“1“. ’3 1 H 5819 LIBRARY Michigan State University This is to certify that the thesis entitled National Images of Business and Political Elites in two Border Cities presented by William Vincent D'Antonio has been accepted towards fulfillment ‘ of the requirements for \ Ph.D. degree in Sociology and Anthropology Major professor Date Ma 1 l 8 0-169 NATIONAL IMAGES OF BUSINESS AND POLITICAL ELITES IN TWO BORDER CITIES by ‘William Vincent D'Antonio A THESIS Submitted to the School of Advanced Graduate Studies of Michigan State University of Agriculture and Applied Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Sociology and Anthropology Year 1958 Approved - “-47 54430 7‘3" nature," AN ABSTRACT The present study grew out of a general concernnwith factors which might affect technological interchange in a cross-cultural situation. Since national political boundaries offer citizens of different nations Opportunity for daily interaction, the United States-Mexico border area was selected as the site for research into this problem. It was assumed that the national images which these citizens had of each other might be influential in the change process. It was further assumed that individuals occupying important positions in the political and business systems of their communities would be influential change agents. The tap elites of these two systems for the twin cities of El Paso and Cd. Juarez were chosen for a study which related variables of contact, occupation and nationality to the images which they held of themselves and each other. To achieve this it was necessary to have: 1 - a description and analysis of the business and political elite systems of the two cities; 2 - a description and.analysis of cross-cultural contacts, including an estimate of differential amounts of contact among the four elite groups; 3 - data on the substantive images which the four elite groups had of themselves and each other. It was found that the business elite systems of the two cities were similar in general nature, although the El Paso businesses were signifi~ cantly larger in size. In the political systems the judiciary seemed to be more important in the united States and.the executive more important in Mexico. The business and political elites of El Paso formed a well integrated.unit with.business apparently dominating. In Cd. Juarez there was a cleavage between the two groups with.both struggling for power. It was found that the Cd. Juarez business elites had significantly more cross-cultural contact than any of the other groups; yet their images didn't differ significantly from the political elites of Cd. Juarez. Moreover, there were no significant differences in images based on amount of contact by nationality. It was further found that nationality was a primary variable in accounting for imagery when the four groups were compared with each other in different ways. Occupation was not signifi- cantly related to imagery on the basis of the data of this study. Ehnallyn it was found that the four elite groups tended to have highly favorable images of American businessmen and government officials and their respective practices. The images of the correSponding Mexican groups was much less favorable, with the two American groups having generally negative images while the Mexicans tended to see these practices as about the same in both countries. The Cd. Juarez businessmen were the most self-critical of the four groups tested. The findings suggest that interaction can take place even when images are not congruent or favorable, if the situation is highly Structured so that role behavior is predicated upon the status-equality of the particular actors in the situation. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Area Research Center of Michigan State University has sponsored research in Latin America for the part of 10 years, under the director- ship of Dr. Charles P. Loomis. In 195% the United States-Mexico border was selected as a specific site for research into technological and social interchange. At that time the writer*was invited to participate in the research. He wishes to express deep gratitude to Dr. Loomis, first, for encouraging him to enter the field of Sociology and Anthro- pology, and secondly for guidance and friendship throughout the four years during which this dissertation was coming to fruition. He is also appreciative of the financial assistance, through the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, which helped to keep his family alive during this period. ‘ To all the businessmen. government officials and other professional people of El Paso and Cd. Juarez who in any way contributed to this study. the writer is grateful. He also acknowledges the help of sev- eral typists and friends who labored to get this dissertation into its final form, and especially Mrs. Robert C. Bealer and Mrs. R. Clyde McCone, who worked far into the night in order to get the final draft finished on time. The writer wishes to acknowledge the help of the guidance committee for their time, encouragement, and general assistance. In particular. he is indebted to Dr. Joel Smith for critical commentary on.Chapters I and II and especially'penetrating criticisms with respect to statistical analysis and related matters. To Professor'william.fl. Form. whose guidance, criticism and friend- ship have permeated this dissertation from its inception on the border to the final stages of editing, the writer wishes to acknowledge his deep gratitude and heartfelt thanks. Finally, to his wife, Lorraine, for somehow managing to run the home and keep feur children entertained, and still have enough energy to prepare statistical data, proof read, set up tables, and do many other little but important details that give a dissertation its final finished appearance, the writer is deeply grateful. But above and beyond this, was her willingness to go into this "new venture" and ferego the pleasures of a normal home life for four years; for this he expresses his abiding love and affection. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION A. Background B. Man as an Image-Creating Animal 1. General Propositions and Theoretical Implications 2. Content of National Images 3. Review of Methods Used in Imagery Studies 4. Value Orientations of Mexican and American Social Systems C. The Problem of This Research D. An Overview of the Present Study CHAPTER II THE RESEARCH DESIGN A. Development of the Hypothesis B. Method 1. Exploratory Research 2. Development of the Interview Schedule 3. Selection and Validation of the Subjects to be Interviewed 4. Special Problems Encountered in the Administration of this Study 5. Analysis of the Data CHAPTER III THE BUSINESS AND POLITICAL ELITES OF EL PASO AND CD. JUAREZ A. The Research Site B. The Elite Structure 1. El Paso Political Elites 2. El Paso Business Elites 3. Interpretation of the Business and Political Elite Structures U. Cd. Juarez Political.Elites 5. Cd. Juarez Business Elites 6.1nterpenetration of the Elite Groups in Cd. Juarez C. Comparison of the Elite Systems D. Summary CHAPTER IV CROSS-CULTURAL CONTACTS OF THE ELIl ES OF EL PASO AND CD. JUAREZ AND Th3 INFIUENCE OF THESE CONTACTS ON NATIONAL IMAGES A. Business Contacts B. Political.Contacts C. Measuring Cross-Cultura1.Contacts D. Relationship Between Occupation and Contacts E. Relationship Between Cross-Cultural Contacts and National Images F. Summary 106 113 113 115 116 121 123 126 CHAPTER V IMAGES OF BUSINESSMEN AND BUSINESS PRACTICES A. CH O o Hypotheses Tentative Image of the American Businessman and His Business Practices Tentative Image of the Mexican Businessman and His Business Practices D. Results E. Questions Not Yielding Statistically Significant Data F. Direction and Content of Images of American and Mexican Businessmen G. The Image of the American and Mexican Businessman and His Business Practices H. Summary and Conclusion CHAPTER VI IMAGES OF GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS AND POLITICAL PRACTICES A. Hypo theses B. Tentative Image of the Mexican Governmental Official and His Political Practices Tentative Image of the American Governmental Official and His Practices Questions Net Yielding Statistically Significant Dif- ferences Direction and Content of Images of Governmental Officials and Political Practices Questions Yielding Images Not in the Expected Direction The Image of the American Government Official and His Practices The Image of the Mexican Government Official and His Practices Summary and Conclusion AND CONCLUSIONS Background of Study Results Implications for General Theory APPENDIX A APPENDIX B BIBLIOGRAPHY 129 129 132 133 135 142 1A4 1A6 16a 166 166 170 171 181 195 201 209 211 211 218 22? 2A3 254 LIST OF TABLES TABLE I: Comparison of Choices of Political Elites of El Paso by Elites and Knowledgeables and by Six Judges. TABLE II: Comparisons of Choices of Business Elites of E1.Paso by Elites and Knowledgeables and by Six Judges. 72 TABLE III: Comparison of Choices of Political Elites of Cd. Juarez by Elites and Knowledgeables and by Five Judges. TABLE IV: Comparison of Choices of Business Elites of Cd. Juarez by Elites and Knowledgeables and by Five Judges. TABLE V: Business Elites of Two Border Cities. By Occupation, on the Basis of Votes Received From.Elites and Knowledgeables. TABLE VI: Percentages of Elites Who Command Business Enterprises of Various Sizes in El Paso and Cd. Juarez. TABLE VII: Political Elites of Two Border Communities by Occupa- tion on the Basis of Votes Received from Elites and Knowledgeables. TABLE VIII: Scoring Procedure for Items in Index of Contacts. TABLE 1x; Frequency Distribution of Elites by Groups and Contact Ranks. TABLE X: Chi-Squares and Probability Levels for Questions Relating Amount of Contact With Images of Business and Politics Held by El Paso and Cd. Juarez Business and Political Elites. TABLE XI: Frequency Distribution of Responses to Comparative Questions about Business and Politics for El Paso and Cd. Juarez Elites, by High, Medium and Law Contact for Chi-Square Computations of Table X. TABLE XII: Chi-Squares and Probability Levels for Questions on Businessmen and Business Practices with Respect to Hypotheses 2a, 2b, and 2c. TABLE XIII: Chi-Squares and Probability Levels for Questions on Businessmen and Business Practices with Respect to Hypotheses 2d, 2e, and 2f. ‘TABLE.XIV: Chi-Squares and Probability Levels for Questions on Businessmen and Their Practices with Respect to Hypotheses 2g, 2h, and 2i. 83 88 101 102 104 119 121 12“ 243.4 136 137 138 TABLE XV: Level of Significance Reached by Chi-Square Test on Twenty-Six Questions Relating to American and Mexican Businessmen and Their Practices, on Nine Hypotheses. 