Theories of Crime and
Structural-Functionalist Perspective 74 Violence 113
Feminist Perspectives 75 Structural-Functionalist Perspective 113
Conflict Perspective 77 Conflict Perspective 115
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 78 Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 115
Biological and Psychological Theories 79 Feminist Theories of Crime 116
Frequently Used Legal and Illegal Drugs 80 Sex Work and Trafficked Women 117
Alcohol 80 Types of Crime 119
Social Problems Research Up Close: Drink at Home, Street Crime: Violent Offences 120
Make It a Family Affair 84 Street Crime: Property Offences 123
Tobacco 86 Vice Crimes 123
Marijuana 87 Corporate Crime 124
Cocaine 89 Computer Crime 126
Other Drugs 89 Demographic Patterns of Crime 126
Societal Consequences of Drug Use and Gender and Crime 127
Abuse 91 Young Offenders 127
Family Costs 91 Age and Crime 128
Crime and Drug Use 92 Race, Social Class, and Crime 129
Economic Costs 93 Region and Crime 130

vi Contents NEL

Copyright 2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Costs of Crime and Violence 131 Violence and Abuse in Intimate and Family
Economic Costs of Crime and Violence 131 Relationships 153
Social and Psychological Costs of Crime and Intimate Partner Violence and Abuse 154
Violence 132 Child Abuse 162
Strategies for Action: Responding to Crime Elder Abuse 165
and Violence 133 Factors Contributing to Intimate Partner
Youth Programs 133 and Family Violence and Abuse 165
Community Programs 134 Strategies for Action: Preventing and
Law Enforcement Agencies 134 Responding to Violence and Abuse
Criminal Justice Policy 134 in Intimate and Family Relationships 168
Understanding Crime and Violence 140 Primary Prevention Strategies 168
Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 141 Secondary Prevention Strategies 169
What Do You Do Next? 141 Tertiary Prevention Strategies 169
Divorce 171
ChaPter 5 Consequences of Divorce 173
FamIly Problems 142 Strategies for Action: Strengthening
The Global Context: Families of the World 143 Postdivorce Families 175
Changing Patterns and Structures in Nonmarital and Teenage Child-Bearing 175
Canadian Families and Households 144 Social Problems Related to Unplanned
Sociological Theories of the Family 148 Child-Bearing 177
Structural-Functionalist Perspective 148 Challenging the Mainstream View of Teenage
Conflict Perspective 148 Child-Bearing 178
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 149 Strategies for Action: Interventions in Teenage
Feminist Perspectives 149 and Nonmarital Child-Bearing 179
Social Problems Research Up Close: Moral Understanding Family Problems 180
Constructions of Motherhood in Breastfeeding Student Reflection: What Do You Know
Discourse 150 Now? 180
Queer Theory Perspectives 152 What Do You Do Next? 181

Section 2 Problems of Human Diversity 182

CHaPter 6 Problems of Youth in Canada 192


youtH anD agIng 184 Children and the Law 193
Poverty and Economic Discrimination 196
The Global Context: The Young Kids in Crisis 198
and the Old around the World 185 Demographics: The “Greying” of Canada 199
Youth and Aging 186 Age Pyramids 200
Childhood, Adulthood, and Elderhood 187 Age and Region 202
Sociological Theories of Age Inequality 189 Age and Gender 202
Structural-Functionalist Perspective 189 Age and Social Class 203
Conflict Perspective 190 Problems of the Elderly 203
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 190 Work and Retirement 203
Feminist Perspectives 191 Retirement Income and Poverty 204
Queer Theory Perspectives 191 Health Issues 207

NEL Contents vii


Copyright 2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Living Arrangements 208 Public Policy 245
Social Problems Research Up Close: Children and International Efforts 247
Grandchildren as Primary Caregivers 209 Understanding Gender Inequality 247
Victimization and Abuse 211 Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 248
Quality of Life 212 What Do You Do Next? 248
Strategies for Action: Growing Up and
Growing Old 212 ChaPter 8
Collective Action 212 CritiCal studies in raCe and
Political and Economic Power 213 etHnICIty 249
Understanding Youth and Aging 213
The Global Context: Diversity Worldwide 250
Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 214
The Social Construction of Race 250
What Do You Do Next? 215
Patterns of Racial and Ethnic Group Interaction 252
ChaPter 7 Multiculturalism in Canada 255
Visible Minorities in Canada 257
genDer InequalIty 216 Aboriginality 260
The Global Context: The Status of Women Ethnic Diversity in Canada 263
and Men 217 The Québécois 264
Inequality in Canada 219 Canadian Immigration 267
Sociological Theories of Gender Inequality 219 Sociological Theories of Race and
Structural-Functionalist Perspective 219 Ethnicity 271
Conflict Perspective 220 Structural-Functionalist Perspective 271
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 220 Conflict Perspective 271
Feminist Perspectives 221 Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 272
Queer Theory Perspectives 221 Feminist Perspectives 273
Gender Stratification: Structural Sexism 222 Queer Theory Perspectives 274
Education and Structural Sexism 222 Perspectives in Critical Race Theory 274
Income, Work, and Structural Sexism 227 Prejudice and Racism 275
Work and Structural Sexism 233 Aversive and Modern Racism 276
Politics and Structural Sexism 235 Learning to Be Prejudiced: The Role of Socialization,
Human Rights and Structural Sexism 236 Stereotypes, and the Media 276
The Social Construction of Gender Roles: Discrimination Against Racial and Ethnic
Cultural Sexism 237 Minorities 278
Family Relations and Cultural Sexism 238 Individual versus Institutional Discrimination 278
Social Problems Research Up Close: Family, Hate Crime Victimization 279
Gender Ideology, and Social Change 239 Strategies for Action: Responding to
The School Experience and Cultural Sexism 240 Prejudice, Racism, and Discrimination 282
Media, Language, and Cultural Sexism 241 Multicultural Education in Schools and
Social Problems and Traditional Gender Role Communities 282
Socialization 242 Social Problems Research Up Close: What Influences
The Feminization of Poverty 242 Students’ Openness to Diversity? 283
Social-Psychological Costs 242 Diversity Training in the Workplace 285
Conflict in Relationships 243 Political Strategies 285
Strategies for Action: Toward Gender Understanding Race and Ethnicity 285
Equality 244 Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 286
Grassroots Developments 244 What Do You Do Next? 286

viii Contents NEL

Copyright 2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
CHaPter 9 Heterosexism, Homophobia, and Biphobia 304
sexualities 287 Homophobia 304
Cultural Origins of Homophobia 304
The Canadian Context 288 Biphobia 306
The Global Context: A World View of Laws Effects of Homophobia and Heterosexism
Pertaining to Same-Sex Activity 291 on Heterosexuals 307
Homosexuality and Bisexuality: Prevalence Discrimination against Sexual-Orientation
and Explanations 295 Minorities 307
Origins of Sexual-Orientation Diversity: Discrimination in the Workplace 307
Nature or Nurture? 295 Discrimination in Family Relationships 308
Social Problems Research Up Close: Youth Speak Up Hate Crimes against Sexual-Orientation Minorities 310
about Homophobia and Transphobia 297 Strategies for Action: Reducing Antigay
Sociological Theories of Sexual Prejudice and Discrimination 311
Orientation 300 Educational Strategies: Policies and Programs
Structural-Functionalist Perspective 300 in the Schools 312
Conflict Perspective 301 Campus Policies Regarding Homosexuality 313
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 302 Understanding Sexualities 314
Feminist Perspectives 302 Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 315
Queer Theory Perspectives 303 What Do You Do Next? 315

