AUTHOR=Starzyk K. B. , Neufeld K. H. S. , Efimoff I. H. , Fontaine A. S. M. , White E. E.-L. , Moran R. , Peachey D. , Fontaine L. S. , Welch M. A. TITLE=The Canadian Reconciliation Barometer: a rigorous tool for tracking reconciliation in Canada JOURNAL=Frontiers in Social Psychology VOLUME=2 YEAR=2024 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/social-psychology/articles/10.3389/frsps.2024.1369816 DOI=10.3389/frsps.2024.1369816 ISSN=2813-7876 ABSTRACT=

Indigenous peoples in Canada have resisted centuries of colonial harm. In response to their resurgence and calls for justice, Canada is now on what is likely to be a long and winding truth and reconciliation journey. To help monitor perceptions of reconciliation progress in a good way, our team of Indigenous and non-Indigenous researchers created the Canadian Reconciliation Barometer. In Study 1, we wrote 89 self-report items representing 13 factors of reconciliation, which reflected what we learned from Elders, Survivors, and reconciliation leaders. A national sample of 592 Indigenous and 1,018 non-Indigenous participants completed the initial item pool. Exploratory factor analyses indicated that a 13-factor model had excellent fit, with only two factors needing minor conceptual modifications. We retained 64 internally consistent items representing 13 factors of reconciliation: Good Understanding of the Past and Present, Acknowledgment of Government Harm, Acknowledgment of Residential School Harm, Acknowledgment of Ongoing Harm, Engagement, Mutually Respectful Relationships, Nation-to-Nation Relationships, Personal Equality, Systemic Equality, Representation and Leadership, Indigenous Thriving, Respect for the Natural World, and Apologies. In Study 2, a national sample of 599 Indigenous and 1,016 non-Indigenous participants completed the retained items. The hypothesized factors had excellent fit, and the factor structure did not differ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous participants. We conclude by discussing contributions to social-psychological conceptualizations of reconciliation and how to use the Canadian Reconciliation Barometer to monitor social change.