139 TABLE XVI: Data for Computation of Chi-Squares for Hypotheses 2a-Zi in Chapter V with Respect to Images of American and Mexican Businessmen and Their Practices. 2b5-6 TABLE XVII: Frequency Distribution of Responses to Comparative Questions on Business Practices by El Paso Business Elites. 148 TABLE XVIII: Individual Responses of El Paso Business and Political Elites to IC Comparative Questions on Businessmen and Their Practices. 2C7 TABLE XIX: Individual Responses of Cd. Juarez Business and Political Elites to 1h Comparative Questions on Businessmen and Their Practices. 2h8 TABLE XX: Frequency Distribution of Responses to lfl9 Comparative Questions on Business Practices by El Paso Political Elites. 149 TABIE XXI: Frequency Distribution of Responses to Comparative Questions on Business Practices by Cd. Juarez Business Elites. 150 TABLE XXII: Frequency Distribution of Responses to Comparative Questions on Business Practices by Cd. Juarez Political Elites. 151 TABLE XXIII: Chi-Squares and Probability Levels for Questions on Government and Political Practices with Respect to Hypotheses 2a, 2b, and 2c. 173 TABLE XXIV: Chi-Squares and Probability Levels for Questions on Government and Political Practices with Reapect to Hypotheses 2d, 2e, and 2f. 174 TABLE XXV: Chi-Squares and Probability Levels for Questions on Government and Political Practices with Respect to Hypotheses 2g, 2h, and 21. 175 TABLE XXVI: Level of Significance Reached by Chi-Square Test on TwentynFour Questions Relating to American and Mexican Government Officials and Political Practices on Nine Hypotheses. 176 TABLE XXVII: Data for'Computation of Chi-Squares for Hypotheses 2a- 21 in Chapter VI With Respect to Images of American and.Mexican.Government Officials and Their Practices. 3W9-50 TABLE XXV III: Frequency Distribution of Responses to 13 Questions Comparing Mexican and American Government Practices by El Paso Business Elites. TABLE.XXIX: Frequency Distribution of ReSponses to 13 Questions Comparing Mexican and American Government Practices by El Paso Political Elites. TABIE XXX: Frequency Distribution of Responses to 13 Questions Comparing Mexican and American Government Practices by Cd. Juarez Business Elites. TABLE XXII: Frequency Distribution of Responses to 13 Questions Comparing Mexican and American Government Practices by Cd. Juarez Political Elites. TABLE XXXII: Individual Responses of El Paso Business and Political Elites to 13 Comparative Questions on Government Practices. TABLE XXXIII: Individual Responses of Cd. Juarez Business and Political Elites to 13 Comparative Questions on Government Practices. TABLE XXXIV: Frequency Distribution for 10 Items in Index of Contacts by Elite Groups. LISTS IJST I: Occupations of Political Elites of El Paso by Branch of Government. LIST II: Occupations of El Paso Business Elites. LIST III: Occupations of Political Elites of Cd. Juarez by Branch of Government. 115? IV: Occupations of Cd. Juarez Business Elites. 189 191 1.92 193 251 252 253 70 7h 84 91 CHAPTERI INTRODUCTION A. Background Under the leadership of Professor Charles P. Loomis, the Area Research Center of the Department of Sociolog and AnthrOpology of Michigan State University has been conducting research in Latin America, especially at the InterAmerican Institute of Agricultural Sciences in Turrialba, Costa Rica. Much of the research has been of an applied and directed nature, that is, concerned primarily with the strategy of social change. In 195“, recognizing the importance of our national political boundaries as sources for the introduction of technological and social change into adjacent countries, the deparwent accepted a grant from the Carnegie Corporation to further research along the United States-Mexico border aimed at “investigating factors related to processes of acceptance, rejection, and adjustment to technological and social innovations. '1 A basic premise of the general project was that "national political boundaries are areas in which the greatest amount of day-to—day contact occurs between citizens of adjacent countries,” and further that “social and cultural differences are emphasized by contrasts presented in border situations, and should, thus, be accessible to study.“2 Another basic 1. For a full statement of the details of this project, see the Proposed Area Research Reject entitled "Processes of Technological and Social Change in the Inter-Cultural Setting of the Border Areas of the United States.‘ MimeOgraphed Pamphlet, 1951:. Above quotation is from page 1. 20 mg... Po 10 2 premise was that “the receptivity to technological innovations is in part a function of the images which potential and actual recipients have of change agents. '3 Very briefly, the relevant objectives may be summarized as follows: A general objective was "to increase knowledge of how technological changes are related to national images. . ." Specifically this means: analyzing the value orientation (e.g.. attitudes, evaluation, national images of group members of both national systems) and social structure of both formal and informal social systems relative to: 1 - differential rates of adjustment to and acceptance or rejection of technological changes; 2 - developing a better understanding of the processes whereby national images, attitudes and evaluations related to technological changes and internalized and maintained. me present study arose out of the general concern about the nature and extent of technological inter—change that migit be taking place along the border in Mexico as a result of contacts with Americans and American border cities. At the same time it was recognized that such technological inter-change might be affected in part by the national images held by peeple in cities on both sides of the border. It was further recognized that people in important positions in the political and business systems of border cities might be influential in en- couraging or impeding the rate of technological inter-change. With the thought that national images might be an important factor in this process, it was decided to find out what sorts of images these pe0ple had of themselves and their counterparts on the other side of the border. Since the peculiar ecological conditions of the border seemed to lend 3. libido, p. 5. “0 93$- p. 30 themselves to high rates of interaction in twin city situations, the El Paso - Cd. Juarez metropolitan area offered an excellent site for such a project. Early research revealed that the business and political elites5 interacted in such a way that a study could be made of them, This led to the development of the three major objectives of the present study. These objectives are: l - description and analysis of the business and political elite structures of the border cities, El Paso and Cd. Juarez. 2 - analysis of contacts occurring between the elites of the two cities, and the possible relationship between Contact and national images. 3 - a comparative study of the national images of these elite groups based on the variables of nationality and occupation. Before considering these objectives in more detail, it would be well to discuss briefly some of the ideas, principles and prOpositions which served as sensitizing guideposts in the development of the research design. In the following discussion the writer will also review some of the literature which, while not used directly in the deve10pment of the study, is relevant to some of the hypotheses tested, and may suggest some theoretical implications for future study. Reference will also be made to methods used in other imagery studies as well as to the specific content of national images. 13. Man as an Image-Creating Animal The known history of homo sapiens indicates that one group of people has always had a prOpensity to differentiate itself from another and in the process to Judge itself superior in comparison with another group. 5. Elites may be defined here as the tap influentials in the business and political systems of the respective cities, Such early writers as Aristotle and. Ibn-Ihaldun asserted the superiority of their own youp and the relative inferiority of others. Quite often these writers explained the superiority of the in-group in terms of geographical, climatic, astrological, or ”natural" factors.6 Religious faith was also in the past a vital factor in in—group and out-group classifications; more recently, race doctrines have served the same purpose. While race doctrines continue to plague inter-goup relations in some parts of the world, much current attention has switched to the strongly nationalist vs. internationalist attitudes and aspirations in terms of which groups are differentiating themselves today. The gravity of the contemporary problem is accentuated by the fact that it becomes daily more difficult for human groups to function as closed systems. Mutual interdependence is one of the outstanding phenomena of our times. But this movement towards interdependence must contend with the ethnocentric ways of man. whether the individual be Russian, German, American, Mexican, Chinese, or Hottentot, the tendency is for him to see the ways of his culture and nation as I'right", and the ways of others as 'wong".7 From the social psychological point of view this problem may be said to center around the concept of the self as deve10ped by Mead. In head's terms the self is a reflexive concept; it refers to the idea that an individual can only become a self by being able to become an object to himself, to see himself as others see him. As Mead developed the idea 6. For a fuller discussion of this point see Wafer Sherif and. Carolyn Sherif, An Outline of Social Lezchologz, Revised Edition, Harper and area. n. 2., (19563? p. 656. 