Section 3 Problems of Inequality and Power 316

CHaPter 10 Consequences of Poverty and Economic


Poverty: national and Inequality 345
InternatIonal Issues 318 Health Problems and Poverty 345
Educational Problems and Poverty 346
The Global Context: Poverty and Family and Parenting Problems Associated with
Economic Inequality around the Poverty 346
World 319 Housing and Homelessness 347
Defining and Measuring Poverty 319 Intergenerational Poverty 348
The Extent of Global Poverty and Economic Social Problems Research Up Close: Family Income
Inequality 332 and Postsecondary Education Participation in
Sociological Theories of Poverty and Canada 349
Economic Inequality 333 War and Social Conflict 351
Structural-Functionalist Perspective 333 Strategies for Action: Antipoverty Programs,
Conflict Perspective 334 Policies, and Proposals 352
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 335 Government Public Assistance and Welfare
Feminist Perspectives 336 Programs in Canada 352
Queer Theory Perspectives 337 Welfare in Canada: Myths and Realities 358
Wealth, Economic Inequality, and Poverty in Minimum Wage Increase 360
Canada 338 Equal Pay for Women 362
Wealth in Canada 338 Charity, Nonprofit Organizations, and
Economic Inequality in Canada 339 Nongovernmental Organizations 362
Patterns of Poverty in Canada 340 International Responses to Poverty 363

NEL Contents ix
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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Understanding Poverty: National and CHaPter 12
International Issues 364 Problems In eDuCatIon 401
Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 365
The Global Context: Cross-Cultural Variation
What Do You Do Next? 365
in Education 402
CHaPter 11 Sociological Theories of Education 405
Work anD unemPloyment 366 Structural-Functionalist Perspective 405
Conflict Perspective 407
The Global Context: The Economy in the Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 408
Twenty-First Century 367 Critical Theories of Education 409
Capitalism and Socialism 368 Feminist Perspectives 410
Corporate Multinationalism 368 Who Succeeds? The Inequality of
Industrialization, Postindustrialization, and the Educational Attainment 410
Changing Nature of Work 369 Social Class and Family Background 412
The Age of Information Technology 371
Social Problems Research Up Close: Special
Sociological Theories of Work and the Education 414
Economy 373 Racial and Ethnic Minorities 415
Structural-Functionalist Perspective 374 Gender 417
Conflict Perspective 374 Problems in the Canadian Educational
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 375
System 418
Feminist Perspectives 375
Low Levels of Academic Achievement 419
Queer Theory Perspectives 376
School Dropouts 420
Problems of Work and Unemployment 377 Student Violence 421
Child Labour: A Global Problem 377 The High Costs of Education 423
Health and Safety Hazards in the Workplace 380 Inadequate School Facilities and Persons
Dissatisfaction and Alienation 382 with Disabilities 425
Social Problems Research Up Close: Workplace and
Strategies for Action: Trends and Innovations
Employee Survey: Better Jobs in the New Economy? 383
in Canadian Education 425
Work–Family Concerns 385
Moral and Interpersonal Education 426
Unemployment and Underemployment 387
Computer Technology in Education 426
Industrial Food Production and Agricultural
Alternative School Choices 427
Workers 387
Understanding Problems in Education 429
Strategies for Action: Responses to Workers’
Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 430
Concerns 389
What Do You Do Next? 430
Responses to Child Labour 389
Efforts to Strengthen Labour 391
CHaPter 13
Workforce Development and Job-Creation
Programs 392 enVIronmental Problems 431
Responses to Worker Health and Safety Concerns 393 The Global Context: Globalization and the
Work–Family Policies and Programs 394 Environment 432
Public Child-Care Assistance for Working Families 396 Permeability of International Borders 432
The Workplace and Family Life 397 Cultural and Social Integration 432
Challenges to Corporate Power and The Growth of Transnational Corporations
Globalization 398 and Free Trade Agreements 433
Understanding Work and Unemployment 399 Sociological Theories of Environmental
Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 400
Problems 433
What Do You Do Next? 400 Structural-Functionalist Perspective 433

x Contents NEL

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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Conflict Perspective 434 Sociological Theories of Armed Conflict
Ecofeminist Perspective 436 and War 473
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 436 Structural-Functionalist Perspective 473
Environmental Problems: An Overview 438 Conflict Perspective 475
Energy Use Worldwide: An Overview 438 Feminist Perspectives 476
Depletion of Natural Resources 439 Social Problems Research Up Close: The Effect
Air Pollution 440 of War on Young Women and Girls in Northern
Global Warming and Climate Change 444 Uganda 477
Land Pollution 446 Symbolic Interactionist Perspective 481
Solid Waste 448
Roots of Armed Conflict 484
Water Pollution 449
Conflict over Land and Other Natural
Chemicals, Carcinogens, and Health Problems 449
Resources 485
Social Problems Research Up Close: Human
Conflict over Values and Ideologies 485
Exposure to Environmental Chemicals 450 Racial, Ethnic, and Religious Hostilities 486
Environmental Injustice 452 Defence Against Hostile Attacks 486
Threats to Biodiversity 454 Revolutions and Civil Wars 487
Light Pollution 455 Nationalism 488
Environmental Problems and Disappearing
Social Problems Associated with Armed
Livelihoods 455
Conflict 488
Social Causes of Environmental Problems 458
Death and Disability 488
Population Growth 458
Rape, Forced Prostitution, and Displacement
Industrialization and Economic Development 458
of Women and Children 489
Cultural Values and Attitudes 459
Social-Psychological Costs 490
Strategies for Action: Responding to Diversion of Economic Resources 491
Environmental Problems 460 Environmental Destruction 492
Environmental Activism and Industry Resistance 460 Strategies for Action: In Search of Global
Environmental Education 462
Peace 493
“Green” Energy 462
Redistribution of Economic Resources 493
Modifications in Consumer Behaviour 464
Peacekeeping Activities of the United Nations 494
Green Building 464
Mediation and Arbitration 495
Government Policies, Regulations, and
Arms Control and Disarmament 496
Funding 465
Sustainable Economic Development 465 Understanding Armed Conflict and War 499
International Cooperation and Assistance 466 Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 500
Understanding Environmental Problems 467 What Do You Do Next? 500
Student Reflection: What Do You Know Now? 468
What Do You Do Next? 469 references 501

CHaPter 14 glossary 532


armed ConfliCt in gloBal
PersPeCtIVe 470 name Index 540
The Global Context: Conflict in a Changing subject Index 546
World 471
Canada’s Changing Role 471
War and Social Change 472

NEL Contents xi
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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
PrefaCe

Violence in the home, school, and street; global poverty made even worse in the
face of globalization; increasing levels of environmental pollution and depletion of
Earth’s natural resources; persistent conflict between and within nations; ongoing
oppression of minority groups; and the widening gap in health, well-being, and sta-
bility between those who hold economic power, prestige, and privilege and those who
do not. In A Guide for the Perplexed, B. F. Schumacher questions whether a “turning
around will be accomplished by enough people quickly enough to save the modern
world” (quoted in Safransky 1990: 115). Schumacher notes, “This question is often
asked, but whatever the answer given to it will mislead. The answer ‘yes’ would lead
to complacency; the answer ‘no’ to despair. It is desirable to leave these perplexities
behind us and get down to work.”
In Understanding Social Problems, we “get down to work” by examining how the
structure and culture of societies contributes to social problems and their conse-
quences. Understanding the social forces that contribute to social problems is neces-
sary for designing strategies for action—programs, policies, and other interventions
intended to ameliorate the social problem.