7. David Krech and Richard S. Crutchfield, Theo in}; mblems 9; $9219.; Pozghoiog, licGraw-Hill Book 00., n. 1., (19%), p. 595. the individual gradually deve10ps an image of himself through the con- stantly repeated processes of role taking, role playing and playing at roles which has its beginnings in early childhood. In the international context most peOple as representative of national groups have very poorly developed selves; the average American has virtually no idea of how he is perceived by the Russian, Chinese, or Britisher, for example, not does he seem to care particularly. The American has failed to pro- Ject his self into the International arena. There is no question among Americans about the necessity of the United States controlling the Panama Canal and environs for reasons of National Security, not has there been any hesitance on the part of Americans to condemn and block Russian moves to control the Dardanelles. It was not even difficult for most Americans to condemn Great Britain for attempting to retain control of the Suez Canal. By the same token Americans have in the past been able to condemn what they considered British exploitation of her colonial peOples, and more recently hissia's exploitation of her satellites. At the same time, defending America's business interests in Latin America has been seen as Just and prOper. This kind of reasoning is made easy because most pe0ple approach problem situations (personal, local, national, or international) with very definite images in their mind about the peOple involved in the situation. Krech and Crutchfield observe8 that Americans especially tend to have a high degree of consistency in their stereotyped beliefs about the peoples of the rest of the world, and, while adequate data on other peOple are lacking, what evidence there is supports the lvpothesis that they too act in accord with highly stable stereotyped beliefs. The 8. Ibig. P. 5960 popular Americanism that 'all furriners" are alike expresses a strongly negative attitude, one tinged with strong nationalist undertones, the idea that our ways are the best ways and the only correct ways. At first glance, this may appear difficult to understand, as conditions since World War II have seemed prOpitious for a spirit of internationalism in the United States: military power, economic security, relative prosperity, and the dominant role of the United States in World Affairs in the last fifteen years. Despite all this, internationalist attitudes are not strong.9 An explanation for the failure of strong internationalist attitudes to deve10p in the United States may perhaps be found in the analysis of the problem of inter-group attitudes and behavior by Sherif and Sherif :10 . . . The Limiting factor in determining favorable or unfavorable intergroup attitudes is the nature of the functional relations between groups. . . If the func- tional relations between groups are positive, favorable attitudes toward the out-group will be formed. If the functional relations between groups are negative, they will give rise to negative attitudes and stereotypes in relation to the out-group. In time, the attitudes and stereotypes are stabilized in the form of a social- distance scale for various groups and are perpetuated through the vehicle of language, even thong: the func- tional relations that gave rise to them are no longer operative. It may be posited that the present disenchantment of the American peeple gig a v_i_s_ all foreigners reflects what to the Americans have been 9. See for example, the Social Science Research Council Study of 191W: Public Reaction 2:; 1h; Atomic Bomb a_x_1_d_ WorldAffairs. The data clearly show that there was a strong nationalist sentiment pervading the United States, even at this period when our world prestige was at its apex. The Spirit of nationalism has been on the rise since, as Americans have become disillusioned by the failure of the Marshall Plan and the United Nations to produce the expected I'miracles." 10. 92'. 9.1.2.9 p. 3290 highly unsatisfactory relations, relations which have given stability to the stereotype that ”all furriners" are alike. While the process of creating images and stereotypes is as old as man, its possible sigiificance for understanding interpersonal relations on a national and international level has been of concern to social scientists only in recent years. One of the major interests has been the attempt to find out whether, in fact, stereotyping is a causative factor in the interaction process or merely the symptom of unsatisfaactor;r functional relations between groups. The concept stereotype was brought Into the literature of social 11 science by Walter Lippmann in 1922. As he defined it, a stereotype is an oversimple, fixed, and hence fallacious conception of an individual or group of individuals held by other individuals. More recently, Richter summed up its present usage by sociologists and social. psycho- logists in the following way: "A stereotype . . . is a rigidly established pro-position attributing a characteristic to 'all' members 12 of a category. ‘Ihe emphasis on the fixed or rigid quality of the stereotype suggests that it is not amenable to sudden or rapid change. Indeed, much research has been devoted to testing the hypothesis that 13 stereotypes tend to remain stable over time. 11. Walter Lippmann, Public Opinion, Harcourt, Brace 00., N. Y., 1922, Pp. 29s 790 12. Maurice N. Richter, Jr., aThe Conceptual Mechanism of Stereotyping," in Ameripap Sociological Revival, Vol. 21, No. 5, October 1956, pPe 568-5710 13. Milton D. Graham, in his study ”An Experiment in International Attitudes Research," International._ Social Science Bulletin, Vol. III, No. 3, Autumn, 1951, a United Nations Publication, found that stereotypes of Americans held by Britishers tended to remain stable over a period of 100 years. Perhaps because of this definition of the term stereotype, there has been a tendency on the part of researchers in recent years to use the concept images instead of or in conjunction with stereotypes. This is especially true with respect to studies of national groups, and the concept national images has come to replace national stereotypes. The problem of overlapping concepts may be resolved if a stereotype is thought of as an image that is largely distorted and oversimplified, but not necessarily rigid. In this sense it is a sub-type of image. From the extreme “all 'furriners' are alike“ the image may approach an accurate portrayal of social reality, that is, the image which a person has of a "foreigner”I may actually correSpond to the way in which that foreigier is seen by others and by himself. This is probably as close as an individual can get to social reality.1u The present study was oriented in terms of national images, as that concept did not imply the prejudgement that the conceptualizations which members of the several sub-systems along the border had of each other were necessarily rigid and not susceptible to change. In reviewing the literature it was found that many of the hypotheses and propositions formulated and tested in the studies on stereotypes would tend to cast doubt on the value of the concept stereotype in its present meaning as defined by Richter. For example James and Tenenls tested the hypothesis that stereotypes could be changed by good, personal contacts, and found —v~-—— vi 11}. It is also possible of course that an individual will fail or refuse to develOp a conceptualization of a "foreign"I individual or group, in which case there will be no image. 15. H. E. 0. James and C. Tenen, 'Attitudes Toward Other Peeples," International Socia_l_ Scienpg Bulletin, pp. cit. that this indeed was the case. There would seem to be a contradiction in terms here, which could be resolved by using the writer's definition. Where the writer has used the concept stereotype in this study, it should be thought of in this latter sense. In reviewing the literature on images (stereotypes) the writer has focused on three areas which are relevant to the present study. These are: 1) general. prOpositions and theoretical implications; 2) content of national images, particularly as relevant to the United States and Mexico; and 3) methods of obtaining imagery material, including (a) the sample, and (b) the data gathering instrument. A final section will be devoted to the value orientations of the relevant social systems. Each will be discussed briefly below. C An Overview of the Literature math Respect to 1) General Prunesi tions and Theoretical Implications; 2) Imagery Content; 3) Methods; and 1») Value Orientations 1) geperal Propositions and Theoretical Implic.a_._t_i_o_n.s_. While the literature offers a plethora of ideas and generalizations about stereotypes and images, there are four prOpositions which seem especially relevant to the present study, either because they bear directly on the hypotheses tested, or because they may suggest some theoretical implications of the findings. Each of the prepositions will be discussed in turn. 1 - Images are culturally inherited and transmitted; they are, then, a reflection of one's ”reference groups,‘I 16 Piaget studied a group of Swiss children ages 5 to 13, and through extensive interviews observed the process by which children developed 16. Jean Piaget, assisted by Anne-Marie Veil, I'The Deve10pment in Children of the Idea of the Homeland and of Relations with Other Cbuntries,’I in Internagcgnp; Social Science Bulletin, 9p. gig. 10 national images. When queried as to how they came to hold these images they answered invariably that it was what they had heard peOple say. He found that a sense of one's own "nationality develOped simultaneously with the attribution of different characteristics to other nationsflI Freymondl" made an extensive examination of the images of America held by Europeans and concluded that stereotypes are a function of one's reference groups: Stereotypes of America differ not only in relation to national prejudices and political ideologies, but also according to the mental cast, so to Speak, the frame of mind. Besides the British, French or Italian images of America, there will be, for example, a Communist image, clearly defined in relation to a political policy. But there is also a socialist image, a bourgeois image, and even an intellectual image. (The presumption must be that) one Judges others according to one's own personal criteria-.18 That one's images were a resultant of the groups with which one most closely identified oneself was a basic semaption in the present study. For example, it was assumed that national images would vary according to the nationality and occupational identification of the respondents. 