academic features of Understanding


Social Problems
strong integrative theoretical foundations
The three major sociological approaches—structural-functionalism, symbolic inter-
actionism, and conflict theory—are introduced in the first chapter and discussed and
applied, where appropriate, to various social problems throughout the text.
To foster the development of a nuanced understanding of contemporary prob-
lems, we have added significant discussion of the contributions of perspectives and
research developed through feminist, postmodern, and queer theories.
With hundreds of contemporary sources drawn primarily from Canadian
research and from the most recent Canadian census data analyses, this edition of
Understanding Social Problems draws out a timely and thorough approach to prob-
lems that students will recognize. The inclusion of global perspectives on social prob-
lems will also help students to situate their understandings to contexts broader than
the confines of their own local experiences.

emphasis on the structure and Culture of society


As noted, the text emphasizes how the social structure and culture of society con-
tribute to and maintain social problems, as well as provide the basis for alternative
solutions.

review of Basic sociological terms


An overview of basic sociological terms and concepts is presented in the first chapter.
This overview is essential for students who have not taken an introductory course
and is helpful, as a review, for those who have. The first chapter also addresses the

xii NEL

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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
relationship of theory to methods to show how specific theories can foster particular
methods.

unique organization
The order of the 14 chapters reflects a progression from micro to macro levels of
analysis, focusing first on problems of health care, drug use, and crime, and then
broadening to the widening concerns of population health and welfare, science and
technology, large-scale inequality, and environmental problems.
Three chapters merit special mention: “Sexualities” (Chapter 9), “Armed Conflict
in Global Perspective” (Chapter 14), and “Environmental Problems” (Chapter 13).
Whereas traditional texts approach sexualities through the lens of “deviance,”
we approach issues related to them as problems only insofar as they reflect dan-
gerous prejudices and social structures and attitudes that have a negative impact
on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) persons. Chapter 14 avoids
the pitfalls of examining conflict in simple terms of “legitimate wars” and “ille-
gitimate terrorism” and instead provides a context for understanding how and
why armed conflicts occur, and what we might be able to do to reduce both the
instance of such conflict and the damage that results when conflict does occur.
Chapter 13, on environmental problems, departs from texts that usually pair pop-
ulation concerns with environmental ones to argue that a population explosion
threatens world safety; here, we approach environmental problems by looking
at how attitudes toward overconsumption of resources and the production of all
types of waste threaten global well-being.

Consistent Chapter format


Each chapter follows a similar format: the social problem is defined, the theoretical
explanations are discussed, the consequences of the social problem are explored, and
the alternative solutions and policies are examined. A concluding section assesses
the current state of knowledge for each social problem. Every chapter opens by
inviting students to reflect on the positions and knowledge—whether accurate or
not—that they bring to the general social concern under discussion; the feature thus
acknowledges the levels of preparation and awareness that students bring to the
table, but also allows them an opportunity to reflect on shifts in their thinking that
can result from exposure to new information presented in the text. Every chapter
ends with reflective, developmental questions that encourage students to move
through different learning stages developed in Bloom’s taxonomy.

Changes in the fifth edition


In response to feedback from teachers, reviewers, and students who have read ear-
lier Canadian editions of Understanding Social Problems, we have maintained our
expanded inclusion of contemporary social theory, and we have added more studies
by scholars whose work is focused on issues that affect people in the Canadian con-
text. The majority of changes in this edition have been suggested by faculty reviewers
and users of this book and have been made to coincide with the needs of instructors
and to encourage critical reflection on learning and reading by students. In addition,
by moving the majority of the boxed features out of the text and on to the book’s
companion Web site, we have been able to provide more in-depth discussion in every
chapter and add new pedagogical features. The excised material remains available on
the CourseMate site.

NEL Preface xiii


Copyright 2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Recognizing that instructors will have their own goals and purposes for their
courses, we have devised action-oriented learning outcomes based on the revised Bloom’s
taxonomy of the cognitive domain (Anderson and Krathwohl 2001) for each chapter
that we hope will provide some guidance for readers. Alongside these intended learning
outcomes, each chapter opens by inviting students to reflect on the conceptions and
background experience that they bring to the general social concern under discussion.
The “What do you already know?” feature acknowledges the levels of preparation and
awareness that students bring to the table, but also allows them an opportunity to reflect
on shifts in their thinking that can result from exposure to new information presented in
the text. Each chapter ends with “What do you know now?”—critically reflective, devel-
opmental questions that encourage students to reflect metacognitively on their achieve-
ment of learning outcomes. These new features have been designed by one of Canada’s
most respected teaching and learning experts, Dr. Trevor Holmes.
In addition to problems that are typically addressed in social problems courses
and texts, new and emerging topics are examined. Topics new to the fifth edition
include sustained discussions of Aboriginal health in Canada and of changes to
current health-care delivery and management affecting how Canadians access
health care (Chapter 2), a critical introduction to how correlations between sub-
stance abuse and poor health are presented in “commonsense” views of Aboriginal
communities in Canada; we also present proposals that seek to improve quality of
life for Aboriginal peoples while avoiding racist stereotyping and blame of Canada’s
Native peoples (Chapter 3), and a feminist-oriented critical discussion of concerns
related to “sex trafficking” in Canada and abroad (Chapter 4). Chapter 6 presents
new critical thinking that challenges the normative demands for use to mature and
age according to life stages meant to meet the economic interests of capitalism.
Chapter 8 presents a contemporary debate among prominent Canadian sociologists
Vic Satzewich, Frances Henry, and Carol Tator on a practice referred to as “racial pro-
filing” in policing, and encourages students to consider the debate in consideration
of Spector and Kitsuse’s theorization of how we come to recognize social problems
as such. Chapter 10 presents a new Social Problems Research Up Close feature on the
relationship between family income and participation in postsecondary education
in Canada. In many instances, we have introduced discussion of topics in which sig-
nificant change is taking place in Canadian legislation, and instructors may wish to
introduce news stories related to the current problems addressed in each chapter.
Other significant changes have been made in the fifth edition. For example, the
text’s interior design has been updated considerably for this edition and now appears
in colour. We continue to have a marginal glossary in each of the 14 chapters so that
students may readily locate definitions to useful key terms. In addition, the fifth edi-
tion of Understanding Social Problems uses the most recently available updates on
Canadian and global statistics and provides updates in the research in each chapter,
thus providing an up-to-date and long-term view of the social problems we face in
Canada and around the globe.
Here are some further, specific changes to this edition presented by chapter:

Chapter 1—Thinking about Social Problems


Chapter 1 has been enhanced with expanded coverage of feminist theories by
Dorothy Smith and her “women’s standpoint” theory—a view of knowledge and
experience that begins from the position that women occupy in larger society.
A new section called “An Analytic Toolkit for Reading Social Problems Research”
has been added. This section provides a step-by-step approach to help students
read more effectively, accurately, and with more purpose.

xiv Preface NEL

Copyright 2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Chapter 2—Illness and Health Care
In this chapter, the sections on patterns of morbidity and patterns of mortality
have been thoroughly revised and data have been updated.
The coverage of HIV/AIDS has been expanded and updated to include new
regional figures on adults and children newly infected and living with HIV and
AIDS-related deaths.
New coverage of critical race theory and health in Canada has been added.

Chapter 3—Alcohol and Other Drugs


The new term “social cost model” has been added.
The discussion of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
and international data on drug use as it relates to health issues have been
expanded.
A new, comprehensive table called “Commonly Abused Drugs” has been added
and the sections on tobacco and marijuana use have been expanded and
revised.
A new section on substance abuse and Canada’s most vulnerable groups has been
added, including coverage of fetal alcohol syndrome.