2 - Images of one's self and one's own countrymen are invariably in flattering terms. This preposition is a commonplace in social psychological literature; it is sufficient to mention Buchanan's” nine nation study in support of the proposition. He found a general tendency among respondents of all m‘. _— 17. Jacques Freymond, "America in EuroPean hes,“ 1h; Annals, Vol. 295, September 1954, pp. 33-41. 18. Ibid. P. “1. 19. William Buchanan and Hadley Oantril, How Nations s3 Each Other. Urbana, University of Illinois Press, 1953. The nine nations participating in the study were: Australia, Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Mexico, and fine United States. 11 nine nations to choose the same favorable adjectives to describe theme selves. One of the basic hypotheses of the present study was that the members of the four elite groups would have favorable images of themselves. Nevertheless, exploratory research did indicate that there might be certain conditions under which this generalization might not hold. It will bear further consideration after the findings have been discussed. 3 - The image which.an individual has of foreigners tends to vary with the way in which he perceives himself and his own countrymen to be rated by these foreigners. In his study of a group of foreign students at an.American University, Morris20 found that a low rating by Americans did not necessarily mean unfavorable attitudes toward America; it all depended on how closely the student's evaluation, and on his degree of involvement within his own country. There are several ideas of importance here, some of which.are closely related to those expressed in the propositions already cited. In the first place, Morris posited the important notion that a person's nationality did not usually play an important role in the development of his self image if he had lived most of his life within the country and.apart from direct international contacts. But when he became a student in an American University, nationality suddenly'became an important criterion, perhaps the important criterion, in the determination of his social status and 20. Richard T. Merrie, "Rational Status and Attitudes of Foreign Students,' Journal g£_Social Issues, Vol. XII, No. 1, 1956, p. 21. Mbrris tested two hypotheses: 1 - a"The foreign student's image of America varies with his accorded national status, i.e., the student's estimate of how Americans rate his country; 2 - ”national status more strongly conditions attitudes if the foreign student identifies and is highly involved in his own country.“ ’7—— ,, 12 and self image. The border situation offered.the same kind of oppor- tunity to test the importance of nationality and occupation as factors in the deve10pment of self and national images. In the present study high involvement in the national and occur pational systems was assumed and not hypothesized. nevertheless, as will be shown later, the findings are similar enough to those of Morris to suggest some theoretical implications about this kind of contest. 21 and Lambert and Bressler22 found support for this The'Useems same proposition in their studies. Lambert and Bressler concluded that: . . . for amity, contact is not enough, especially if protracted contact serves only to accumulate a series of assaults on the self-esteem of nationals of low status countries. Among other things, friendliness is a function of both personal and cultural security, and only after the viewer has a minimal feeling of security can the hostile elements 2 of an image surrender to a more objective assessment. 3 The important theoretical implications of this pr0position would seem to be that better understanding, more accurate images and less stereotyping will come about through increased.contact between peOples. But contact alone is not the factor that counts, for contacts that bring assaults on the self-esteem of an individual or national group may impair 'understanding. Too many contacts between whites and Negroes or Mexicans or between any other in-group vs. out-group combination only tend to reinforce the stereotypes, as when a white drives through a Negro slum 21. Ruth Hill Useem and John'Useem, "Images of the United States and Britain Held by Foreign Education Indians," The Annals, 92, cit., PP. 73‘820 22. Richard D. Lambert and Marvin Bressler, "Indian Students and the United States," The Annals, gpp cit., pp. 62-72 23. Ibid., p. 72. 13 section and relates the squaler and dirt to the fact that the inhabitants are Regroes. It is only in interaction situations which permit satis— factoryzu or status equal contacts that favorable or accurate images can be hoped to form or to replace stereotypes. The value orientations of such persons as United States soldiers, tourists, students and businessmen have often precluded any possibility of satisfactory contacts occurring with foreign nationals. The implicae tion here is that an individual's images reflect his reference grOUp or groups. Therefore, it may be relevant to know what kinds of structural ties an individual or group of individuals has which may predispose him (it) to one image or another. One of the important reasons for selecting the business and political elites of El Paso and Cd. Juarez was to test hypotheses about the relationship between the kinds of contacts they had with each other to the images they held of themselves and each other. # — There has been considerable theoretical discussion about whether or not images are causative factors in inter- action situations, or only sympotomatic of the interaction process. Leighton tended to emphasize the important role which stereotypes play in the interaction process, whether on a small group or an international level: These images are the basis upon which peOple feel for or against other nations, interpret their be- havior as villainous or good, judge their actions, and Judge what they themselves as a nation should do in relation to others. . . If the images are false, the resulting action can hardly ever be adequate. 2“. A satisfactory contact would be one in which an individual rated himself about as he perceived.himself to be rated.by the others involved in the contact. 25. Alexander R. Leighton, Human Relapigpg_ip,g_changing werld, E. PL Button 00., N. Y., 1949, pp. 102-103. Gited'by William Buchanan, 220 9.1.3.0: P0 580 1h Lambert's remarks in the Preface to the International Social Science Bulletin cited above implied further support to this notion, for he stated that, “If the peeple of the world are to learn to live together in peace, they need to know one another better. "26 Evidence to support the contention that stereotypes directly affect interaction was well exemplified by Williams' study on intergoup tensions.27 On the other hand, Buchanan found evidence for the position that stereotypes are only symptomatic of international relations. After comparing the way in which the stereotype of the Russian had changed between 19112 and 19%, he concluded that the deterioration of Russian- American relations was the main cause. As he stated it, the relations between the two governments led to the formation of the different stereotypes. It will be recalled that one of the general objectives of the border study was to find out in what ways images might act to encourage or inmede the rate of technological. and social change. An attempt will be made to evaluate the data of this study in terms of its theoretical implications for this problem. This brief discussion of the literature has suggested a number of hypotheses which may be linked with the more specific hypotheses of the present study. These general hypotheses are: *C'- ’ 26. Lambert, 93;. $1., p. 50+. 27. Robin M. Williams, The Reduction of Intergoupw Tensions: .3 Survgz of Research on Problems of Ethnic, _Racial. an___d_ Religious Group —___--*—-_————I— Relations, Social Science Research §____ouncil, Bulletin 57,N Y.., 19147. 28. Buchanan, o . cit ., p. 57. 15 1 - An individual's self image and images of others are a reflection of his reference groups. 2 - An individual generally has favorable images of himself and of his countrymen. 3 - An individual's images of others will vary with the way he relates their perceived image of him to his SOIf‘imagee 14v - Under certain conditions images will be causative factors in interaction situations. 5 - Under certain conditions images are symptomatic of the nature of the interaction which has taken place. These hypotheses will be considered in light of the data of this study in the concluding chapter. 