Chapter 4—Crime and Violence


Data on homicide rates have been updated and new coverage of transnational
crime, including human trafficking, has been added.
A new Social Problems Research Up Close feature discusses the studies of homeless
youth, social exclusion, and criminal victimization by York University professor
and researcher Stephen Gaetz.

Chapter 5—Family Problems


The section on intimate partner violence and abuse was expanded to include cov-
erage of the Duluth Power and Control Wheel model.
Coverage of a multinational study carried out at McMaster University’s medical
school in Hamilton as it relates to victims of intimate partner violence has been
added.
New information on advocacy and education groups supporting LGBT commu-
nities and education to prevent abuse within LGBT relationships (Northwest
Network) has been included, as well as arguments by Nancy Berns (2004) outlining
impediments of reducing the instance of intimate partner violence.

Chapter 6—Youth and Aging


Chapter 6 has been enhanced with expanded coverage of childhood in the global
context.
The youth and aging section includes studies on adolescence as a life stage by
Canadian Mary-Louise Adams’s The Trouble with Normal and British scholar Nancy
Lesko’s Act Your Age!
New coverage of queer theory perspectives by Halberstam has been included.
The section on retirement income and poverty has been revised and updated to
include coverage of Conference Board of Canada (2013) and how financial pres-
sures are negatively affecting the well-being of elderly Canadians and negatively
influencing those of working age from being able to save efficiently for the future.

NEL Preface xv
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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Chapter 7—Gender Inequality
In this chapter, current 2013 data and information from the United Nations
Human Development Report (HDR) as it relates to the status of women and men
in a global context has been included.
A new term “heteronormativity” has been added along with new coverage of
Australian scholar Nikki Sullivan’s work and book A Critical Introduction to Queer
Theory.

Chapter 8—Critical Studies in Race and Ethnicity


This chapter includes an analysis of race and social construction of race by Robert
Miles and Malcolm Brown (2003).
The section on multiculturalism in Canada has been expanded to include cov-
erage of power structure of class and ethnicity along with studies by John Porter
and his book The Vertical Mosaic.
New coverage, data, and figures related to the Immigration and Refugee Protection
Act (IRPA) and permanent residents in Canada has been added.
Critical race theories and coverage of racial profiling have been added in the
sociological theories of race and ethnicity section.

Chapter 9—Sexualities
In this chapter, coverage of bills as they relate to hate crime laws has been revised
and updated.
Global coverage and attitudes regarding same-sex relationships has been
expanded to include Russia’s current government and the rights of LGBT per-
sons and Russia’s ranking as the last of 49 countries in Europe for rights protec-
tions for LGBT persons by the International Lesbian Gay Association (ILGA).
The discussion of strategies to reduce antigay prejudice and discrimination has
been significantly expanded.

Chapter 10—Poverty: National and International Issues


The coverage of international measures of poverty has been updated and revised
and includes a new figure on world wealth levels.
Additional information on Canadian measures of poverty with updated studies by
Sarlo, economist David Macdonald, and former foreign diplomat Daniel Wilson
has been added.
Coverage of minimum wages in Canada has been updated and a new map has been
added.

Chapter 11—Work and Unemployment


In this chapter, the age of information technology section has been expanded to
include telework studies as they relate to employee job satisfaction.
The coverage of child prostitution and trafficking was expanded and includes
a current report from child labour specialist Mary E. Miller for the Washington
State Department of Labor and Industries explaining the root causes of child
labour, exploitation, and trafficking. A critical analysis by Julia O’Connell Davidson
has also been added.
New coverage of industrial food production and agricultural workers, migrant
workers, and the meat processing industry has been added.

xvi Preface NEL

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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Chapter 12—Problems in Education
Chapter 12 has been enhanced with updated coverage of education trends and
achievements using statistical measures for over 35 countries as published in
Education at a Glance, a research publication from the OECD reports.
New coverage and data on participation rates in postsecondary education for
students from traditionally underrepresented and “minority” groups added as
derived from the Canadian Youth in Transition Survey (YITS).
The section on computers and technology has been expanded and updated,
including new material on massive open online courses (MOOCs).
New examples of alternative schooling such as SEED Alternative in Toronto and
U-Turn Academy in Cambridge, Ontario have been added.

Chapter 13—Environmental Problems


The discussion of the Kyoto accord has been expanded and updated.
New content and diagrams have been included, for example on world energy pro-
duction by source, CO2 emissions per capita by region, and greenhouse gas emis-
sions by province and territory.
The section on destructive water and land use in Canada includes new coverage
on the pipeline in the Athabasca, fracking, and the 13 objectives of Keepers of the
Athabasca as they relate to oil sands development.
Food waste studies by Gooch and colleagues and coverage of community sup-
ported agriculture (CSA) have been added.

Chapter 14—Armed Conflict in Global Perspective


The discussion surrounding the sociological theories of armed conflict and war
has been enhanced with new coverage of the costs associated with forming alle-
giances in Canada’s role in post-9/11 relations with the United States.
New key term and discussion surrounding primordial explanations has been
added.
Coverage of wars in Syria, Russia, and the Ukraine has been expanded and
updated.

Pedagogical features of the fifth edition


student-friendly Presentation
To enhance the book’s appeal to students, the fifth edition includes streamlined
information relevant to a current generation of students. The Social Research
Problems Up Close features in every chapter provide students with relevant and
timely research projects undertaken by sociologists in Canada and around the
world. Chapter 2 presents research on how the HPV vaccine has been marketed
in Canada, and problematized women’s sexuality in particular; Chapter 4 presents
Canadian research on the role of social exclusion in the lives of homeless youth, and
their attendant risk for being victims of crime; and Chapter 5 presents a discourse
analysis of health and parenting advice for breastfeeding and does so in a Canadian
context.
These boxes demonstrate for students the sociological enterprise from theory
and data collection to findings and conclusions, and potential for application in
everyday life.

NEL Preface xvii


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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
ancillaries
about the nelson education teaching advantage
(neta)
The Nelson Education Teaching Advantage (NETA) program delivers research-
based instructor resources that promote student engagement and higher-order
thinking to enable the success of Canadian students and educators. To ensure
the high quality of these materials, all Nelson ancillaries have been professionally
copy-edited.
Planning Your Course: NETA Engagement presents materials that help instruc-
tors deliver engaging content and activities to their classes. NETA Instructor’s
Manuals not only identify the topics that cause students the most difficulty, but
also describe techniques and resources to help students master these concepts.
Dr. Roger Fisher’s Instructor’s Guide to Classroom Engagement accompanies every
Instructor’s Manual.
Assessing Your Students: NETA Assessment relates to testing materials. NETA
Test Bank authors create multiple-choice questions that reflect research-based
best practices for constructing effective questions and testing not just recall but
also higher-order thinking. Our guidelines were developed by David DiBattista,
psychology professor at Brock University and 3M National Teaching Fellow, whose
research has focused on multiple-choice testing. All Test Bank authors receive
training at workshops conducted by Prof. DiBattista, as do the copy-editors
assigned to each Test Bank. A copy of Multiple Choice Tests: Getting Beyond
Remembering, Prof. DiBattista’s guide to writing effective tests, is included with
every Nelson Test Bank.
Teaching Your Students: NETA Presentation has been developed to help instruc-
tors make the best use of Microsoft® PowerPoint® in their classrooms. With a clean
and uncluttered design developed by Maureen Stone of StoneSoup Consulting,
NETA PowerPoints features slides with improved readability, more multimedia and
graphic materials, activities to use in class, and tips for instructors on the Notes page.
A copy of NETA Guidelines for Classroom Presentations by Maureen Stone is included
with each set of PowerPoint slides.

instructor resources
All NETA and other key instructor ancillaries are provided on the Instructor
Companion Site at www.nelson.com/socialproblems5e, giving instructors the
ultimate tool for customizing lectures and presentations.
NETA Test Bank: This resource was written by Thomas Groulx of St. Clair College.
It includes over 800 multiple-choice questions written according to NETA guidelines
for effective construction and development of higher-order questions. The Test Bank
was copy-edited by a NETA-trained editor for adherence to NETA best practices. Also
included are approximately 30 true/false questions, 70 short-answer questions, and
70 essay questions.
The NETA Test Bank is available in a new, cloud-based platform. Testing Powered
by Cognero® is a secure online testing system that allows you to author, edit, and
manage test bank content from any place you have Internet access. No special
installations or downloads are needed, and the desktop-inspired interface, with its
drop-down menus and familiar, intuitive tools, allows you to create and manage tests
with ease. You can create multiple test versions in an instant, and import or export

xviii Preface NEL

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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
content into other systems. Tests can be delivered from your learning management
system, your classroom, or wherever you want.
NETA PowerPoint: Microsoft® PowerPoint® lecture slides for every chapter have
been created by Darlene Balandin, Western University. There is an average of
75 slides per chapter, many featuring key figures, tables, and photographs from
Understanding Social Problems, Fifth Canadian Edition. NETA principles of clear
design and engaging content have been incorporated throughout, making it simple
for instructors to customize the deck for their courses.
Image Library: This resource consists of digital copies of figures, short tables, and
photographs used in the book. Instructors may use these jpegs to customize the
NETA PowerPoint or create their own PowerPoint presentations.
NETA Instructor’s Manual: This resource was written by Darlene Balandin,
Western University. It is organized according to the textbook chapters and addresses
key educational concerns, such as typical stumbling blocks student face and how to
address them. Other features include elements of a traditional Instructor’s Manual,
including learning outcomes and suggested resources to use in the classroom.
DayOne: Day One—Prof InClass is a PowerPoint presentation that instructors can
customize to orient students to the class and their text at the beginning of the course.

Coursemate
Nelson Education’s Sociology CourseMate brings course concepts to life with inter-
active learning and exam preparation tools that integrate with the printed textbook.
Students activate their knowledge through quizzes, games, and flashcards, among
many other tools.
CourseMate provides immediate feedback that enables students to connect results
to the work they have just produced, increasing their learning efficiency. It encour-
ages contact between students and faculty: you can select to monitor your students’
level of engagement with CourseMate, correlating their efforts to their outcomes. You
can even use CourseMate’s quizzes to practise “Just in Time” teaching by tracking
results in the Engagement Tracker and customizing your lesson plans to address
their learning needs.
Sociology CourseMate includes:
an interactive eBook that includes note-taking and highlighting functionality
interactive teaching and learning tools, including:
quizzes
flashcards
matching activities
Evaluate Social Problems in the Media boxed feature
Critically Reflect on Technology boxed feature
and more
Engagement Tracker, a first-of-its-kind tool that monitors student engagement in
the course

acknowledgments
This text reflects the contributions of many people. I am especially grateful for the
professionalism, patience, and support shown by my colleagues at Nelson Education
Canada, especially to Laura McLeod for initially inviting my authorship on the third