2>§ontcnta£nsiisznalimass§~ Major concernhere is with the various imagery themes which appeared and reappeared in the studies of national images, namely those that have dealt with the way in which the United States, and Americans in general see themselves and are seen by others.29 Of course. in many cases, the images held of the United States by foreign national groups clearly indicate Just what their images are of themselves, in fact may be more revealing of the latter than of the former. (The Indian student who decries the ”impersonal. American" family is revealing much about the kind of family experiences which were supposedly his.) For this reason, considerable detail will be devoted to the studies of 29. Comparable studies for Mexico were not found in the literature. In How Naflons See Each Other, 92. cit., Buchanan stated that the imagery data from Mexico was inadequate for statistical analysis. 16 Mexican images of the United States in order to be able to imply some- thing about their self-images as well as their images of the United States. Articles by Beale30 and Humphreyal in Egg,§gg§l§_of September, l95h, provide considerable imagery data pertinent to the present research. Both authors commented on the ready acceptance by the Mexicans of the technical and mechanical superiority of the united States, because, as Beals put it “they are convinced of the moral superiority of Mexican culture with its primary emphasis upon Spiritual va'il.u.es."32 Humphrey's statement of the same idea was that I'. . . technology as an alleged basis for culture is inferior to poetry, philosOphy, and a feeling for art and music, which Mexicans regard as peculiarly Latin concerns . . . The Mexican's image of the American depicts a man of wealth and power, devoid of higher culture and lacking the elements of urbanity.'33 Beale pointed to another image that has previously been noted, namely that ”. . . Americans are less egocentric and more sociocentric, more willing to devote themselves to the welfare of society.'3b Again, both writers reported positive images of the political order in the United States. Humphrey stated it this way: "The relative absence of 30. Ralph L. Beale, ”The Mexican Student Views the United States,” The m 22. 931e, PP. 108'1150 31. Norman D. Humphrey, IThe Nexican Image of Americans’e The Annals, 9-2. 9—1:}... PP. 116-125. ""-"‘"" 32. Beale, o . cit., p. 108. 330 Humphrey. 220 9&0, Po 117. 3"". 3633.8, 9.2. 21'}... PO 109. 1? graft and the mmrdidazs creates a favorable imagery.” when the Mexican compares the United States with his homeland.36 The problem of dis- crimination at most causes ambivalent images. Both.men reported that the Mexicans they interviewed had suffered little or no personal experiences of prejudice and discrimination and that generally they interpreted American discrimination in "home country'| class terms, that is, that "Mexicans are discriminated against because they are poor and ignorant. not because they are Mexicans.”37 Humphrey diverged slightly on this point, however, when he stated.that the over-all image of the Mexican gig,§,zlg the United States, and eSpecially Texas I"is that of racial bigotry."38 Beals suggested the source of unfavorable images to lie in three places: 1) American movies, and eSpecially those treating the family life; 2) behavior of tourists and students in Mexico; 3) the socio- political environment and historical-intellectual traditions.39 The War of l8h8, Pershing's "Invasion," the Mexican Revolution of 1910, and the failure to resolve the territorial dispute over the I'chamizal" area between Juarez and El Paso, all provide ammunition for distorted images, on both sides of the border. 35. The mordida may be translated literally as the bite, or more freely, the pay off. It refers to the fact that in order to proceed through official channels in Mexico you must give a cut or pay off to certain peOple. 36. Humphrey, 92, 923,, p. 121. 370 36818, O . 92.1., p. 112. 38. Humphrey, gp, git,, p. 121. 390 Beale, 23. £25..9 p. 1130 18 Beals' conclusions about the ways in which favorable images might be expected to develOp, closely parallel those already cited above: "personal contacts seem the primary source for fonming favorable impressions. Length of stay, closeness of contacts, and types of interest have much to do with the degree to which images change after arrival . . . Only time and favorable personal contacts can provide Opportunities for better understanding." Humphrey's data led him to state that the Mexican image of the United States was more negative than positive, and his concluding statement was a warning against the kinds of actions that seemed.to him to be the cause of this negative imagery: “Any hostile effort, especially American instituted, which impinges on the Mexican's sense of self-worth and personal dignity, will function to perpetuate an.unfavorable image of Americans and of American c:i.vilization."l"'1 Turning to the literature in general, it may be said that these studies reveal ". . . a series of alternative stereotypes . . . selected and accepted . . . to meet . . . national and cultural needs . . ."42 The stereotypes and images of America are both positive and negative and will be summarized in that sequence. On the positive side, Americans are seen as expansive, Open-hearted 1|. and open minded. 3 The United States is a land of unlimited promise, 40. Beals, QR. cit., p. 111}. 41. Humphrey, 2p, 913,, p. 125. #2. Richard Lambert, "Foreward to America through Foreign Eyes," The Annals, 22, cit., p. vii. 43. Jacques Freymond, o . cit., found this image prevailing in Italy. 19 "God's own country..." It is a land from which one can learn mch about economic and social order, technological and scientific progress, 101+ The United States is a stable liberal, democratic family living. world power characterized by law-abiding citizens who possess good, public manners, and who demonstrate an unusual ability to subordinate their personal interests to the larger interests of the group or the public. They are efficient and. enjoy a high educational level as well as great opportunity for achievement and success.u5 Finally, political life is orderly, there is an apparent lack of corruption and the mordida, which, to some foreign nationals at least, is seen as an impressive fact.“6 Negatively, the following images stood out: America is a powerful, rich country without spiritual values, and Anericans are materialistic. dominated by the dollar, with a backward culture.“7 The American family is weak as compared with the more traditional extended family; interaction and functions are limited in scape, and high divorce rates make it a very unstable institution. There is too much concern for the individual and his personaliv needs, and not enough concern for societal needs (note that this is contradicted by the apposite image of America as socio-centrie ). w-—...~F ’44. This is the essence of the German image as reported by Norbert Muhlen in "America and American Occupation in German Eyes,” gs; Annals, pp. 935., pp. 52-61. 1+5. See especially John Bennett and Herbert Passin, ”The Amsrican- Educated Japanese: I and II, a. Annals, o . 2.151.. pp. 83-107. 46. Beals, o . 921., and Humphrey, pp. _c_i_t_. 1+7. Freymond, o . 93:5,; Useem and Useem, 22. 9142,: 3051'. ° . 2.1.30: Humphrey. 22. gig. 1+8. Useem and Useem, 32. 331., and Humphrey, 22. gig. 20 Politically, Americans are imature indeed, especially in inter- national affairs. American democracy is marked by serious shortcomings, the most notable of which is posed by the race prejudice problem. me two party system, party bosses, vested interest groups, and control of the mass media by the wealthy are seen as deleterious to individual freedom!” Finally, as was stated previously, “technology as an alleged basis for culture is inferior to poetry, philosOphy and a feeling for art and music . . .' that grappling with the things of the spirit and the soul which so many foreign critics have found lacking in the United States.50 Americans tend to see themselves as living in the most desirable country in the world. Buchanan found that 96 per cent of Americans polled chose their own country as the one which offered them the best chance of leading the kind of life they wanted to lead. The adjectives they used to describe themselves were, in the order of their frequency: peace loving, generous, intelligent, profressive, hardworking, and brave.51 The image of the Mexicans is not as adequately deve10ped in the literature, yet some generalizations may be made. Only about half the Mexicans chose their own country as the most desirable, while one-third chose the United States.52 They generally acknowledge the technical superiority of the United States, but perceive themselves to be superior #9. Lambert and Bressler, pp. cit. 50. Freymond, o . _c.i_t_.; Beals, o . cit.; Humphrey, 93. 21.1. 51. 3110113115, 22'. MO, pp. 309 52. 52. Ibid. 21 in matters of philosOphy, art, and poetry.53 In sum, it may be said that the Mexicans are keenly aware of their northern neighbor and have deve10ped their own self-image in part as a result of this, Amsricsns have failed to develop distinctly sharp perceptions and attitudes toward Mexicans. Since an important objective of the present study is to delineate the content of the national images found on the border, it will be interesting to relate the findings of this study to the images outlined above. 5h l‘rom 31ee55 (1926) to Beals-56 (1954), it must be observed that more often than any other category of people, students have served as subjects for imagery studies. There are some obvious and some important reasons for this: students are accessible, generally more literate than the average citizen, and by the nature of their activities presumably more likely to be able to express themselves on this par- ticular subject. Time and cost factors are also relevant here as they are for all the other social science studies which have made use of the available students. 53. Beals, gp. cit., and'Humphrey. 22. 2:5,. 