NEL Preface xix


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Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.
Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
and Division; and the hearty fellowship and jollity shown by all ranks
at Christmastide had a distinct military value. The 42nd had again
become one of the happiest of divisions, and good comradeship
prevailed from top to bottom, whether in the line, where danger and
hardship were cheerfully accepted as part of the day’s work, or in
billets, where care was cast aside. To take one instance, who can
forget “Harley Street” after dusk? Within rifle range of the enemy,
and under observation in the daytime, it would hardly seem the place
in which to congregate. With divisional baths and a reading and
recreation room in full swing, the street was a crowded thoroughfare,
and when night fell limbers and wagons passed through in an
unending stream. Men lounged in the doorways of ruined houses,
smoking, passing remarks on things in general and critical
comments on drivers and animals. The air hummed with the buzz of
conversation, broken now and again by snatches of popular ditties
from gatherings of convivial souls. The spirit of good-humour was
passed on to the folk at home. A machine-gunner had been
punished by his officer, and, knowing that the same officer would
have to read the letter in his capacity as censor, he wrote to his
mother: “We have got a new Section Officer, such a nice fellow. We
get on splendidly together, and he thinks me so capable that he has
got me the job of cleaning pack-saddles this week.”
The strength of the Division on January 1, 1918, was 732 officers
and 14,314 other ranks. On January 14 Major-General Townsley, of
the American Army, with his Chief of Staff and A.D.C., was attached
to the Division for ten days. On the 22nd the campaign on behalf of
St. Dunstan’s Hostel for blinded soldiers was closed. £775 had been
raised in the Division, this amount being £130 more than had been
raised by any other division of the 1st Corps.
The Divisional Artillery, which covered the whole of the front, had
far more fighting than the infantry. The policy was one of “Offensive-
Defensive.” The enemy’s guns, and above all his trench-mortars,
were very active, and long acquaintance with this sector enabled him
accurately to register the targets he periodically engaged. His
“minnies” were the pet aversion of the men in the trenches. But here
the Germans had not the advantage they possessed at
Lombartzyde, and punishment was meted out to them. As a counter-
measure a standing order was issued that for every T.M. shell fired
by the enemy he must receive five in return, and with the exception
of the few occasions when prevented by limitation of ammunition, all
T.M. crews loyally and gladly carried out the order. Good use was
made of the Punishment Fire scheme inaugurated in the Nieuport
sector. A selection, carefully based on all available intelligence, was
made of those targets which would cause the enemy the most
immediate damage and inconvenience. These were registered, and
when the enemy shell fire exceeded what was considered the limit of
normal harassing, prompt and effective retribution was dealt out to
him by guns of all calibres from the 15-inch howitzers to the 18-
pounder field-guns.
Of the three machine-gun companies of the Division—the fourth
arrived in February—two and a half companies were in action
covering the front. A few of their guns fired indirect S.O.S. barrages,
and the remainder were sighted for direct fire in carefully chosen
positions distributed in depth. Every inch of ground over which the
enemy must advance was swept by machine-gun fire, direct or
indirect, frontal or flanking. To take two examples only—the ground
from the canal at Death or Glory Sap up to and beyond Red Dragon
Crater was swept by the direct flanking fire of two guns cunningly
emplaced in the railway embankment on the south side of the canal;
and the northern face of the bastion of Givenchy was swept by the
indirect fire of four guns near Festubert Keep. In addition to their
defensive duties the machine-gun companies carried out day and
night harassing programmes.
A brief reference must be made to the work of the 179th
Tunnelling Company, R.E., in the right sector. Most of their heavy
work, such as the construction of tunnelled dug-outs and
emplacements, and the maintenance of infantry sub-ways,
proceeded unseen by the men of other arms, for the entrances to the
deep-mining system were closed to the curious. The strata in which
mining operations were possible had become so honeycombed with
galleries and listening-saps that no new offensive mining could be
undertaken without instant detection. The methods of keeping touch
with enemy activities were full of interest. In a little chamber off the
main gallery a man sat in front of a board on which was a plan of the
mine system. A telephone receiver was fixed over his ears. By
inserting a plug into the board at any of the sapheads he could listen
by a microphone to the enemy’s subterranean activities in the vicinity
of this particular sap. A pump at work in an adjacent trench, an
enemy miner patrolling the gallery or tiptoeing to an adjacent
saphead—even such sounds as these could be detected with
uncanny distinctness.
The system of holding the line by tactical localities and immediate
counter-attack, which afterwards proved so successful as compared
with continuous line, was made the subject of strenuous training.
The reorganization was planned with the double object of reducing
the number of men required to garrison the trenches, and at the
same time of strengthening the defence by a series of self-
contained, mutually supporting localities, disposed in depth and
connected, so far as possible, by underground, shell-proof
passages, with wire-entanglements so sited as to bring an
approaching enemy under the fire of these localities. The term
“locality” is used to denote an area of ground of tactical importance
which is organized for defence in depth to form a centre of
resistance. The guiding principle is that its front and flanks should be
held by infantry posts and machine-guns while reserves are kept in
hand ready for counter-attack within the locality. A large number of
concrete machine-gun emplacements, command posts, etc., were
constructed, and as there was no adequate system of light railways
or tramways serving the front, a heavy strain was thrown upon the
transport in bringing up R.E. material alone. The value of this work
was seen later during the German offensive on the Lys in April,
1918, the sector being then held by the 55th (West Lancashire
Territorial) Division. Major-General Jeudwine, commanding the 55th
Division, in a letter to Major-General Solly-Flood, stated that the work
of the East Lancashires had greatly assisted the West Lancashires
to defeat the onslaughts of the enemy—and thus hold inviolate that
most important tactical feature, Givenchy—and that he had pleasure
in acknowledging the debt they owed to their predecessors.
There were raids on both sides, but while those Raids
of the enemy revealed a lack of determination and
of the true offensive spirit, ours were entered upon and carried
through with zest. In the southern sector the Germans were
particularly inactive, but the Division opposite Givenchy showed
rather more enterprise.[11] Twice they attempted to raid “J” and “K”
saps, and on the first occasion succeeded in entering our trenches,
only to be promptly ejected. Other attempts further north were
equally futile. On the British side the raids provided welcome breaks
in the monotony of trench routine. The most important raid by our
troops took place on February 11 in the left sector, opposite
Festubert. The artillery put down a “box” barrage, enclosing an area
by three walls of bursting shells, and Captain D. B. Stephenson, with
two other officers and ninety-seven men of the 9th Manchesters and
an officer and six sappers of the 429 Field Company, went “over the
top” in two waves. In places the wire had been imperfectly cut, so
men lay flat on the “concertinas” to keep the wire down while their
comrades scrambled across. As the barrage enclosed the enemy
within the “box,” they could not get away nor could reinforcements
reach them, so they had no choice but to fight man to man, and at
this the Germans were no match for the Ashton men. At least
twenty-five were killed, seven prisoners and two machine-guns were
secured, and the sappers blew up three enemy dug-outs with gun-
cotton. It was a good night’s work, carried out with great dash.
On the following night, Lieutenant A. Elliott, 7th L.F., with Sergeant
T. Gerrard, Corporal J. Phipps, and two men, reconnoitred a
mineshaft situated well within the enemy’s lines, near the
Brickstacks. After exploring the tunnel he left a guard over it and
went back for a demolition party, returning with an officer and three
men of a tunnelling company and seven Fusiliers carrying explosive.
Elliott helped the tunnellers to lay the charge, and then sent back all
the men except Phipps, who remained with him to guard the
entrance while the tunnelling officer lit the fuse. The mineshaft was
completely destroyed and the whole party returned in safety. Elliott
and the two N.C.O.s had been associated in two night adventures on
February 1-3, in the course of which they discovered the mineshaft
and explored the tunnelling system for 150 yards. Afterwards they
located and bombed an enemy post, inflicting casualties.
On February 15 the Division was relieved by the 55th Division and
withdrawn to 1st Corps Reserve in the Busnes—Burbure—
Fouquieres area, with D.H.G. first at Hinges and later at Labouvriere.
The divisional artillery were relieved a few days later, but the
pioneers and the sappers remained at work in the line during the
whole of the Division’s period of rest. The billets in the rest-area
were good, sports were encouraged, and concerts held in the local
halls. Training was carried on vigorously. Suitable ground for
musketry and field work existed in the divisional area, and full use
was made of it. The training always had in view open and semi-open
warfare, and it included the hasty occupation of defensive positions
in depth, counter-attacks on small and large scales, the use of
ground for manœuvre, and of different weapons in attacks on strong
points. This training proved most valuable in the operations following
upon the enemy offensive in March. The Division also provided large
working parties for work on the rear lines of defence within the Corps
area.
Shortly before the Division was relieved it had received its pioneer
battalion, the 1/7th Northumberland Fusiliers, transferred from the
50th Division. This battalion, commanded by Lieut.-Colonel Liddell,
D.S.O., had been given little time to carry out its reorganization from
a four-company infantry battalion to a three-company pioneer
battalion before being set to work on the 1st Corps defences. The
territorial spirit is strong, and the Northumberland men did not
conceal their chagrin at having to leave the division in which they
had won renown at High Wood and elsewhere, but they soon threw
themselves into the work and play of their new division with such
zeal that they rapidly won popularity and a reputation for great
courage and efficiency. Their work was of the greatest value to the
Division, both when resisting the German onrush, and no less when
the tide turned. They also showed much prowess in all games and
sports.
A more extensive reorganization had now to be Reorganization
made. So great had been the drain upon the man-
power of the empire that it had become necessary to reduce the
establishment of infantry brigades from four to three battalions. A
number of officers and men of the 6th Lancashire Fusiliers, the 4th
East Lancashires, and the 9th Manchesters were posted to other
battalions of the Division, and the remainder transferred to the 66th
Division. As the 126th Brigade thereby lost two battalions, the 8th
Manchesters were transferred to it from the 127th Brigade. The
brigades were then made up as follows—
The 125th Brigade—

1/5th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers


1/7th ” ” ”
1/8th ” ” ”

The 126th Brigade—

1/5th Battalion East Lancashire Regiment


1/8th ” Manchester Regiment
1/10th ” ” ”

The 127th Brigade—

1/5th Battalion Manchester Regiment


1/6th ” ” ”
1/7th ” ” ”

As most of the battalions were all considerably below strength they


received as reinforcements three battalions (less Commanding
Officers, Adjutants, and Quartermasters) from the 66th Division—the
3/5th Lancashire Fusiliers, the 2/8th Manchesters, and the 2/10th
Manchesters—which were divided among the nine battalions. The
departure of three battalions which for three and a half years had
shared in the labours, dangers, and honours of the Division was a
matter of deep regret both for those who left and those who
remained, but there was some consolation in the thought that they
now formed part of the sister-division, and would thenceforward fight
side by side with the second-line battalions of their own units. The
four separate machine-gun companies were now reorganized as a
machine-gun battalion, one company being with each infantry
brigade, and one in Divisional Reserve. There were also changes in
the trench-mortar batteries. V/42, 9·2-inch T.M. Battery had been left
in the La Bassée sector. X/42 and Y/42, 6-inch T.M. batteries were
transformed into six-gun batteries, Z/42 being divided between them.
The departure of the C.R.E., Lieut.-Colonel D. S. MacInnes, C.M.G.,
D.S.O., to become Deputy Engineer-in-Chief at G.H.Q., caused
general regret. Few men of the Division had so thorough a
knowledge of the front line, and whenever any particularly difficult
and dangerous work was in hand, he would be there by day or by
night to assist, and especially to encourage. Another of the best-
known figures in the Division, the A.D.M.S., Colonel T. P. Jones,
C.M.G., had left, and had been succeeded by Colonel W. R.
Matthews, D.S.O., who maintained the R.A.M.C. in the highly
efficient state to which it had been brought by Colonel Jones and his
subordinates, and the Division soon had reason to congratulate itself
upon the appointment. In January, too, Lieut.-Colonel R. F. Guy,
D.S.O., had been appointed G.S.O. 1. A hard worker, he backed up
his chief with loyalty and energy, and soon gained the entire
confidence of the Brigadiers and C.O.s.
The Divisional Reception Camp at Allouagne was proving very
valuable as a training centre, and even casuals passing through from
hospital or other leave were given a brief refresher in musketry and
gas training, and a general smartening up. That instruction in
“General Knowledge” was needed by some of the newer drafts is
shown by the following true story, which is also a tribute to the
energy and activity of the A.A. and Q.M.G. of the Division. An
N.C.O., at the close of an hour’s instruction in a barn at Le Quesnoy,
asked one or two general questions—
Instructor. “Who commands the battalion?” (Correctly answered.)
“Who commands the battalion when the colonel is away?”
A Voice (after an interval of silence). “Sergeant-Major ⸺”
Instructor. “Wrong.”
Another Voice. “Colonel Slaughter.”
Instructor. “Wrong again. Major X. commands in the colonel’s
absence. Now, who commands the Brigade?”
Several Voices. “Colonel Slaughter!”
Instructor. “Wrong. It is commanded by General Henley. Now, who
commands the Division?”
Loud Chorus. “Solly-Flood.”
Instructor. “Right. Who commands the Division if the General is
away.”
Full Chorus. “Colonel Slaughter!!”
About this period a violent attack of mange among the R.E. horses
carried off eighty per cent. of one field company’s animals. Stringent
orders were given to prevent its spread, and the drivers were
separated into two lots, one to look after the infected horses, the
other to guard those which had not yet developed symptoms. All the
clothing was stoved, and for one day drivers had to do their best to
keep warm in their shirts and pretend that they were “Jocks.” The
Divisional Commander was always pleased to see the transport men
on terms of intimacy and affection with their animals, and he
frequently asked the names of the horses. One day he heard a driver
address his mare as “Phœbe,” and remembered that the man had
recently assured him that its name was “Dolly.” He pointed this out,
whereupon the driver explained that in the meantime he had
changed his girl.
Though it is always gratifying to come across men thoroughly
devoted to duty and conscientious in its performance, enthusiasm
may be carried to extremes. Two worthy men on the pioneer staff of
their battalion were detailed to superintend a foot-bath, and being
very conscientious, they determined that no foot-bath in the B.E.F.
should have a better record. Each day they proudly reported the
number of men who had used the bath, and the average was high.
But for some reason numbers began to dwindle, so the pioneers
resorted to the expedient of seizing passers-by and compelling them
to wash their feet. The average went up again until on one unhappy
day they grabbed three of the adjutant’s runners.
The coming event was already casting its threatening shadow
before it. The feeling was in the air that the Germans were preparing
for the mightiest of all their amazing military efforts, and as one could
only conjecture where the heaviest blows would fall, the whole army
was on the alert. The 42nd Division was in a state of readiness to
reinforce any part of the 1st Corps front should the necessity arise.
In addition, one infantry brigade and machine-gun company were
warned to move at short notice by motor-bus and route-march to
reinforce the Portuguese[12] on the immediate left of the Corps. On
the night of February 25-26 the Portuguese trenches were heavily
bombarded, and in the early morning the 126th Brigade moved to its
supporting positions in the area around Vieux Chapelle and La
Couture, arriving at 10 a.m. However, nothing more serious than a
raid was attempted, and in the afternoon the Brigade was withdrawn.
The Divisional Artillery came out of action for a “Wits and Guts”
period of training near Choques, and on March 1
the Division passed from Corps into G.H.Q. Reserve. The Divisional
Commander availed himself of the opportunity to deliver to officers
and N.C.O.s a lecture the purport of which is expressed with
admirable terseness in its title, “Wits and Guts.” The General gave a
vivid picture of the fighting of 1914, and foretold that it was highly
probable that the Division before long might find itself similarly
situated, and would then have the opportunity to emulate the deeds
of the “Old Contemptibles.” The lecture was given to every officer
and N.C.O. of each infantry and artillery brigade, and to other units in
turn, and a précis was afterwards issued in the Foreword to the
Divisional Pocket Book. It was in the course of this address that
Major-General Solly-Flood gave the Division its motto, “Go One
Better,” a motto adopted with enthusiasm by all ranks as a very
real expression of the spirit that inspired the Division.
The training during February and March included some keenly
contested and most useful competitions. The basis of training and
sport was the platoon. The spirit of the attack was the platoon. There
were platoon efficiency competitions, from guard mounting and clean
turn-out to contests of skill with all weapons; platoon boxing, football,
cricket, sing-songs, and similar rivalries, and also transport
competitions. In this way every individual had to take part, and none
looked on all the time. There were other interests, too. Larks were
singing, and though the wanton lapwing was not in evidence, the
fuller “crimson” was showing on the robin’s breast—in short, spring
was in the air, and more than one young man’s fancy lightly turned to
thoughts of love, and the French maidens were not coy. The rather
hazy notions that had been entertained of the French as a light-
hearted, frivolous race had been turned inside out. True, they had
seen little or nothing of French males under fifty-five years of age,
but they had discovered that French women and girls were the most
practical, shrewd, clear-headed, and capable in the world. Young
girls and middle-aged and elderly women were combining the heavy
farm-work of men—and doing it well!—with the house-work of the
capable house-wife, the art and craft of the trained milliner and
dressmaker, and a mastery of finance worthy of a chartered
accountant. The rapid and facile mental arithmetic displayed by girls
in “totting up” the sum total of a complicated series of purchases in
one lightning utterance, apparently composed entirely of sibillants
that reminded the audience of “Sister Susie’s sewing shirts,” took the
breath away and compelled admiration. Nor was the admiration
wholly one-sided. The Lancashire lad was pronounced gentil and
aimable. He would fetch and carry, amuse the children, mind the
baby, and perform a hundred and one odd jobs to help the
overworked women, and many friendships were formed. But training,
sports, and dallying were rudely interrupted by the call received on
March 21, when, at about 6 p.m., warning orders were received that
the Division might be suddenly called upon to move southwards into
action. The warning was emphasized on the night of the 21st by a
terrific bombardment by German aircraft of all back areas, railheads
and junctions.
The great German offensive had begun. On the morning of March
23 the Division started to join the 6th Corps, Third Army, in the
Somme area, the infantry, R.E., and R.A.M.C. personnel proceeding
in motor-lorry and ’bus, the artillery and transport by road.
Total strength of 42nd Division, March 1, 1918—
Strength of
Division, March 1,
Other 1918
Officers.
ranks.
Divisional Headquarters 33 111
Royal Artillery, H.Q. 5 19
210th Brigade, R.F.A. 35 778
211th ” ” 38 773
Div. Ammunition Column 29 778
Royal Engineers, H.Q. 3 10
427th Field Company 8 208
428th ” ” 6 197
429th ” ” 7 213
42nd Signal Company 9 274
125th Brigade, H.Q. 3 21
5th Lancashire Fusiliers 45 958
7th ” ” 43 907
8th ” ” 42 934
125th T.M. Battery 3 43
126th Brigade, H.Q. 3 22
5th East Lancashires 44 975
8th Manchesters 46 982
10th ” 54 980
126th T.M. Battery 4 46
127th Brigade, H.Q. 3 21
5th Manchesters 43 958
6th ” 49 982
7th ” 41 980
127th T.M. Battery 5 61
Machine-Gun Companies 38 753
1/7th Northumberland Fusiliers 43 945
(P.)
Divisional Train, A.S.C. 20 385
” Supply Column 4 220
R.A.M.C.
1st E.L. Field Ambulance 8 239
2nd ” ” ” 9 246
3rd ” ” ” 7 234
19th Mob. Vet. Section 1 26
239th Divn. Employment Coy. 2 312
Total 773 15,514
CHAPTER IX
OPENING OF THE GERMAN OFFENSIVE
(March 21—April 9, 1918)