54. By “method" is meant the bow of techniques (or the technique) by which an investigator bridges the gap between hypothesis and the problem areas with which his study is concerned. 55. Stuart Rice, I”Stereotypes: A Source of Error in Judging Human Character," Jourp‘g. 9; Personnel Research 1926, 5: 268-276. 56. Beals, an. m. 22 Of course, some of the studies of student images were carried out for the explicit purpose of evaluating the government sponsored student exchange program.” Here there is an imediate practical concern with students as ambassadors of good will, and of finding out Just what the images of others are. There has been a trend towards broader sampling in recent years, such as in the 01111356058 and other studies, but in these cases the major data gathering instrument relied on has been the word and phrase trait lists, which lists were were also quite commonly used in the student studies.59 This technique limits one to what Buchanan aptly calls a ”flash impression," in which the findings are very narrowly restricted by the words chosen. This restriction may in fact force stereotyping.6o Recent trends towards quided and depth interviews, while more costly and time consuming, and more difficult to administer, may provide data of more long—range significance to stereotype and image analysis. Graham's 61 use of content analysis for setting up a research design, 57. Bennett and Passin, 2'2. cit. 58. Buchanan, pp. cit. Approximately 1000 persons in each of nine different countries were polled, using a common questionnaire. 59. See for example the study of Daniel Katz and Kenneth W. Braly, “Verbal Stereotypes and Race Pnjudice," in Reading; ‘i_n_ Social Psycholog, Revised edition, ed. Gav Swanson et a1.. Henry Holt coo, Ne Ye. 1952s pPe 67-730 60. In 1950 G. M. Gilbert repeated the Katz and Braly study of Princeton students using a larger sample but otherwise following the same techniques. In his report "Stereotype Persistence and Change Amcng 251 ff., 1951, he stated that there was a recognition on the part of the students that the word lists were forcing them to make over- simplified generalizations, which they were reluctant to do. 61. Milton 1). Graham, pp. cit, 23 and his technique of following up the use of questionnaires with intensive group discussions is an extreme example in this regard. Finally, as an example of research that has focused on a specific hypothesis to be tested in an experimental situation, the study by James and Tenen62 bears mention here. To test the hypothesis that good personal contacts change stereotypes, the authors secured the assistance of two African Negro women school teachers who were fluent in kglish and ”first-rate teachers, and those personalities were such that good personal relations with students were probable. They were asked to participate in the experiment with each one having charge of a class of about 30 boys and girls in the same school for a I'fortnight.‘I Pour non-directive interviews were carried out with each pupil, two before and two after the experience of having the African teachers. The interviews were spread five weeks apart to discover whether or not significant differences in attitudes developed over time; the only focus of the interviews was that the pupils were encouraged to talk about other peOples. The results showed that there was a definite significant difference in attitudes between the before and after interviews, but no significant difference between either the two before or the two after interviews, and no diminution in the attitudes after, even after a lapse of five weeks. The change in attitudes was in the favorable direction. As will be brought out in detail in Chapter II, the present study has aimed at depth rather than the ”flash impression“ yielded by adjective lists and questionnaires administered to groups of students or large samples of national groups. To some extent it parallels the type of study done by Graham in its use of historical data, and content analysis, 62. James and Tenen, gp. 9_1_t_. and in a limited way follows the pattern used'hy James and Tenen of focusing the study on action situations involving institutionalized patterns of behavior most relevant to the social systems concerned. The present study would seem to go well beyond previous research in that it involves the use of intensive, guided interviews deve10ped out of exploratory research and aimed at testing hypotheses about images relevant to the particular social systems with which the subjects are primarily identified. The final section in the review of literature is devoted to a brief summary of prevalent ideas about the value orientations of Mexican and American social systems; this summary is necessary to make possible the development of specific hypotheses about national images in terms of the social systems involved in the study. 4) Value orientations of Mexican and American Social Systemg, The 63 came to the border area with the notion that Mexico and researchers the united States formed two essentially different socio-cultural systems, and that these differences would be apparent in the behavior and attitudes, images and evaluations of the actors in the cities on either side of the border. There would seem to be ample evidence for this orientation in the literature. from which only a few examples are 63. Professor William E. Fbrm directed the exploratory phase of the project at the research site from September through December, 1951*. The writer worked closely together with him during this time. 25 cited here: Davis“, Tannenbaum65, Troncos066, Tonnies67, Parsonsée, Northrop69, Williams”, De Los Rios71. The important generalizations may be summarized very briefly as follows: 1 - Latin American societies are integrated by a network of affective, ascriptive, particular- istic relationships. In contrast, American society owes its integration primarily to relationships which are more affectively neutral, achievement oriented and universal- istic. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70- 71- "— ‘__ Kingsley Davis, ”Political Ambivalence in Latin America,” in Readipgs _i_n_ Latin American Social Organization and Lastitutions, ed. by C. P. Loomis and 0. Leonard, Michigan State Press, 1953. Frank Tannenbaum, ”Personal Government in Mexico," in Readiggs in Latin American Social Organization apd Institutions, pp, cit. Moises P. Troncoso, “The Social Content of Latin American Constitution,” in Readings g; Latin American Social Orga__nization a_p_d_ Institutions, 22. git. Ferdinand Tonnies, Gemeinschaft un__d 61,321ch, Tr. and Ed. by Charles P. Loomis, Michigan State University Press, 1957. Tonnies called the United States “the most modern and gesellschaft-like state." p. 221. Talcott Parsons, The Social System, Glencoe, The Free Press, 1951. The United States and Latin America were presented as character- izing apposite tendencies of the pattern variables of value orientation, i.e., the United States was more achievemental, universalistic, affectively neutral orientation, while Latin America was more ascriptive, particularistic and affective, pp. 182- 199. Filmer S. G. Northrop, in p1,; Meetipg 9;; East gag}, West, MacMillan 00., N. Y., 1946, depicted Mexican culture as being distinctly different from that of the United States. Robin Williams, American Society, A. Knapf 60., N. Y., 1955; see especially Chapter 11, l"Value Orientations in American Society.“ Fernando de Los Rios, I'Remarlcs on Intellectual Life in South Anerica,” in min]. Research. vol. 10: loo-117 (February 1916). The author concluded that the value systems of South Americans “are based on aesthetics, ethics and religion rather than on economics.“ 26 2 - Kinship relationships overlap institutional boundaries in Latin America. In the United States, the nuclear type family predominates, and the focus of its attention is the home. 3 - The "office“ as such is not important in Latin America. because of numbers 1 and 2 above. The Opposite is true of the United States where the ”office" is held to be generally free of the ties suggested by numbers 1 and 2. h - In Latin America political power is centered in a few caudillos or “strong men“ who rule through personal power for their own gain. 0n the other hand, the United States is thought of as a land of law and not of men. 5 - Business itself is still very much.a family affair in Latin America, neither well organ- ized nor well develOped, and primary interest still centers in ownership of land. By con— trast, there is no place in the world where business has reached a higher point of bureaucratic develOpment than in the United States. Latin Americans are concerned primarily with aethetics and religion, while North.Americans are primarily devoted to economics. With these generalizations in mind we may now consider their implications in terms of I'social identificationsI or “social references.” By these terms iI meant any individual or group whose perspective constitutes the actor's frame of reference. That is to say, the norms of an individual or group serve as anchoring points in structuring the actor's perceptual field."72 In this particular case we may expect that actors within the Mexican national system (taken as the group) will have images of themselves and of others which reflect the 72. See Muzafer Sherif and Carolyn Sherif, Ag,0utline 2;,Social Phyghology, Revised Ed., Harper and Bros., N. 1., 1956. See also Robert K. Merton and Alice Kitt, “Contributions to the Theory of Reference Group Behavior,“ in Beadiggs ipi§ggy§L Psychology, ed.'by G. Swanson gg_gl, Revised Ed., Bolt, N. Y.. 1952. 