Before dawn on March 21, 1918, a terrific bombardment along


more than fifty miles of the British front, from east of Arras to south of
St. Quentin, heralded the opening of the mightiest attack in the
history of warfare. More than one hundred divisions—including many
transferred from the Russian front—highly trained for the special
purpose for which they were to be used, were suddenly launched
against less than fifty. The German storm-troops were concentrated
in depth on narrow fronts opposite what were judged to be the most
vulnerable points in the British line; fresh troops passing through
those of the exhausted or shattered divisions that had been used to
break open the gaps. Before they could be brought to a standstill still
further troops, with hordes of machine-guns, moved forward through
the wreckage of the others, forcing their way to the flanks and even
to the rear of the British positions. The greater the number shot down
the more they seemed to multiply. The enemy was staking
everything upon the success of this gigantic onslaught, and he was
fighting with a courage, skill, determination, and confidence in
numbers which would mean the triumph of Barbarism unless met by
still greater resolution and endurance. Forced back by the weight of
numbers, the Fifth Army, under General Sir H. de la P. Gough, on the
right of the area attacked, and to a lesser extent the Third Army,
under General Sir J. H. G. Byng, on the left, withdrew step by step,
fighting desperately to stem the overwhelming onslaught, and again
fell back still farther as their flanks and rear were enveloped. Village
after village, town after town, recovered for France at a heavy price
in the earlier British offensives, fell once more into the hands of the
enemy; thousands of prisoners, many guns, and great quantities of
material were lost.
Divisions in reserve were hurriedly brought forward to block the
gaps, and to stem the onrush or check its pace. A certain amount of
confusion was unavoidable. The enemy once more seemed to have
established control over the weather, the ground remaining firm and
dry and a mist screening his movements. At times it was impossible
to carry out orders literally, as between their issue and receipt the
situation had changed entirely, and defensive positions which
brigades or battalions of the relieving divisions had been ordered to
take up, were found to be in the occupation of the enemy.
On the morning of the 23rd March the infantry March 23, 1918
brigades of the 42nd Division, packed into many
hundreds of motor-busses and lorries, pressed southwards through
St. Pol to Doullens, and then turned north-east along the Arras road
to Beaumetz-les-Loges, where they turned south-east in the
direction of Ayette, a village more than eight miles south of Arras and
nearly eight miles north-west of Bapaume. At this stage of the
journey they were met by straggling groups of refugees, women,
children, and old men, hastening with the more portable of their poor
possessions out of the reach of Hun savagery and rapacity. Some of
these homeless wanderers appeared haggard and despairing; some
numbed and hopeless; others simply bewildered. It was a pitiful and
pathetic sight, which aroused feelings of mingled pity and anger, and
intensified the Lancashire men’s longing to get to close quarters with
the oppressor. They were to have their wish. Those who had joined
the Division since August 1915 found the few remaining days of
March more crammed with incident and fighting than the whole of
their previous careers.
As they drew nearer to their destination progress became more
and more difficult, the roads being packed with troops moving in the
same direction; and with an increasing stream of traffic retiring
before the enemy’s advance. The Divisional Commander and G.S.O.
1. (Lieut.-Colonel R. F. Guy, D.S.O.) had gone on some hours in
advance of the Division to reconnoitre, glean information, and
attempt to unravel the tangled skein of conflicting reports. At 5 p.m.
on March 23, D.H.Q. was established at Adinfer, about two miles
north-east of Ayette. The 125th and 126th Brigades debussed at 7
p.m. and proceeded to Adinfer Wood to bivouac. In the wood were
many green woodpeckers, which greeted the men with their jeering
cry. “Aye, you can ⸺ well laugh!” growled a Salford man, for the
night spent in this wood was not a cheerful or restful one. There was
a keen frost, and as fires were forbidden, most of the men tried to
find warmth by walking up and down during the night. Before
midnight the 127th Brigade debussed on the Ayette—Douchy road
and took up an outpost position, facing south-east, with two
battalions in the outpost line on the Ablainzevelle—Moyenneville
Ridge, a few miles south-east of Adinfer, with Brigade H.Q. at
Courcelles Aerodrome. Owing to the congested state of the roads
the transport was unable to rejoin the Division until the night of the
25th. The Division was therefore without horses or wagons; there
were no telephones and no mounted messengers. The Divisional
Commander succeeded in borrowing horses from the 40th Division
for the many reconnaissances made prior to taking over command of
the sector. But great as the difficulties were, they were many times
greater when it came to actual command in battle.
The situation was obscure, changing as it did from hour to hour. As
the enemy thrust forward, gaining here and there, by weight of
numbers, a position of tactical importance threatening a flank, plans
must be hurriedly re-cast and movements diverted or stopped. At 2
p.m. on March 24 orders were received from the Corps Commander,
Lieut.-General Haldane, for the relief of the 40th Division by the 42nd
that night on the right sector of the 6th Corps front. The Divisional
Commander went round the 40th Division’s advanced lines, and at 2
p.m., in the 40th D.H.Q. two miles east of Bucquoy, he issued orders
to his Brigadiers. The 125th and 126th Brigades were moved up to
Logeast Wood to facilitate the relief, and Divisional H.Q. was moved
to Monchy-au-Bois. At 6 p.m. notification was received that the 40th
Division would leave outposts in front of a line east of the Arras—
Bapaume road, running north and south through the villages of
Ervillers, Behagnies, and Sapignies, a few miles north of Bapaume,
which was now in the enemy’s hands, and these would be withdrawn
when the 42nd were in position. The 125th Brigade was ordered to
take over the right sub-sector and the 127th the left, the 126th being
in Divisional Reserve. A Special Order of the Day was issued by
Major-General Solly-Flood—

“On this, the first occasion on which the Major-General has


had the honour of leading the Division into action, he desires
to wish all ranks the best of luck. When the enemy attacks,
the Divisional Commander is convinced that the Division will
give such an account of itself as to make the enemy regret
that they tried conclusions with East Lancashire.
“This is the opportunity we want to ‘Go One Better.’”
GOMIECOURT CHÂTEAU.

ERVILLERS, WHERE THE 1/10 BN. MANCHESTER REGT. REPULSED EIGHT


ATTACKS.
SAPIGNIES, THE SCENE OF HEAVY FIGHTING FOR 125TH BRIGADE.
LT.-COL. P. V. HOLBERTON (THE MANCHESTER REGT.) COMMANDING 1/5
BN. LANCASHIRE FUSILIERS. KILLED IN ACTION.

(From a snapshot)
ACHIET-LE-GRAND. THE RAILWAY CUTTING.

ACHIET-LE-GRAND. THE RAILWAY EMBANKMENT.

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