2? gemeinschaft-like orientations attributed to the Mexican system, if the Mexican.system is their main social reference. The problem of this study, of course, is not to determine whether in fact Mexico is or is not more gemeinschaft-like than the United States, but rather to determine the degree to which images held.by actors in social systems that are prepinquitous but theoretically different actually approach the theoretically expected patterns. That is, do Mexicans see themselves as gemeinschaft—like while they see their American counterparts as being gesellschaft-like? And further, do Americans who are in constant contact with Mexicans in highly structured situations generally involving statue-equal interaction, (e.g.. bank managers getting together to work out exchange problems, Chamber of Commerce presidents consulting on the problem of tourism, or the city mayors trying to develOp a mutually satisfactory sanitary program) have images of Mexico and Mexicans which are gemeinschaft-like in their orientation, at the same time do the see themselves as being gesellschaft- like? Do Americans distinguish between Mexicans as a result of contact, that is, are the orientations of the business system in Mexico seen as being different from the Mexican political system? It should be recognized that certain historical factors would pre- vent Mexico from approaching anything like a ”pure” type or of being considered as typical of the general Latin American pattern. The avowed.aims of the Mexican Revolution of 1910 were to bring social reform.and equal Justice to all Mexicans, and the accomplishment of these aims is still the central theme of the dominant political party. This would seem to require a more gesellschaft-like system. tAt the same time American.buminessmen have invested.heavily in Mexico, a fact which at least in the last ten years has began to have considerable influence on Mexican businessmen. Therefore, Mexican society, at least as regards business and politics must be considered in something of a state of transition. This fact may be expected to produce a certain amount of conflict as individuals learn to interact in more gesellschaft- like ways.73 The question posed here is whether or not this in fact appears to be the case when comparative images are called for, both within and across national boundaries. with this general orientation as a background. we turn now to the problem of this study. C. The Problem of This Research The present study is a. report on the findings of research on national images which was carried out along the Uni ted States-Mexico border during the academic year 195s.1955, The general orientation to the problem has already been strongly emphasized in the previous paragraphs, to wit, that the kinds of images that individuals hold of themselves and of other individuals and national groups, will depend in part at least on the nature, extent, direction, and degree of contacts they have with others, as well as on their own national and occupational ident ificati on. The border as a research site was found to afford an excellent Opportunity for the study of national images as these might be affected and influences by daily interaction of individuals from two allegedly different socio—cultural systems. 73. For details on the historical backgound of Mexico, see Hudson Strode, Timeless Mexico, Harcourt, Brace 00., N. Y., 1914-4. Also see William P. Tucker, __Th_e_ Mexican Government Today, University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, 1957. 29 More specifically, the data for this study were gathered.by intensive, guided interviews of the business and political elites of two neighboring border cities. These elites are the tap men in the business and political systems of their respective cities. Exploratory research revealed that these elites engaged in extensive interaction with each other, more or less as “status equals,“ thus suggesting the probability or at least possibility of satisfying contacts resulting for the participants. The elites comprise four distinct categories which will hereafter be referred to as "groups" under the following classification: El Paso business elites, El Paso political elites, Cd. Juarez business elites, and Cd. Juarez political elites. The research encompasses three major objectives: 1 - description and analysis of the business and political elite structures in the two cities. 2 - analysis of the interpersonal relations occurring between the elites of the two cities, and the possible relationship between contact and national images. 3 - a comparative study of the national images of these elite groups based on the variables of nationality and occupation. In order to study the national images of elites in such a.cross— cultural setting, one must first designate who are the elites. The first major objective, therefore, is that of uncovering the elites. The objective includes the following: (a) anaLysis of the results of the voting of respondents and.Judges as to who the elites are; (b) social background data on the elite groups; and (c) analysis of the nature and degree of functional interpenetration of the elite groups within each city. There will also be a comparative analysis of the power structures, 30 and finally an attempt to relate the power structures to the general- izations about value orientations. The second.objective is to analyze the various ways in which these elites meet in interpersonal relationships. The concern here is to get a clear picture of interpersonal contacts of the elites both within each city and between cities. Motheses concerning the extent of cross-cultural contact and nature of national images will be tested. The third major objective is to describe and analyze the national images held by these elites of themselves and of each other. In this section the hypotheses to be tested will be concerned with the relation.- ship between the variables of national and occupational identification and national images. Thus, in considering the objectives of this research it may be said that it goes beyond previous research into national images in giving Special emphasis to the importance of proximity and constant interaction involving “status equals." For example, there is much contact at all levels of group activity in the border area and strongly held images within these groups. Exploratory research revealed that most of these images were stereotypic in nature, generally involving superordinate -- subordinate contact relations, e.g., the Anglo foreman and the Mexican workers in a textile plant. This is an important problem in itself but it was bypassed in favor of the present study for reasons that will be made clear in the following chapter. D. An Overview of the Present Study Chapter II is devoted to a discussion of the methodological problems involved in the deve10pment of the Research. This includes the develOpment 32 of the hypotheses; the nature of the exploratory research and the way in which the imagery themes deve10ped; selection and validation of the groups to be studied; develOpment of the interview schedule; collection of the data; and techniques for the analysis of the data. chapter 111 is concerned with the following: 1) an overview of the research site and a brief sketch of the relevant historical back- ground; and 2) delineation and analysis of the power structures of the two cities, including a comparison of the elites chosen by offices (occupations), and the ways in which the power structures are different and similar. In Chapter IV the nature and extent of interpersonal relations on an international level between the elites of the two cities are examined. A rough "index of contact" is constructed to test the hypothesis that one elite group (the Juarez businessmen) have more cross-cultural contact than any other elite group. Tests of hypotheses relating national images to extent of contact will follow. Chapter V will be devoted to testing hypotheses relating images of businessmen and business practices with the elite groups employing their national and occupational identifications as variables. Chapter VI will be devoted to testing hypotheses relating images of government officials and political practices with the elite groups, again employing their national and occupational identification as variables. The last chapter will be devoted to summary and conclusions. Hapefully, a study of the imagery that elites of neighboring cities in different national systems have of each other will enable a later study of how technological interchange is affected by these images. CHAPTER II THE RESEARCH DESIGN A. Development of the Hypotheses. The purpose of this chapter is to delineate the guiding hypotheses of this study and the methodological procedures that were followed to test these hypotheses. The previous chapter presented the major objec- tives of this study and the general orientation which acted as a guide- post in the development of a research design to achieve the objectives. Let us proceed now to the development of the hypotheses. From the statements on basic theory we may draw the proposition that in a gesellschaft-like society, that is, in a society in.which universalistic, achievemental, effectively neutral orientations to action are stressed, there will be closer integration of such highly enacted organizations as business and political systems than in a gemeinschaft- like society, because of the tendency of both business and political systems to become rationalized and harmonious to each other under these conditions. In predominantly gemeinschaft—like society where highly enacted social systems have only recently come into being. and are in fact only in an emergent state, these will more likely be in conflict because of the differences in the two patterns of value orientations withmwhich the systems are trying towwork. Thus. the business and political systems in Mexico are involving their members in the process of exchanging the dom- inance of one set of orientations for another. Conflict may be expected both within and between the business and political systems in Mexico, because of a differential rate of change. 3h These two propositions must now be considered in conjunction with the notion that a "national image" is a generalization concerning the members of some national group. which image may be the result of direct contact and interaction between the image bearer and some member or mem- bers of the national group under consideration, or may be the product of stereotypes inwwhich direct contact has been lacking, or it may be the result of both. When we add the generalization that members of a national group tend to hold favorable images of themselves and their own group or groups. plus the fact that contacts between members of different groups that do not deprecate the self—esteem of the individual and his national group, but rather may involve a recognition of status equality for him.and his group. then the following guiding hypotheses may be stated for this study: 1 - American business and American political elites will have favorable images of themselves and of each other. as in- dividuals and as groups. The process of rationalization of the business and political struc- tures in the United States has proceeded at a rapid pace, and there is much evidence to suggest that this hypothesis has a strong basis in fact. Hunter's study1 of Regional City depicts the business and political systems as comprising almost a single integrated entity. 0r again. ‘Williamsz notes "how thin“ is the line that separates the political from the business in American Life today. pointing out the necessity of close cOOperation between the two systems in a society marked by ever increasing Specialization and bureaucratic control and a popular sharing 1. Floyd Hunter, Qanmnnity,Egugzflfitzngtnzg, Chapel Hill. The University of North Carolina Press, 1953. 2. Robin Williams. Mexican m. Knopf Co.. New York. 1956. 35 of the same value orientations. 2 - American business and political elites will have gener- ally negative images of Mexican business and political elites, the degree of negativeness varying with the situation and with the nature of the contact. The most negative images are those held of the Mexican political elites. Here the American image is supported first by the nationally held notion that the American system is the best in the world, and sec- ondly, by contacts, rumors, and heresay about what Mexico and Mexicans are like. The Revolutionary government has been strongly nationalistic and has refused to permit economic exploitation of Mexico on the pre- revolutionary basis; this factor may be expected to lead to negative images. Historical factors and long held stereotypes are only now beginning to be superceded by the kinds of contactsvrhich may bring forth 3 favorable or accurate images. 3 - Mexican business and political elites will have generally favorable images of themselves and of each other. The elites of the two systems share the same value orientations which emphasize affective, particularistic and familistic relationships. However, examination of the literature revealed something of an histor- ical struggle culminated in The Revolution of 1910 and the establishment of a revolutionary party bent on large scale social reform. The achieve- ment of the specific goals would seem to require a more gesellschaft-like orientation. ‘While the focus of attention of the revolutionary party (The Partido Revolucionario Institucional) has been largely nationalistic, the focus of attention of business has become more and more international. 3. It should be recognized here that a negative image may be an accurate one whereas a favorable one may be stereotypic. To the degree that the image is a gross distortion of reality it is stereotypic. 36 In effect, this has meant a differential rate of change in which business has more rapidly become more rational, achievemental, universalistic and effectively neutral. This fact has tended to increase the tension and conflict between members of the two systems and prevented the kind of integration which has been found in the United States. It would appear that the ideal of a business-dominated or oriented government is not a goal of the Mexican political elites, while it is a goal of the Mexican business elites. The revolutionary leaders see the businessmen are reactionaries who would return the peOple to peonage. For their part the businessmen distrust the political leaders and question their'motives. These factors force a modification of the guiding hypothesis in the following way: While the Mexican business and political elites will tend to have favorable images of themselves, they will tend to have nega- tive images of each other. However, since the Mexican businessmen and political leaders are imbued with many of the same values by virture of their common heritage, their images of'each other will not be as negative as will be the general American image of the respective Mexican systems. 4 - Mexican business and political elites*will tend to have negative images of American business and political elites. Since their value orientations differ so sharply interaction between the groups will tend to be strained. Furthermore, historical factors have made the Mexicans hostile and suspicious of Americans in general. At the same time, it might be expected that the images which the Mexican businessmen hold might be less unfavorable. at least to the extent that they have become more international and universalistic in their orienta- tion. Since a major concern of political systems is boundary maintenance, and the Mexican system has been consistently concerned with this via a 37 via. The United States over the years, the images held by the political elites toward the United States will be more negative. The apparent business orientation of American government may also be a contributing factor here. It wasuaith these guiding hypotheses in mind that we proceeded with the initiation of inquiry. In the next section we will consider the method used to test these hypotheses. As will be seen, it became neces- sary to modify and reformulate these hypotheses as a result of the early phases of inquiry. This reformulation led to the specific hypotheses which will appear in their proper places in succeeding chapters. B. Method. By the concept method is meant here the complex of techniques by means of which a hypothesis or series of hypotheses may be tested by relating it (them) to a selected portion of the external world. The following techniques were used to gather the data necessary to test the hypotheses of this study: (a) exploratory research, including observa- tion, content analysis of local newspapers, and broadly focused inter- views; (b) development of a fermal interview schedule; (c) development of a technique for choosing subjects to be interviewed; (d) administra- tion of interviews; (6) analysis of the data. Each of these techniques will be discussed in detail below. 3. Exploratgrx research, With the general objectives of the pro- ject outline in mind, the metrOpolitan area of'El Paso, Texas, and Juarez, Chihuahua, was chosen as the first site for the five year study. This area was chosen because of the large size of the two cities, the known fact of very high interaction rates between members of both cities, 38 and the fact that both cities were eXperiencing a very rapid rate of technological change. Both cities were known to possess bureaucratic structures sufficiently well develOped to make fruitful analysis of them possible. All in all, the cities seemed to offer a fruitful area for investigation. Exploratory research covered from the beginning of September to the early part of December, with the main objective being to become as well acquainted with the research site as possible. This meant obtaining data on such factors as the comparative nature of the several social systems (e.g., religious. educational, labor, political, business) of the two cities; extent, nature, and direction of contacts between members of the various systems; comparative land use patterns; evidences of technological borrowing and/or interchange; existence of stereotyped images. Qbsgzxatign, The technique of observation was used both on a casual and a rather formal basis. By casual is meant that the researchers merely observed the interaction patterns as he traversed through one and the other city, and made notes on these and on other observations such as land use, treatment of individuals at the inspection points on the international bridges, and general shopping habits of the people, par- ticularly the juarenses shOpning in El Paso and the tourists in Cd. Juarez. 0n the more formal level, the city planner of E.P,, and one of the leading contractors of Juarez were called on to provide guided tours through certain sections of their reapective cities. Conversations elicited during these tours generally provided valuable background data. luncheons, lectures, and other civic events were attended when formal invitations were received. There was no attempt to give definite struc- ture or statistical orientation to these observations. 39 gentent,analxsi§, Since there were important daily newspapers published in both cities, it was necessary to Spend considerable time every day in carefully examining the papers for data which.might prove of value. Subscriptions to the major dailies of each city were carried from September of 195U through November of 1955, thus considerably over- lapping the time span of this stud . Special scrap books were kept of all articles dealing with inter-city activities, or intra-city activities which had international overtones; such articles ranged from summaries of the meetings of the International Chamber of Commerce Committee, to editorials on the mayoralty campaign in El Paso, the varied accounts of the struggle between the Juarez Municipal government and a group of Juarez businessmen, to articles implying or stating negative or positive images of one or the other national systems. Many of these articles served as the foundation for questions in the exploratory interviews, and in the interview schedule that was finally deve10ped. Explgzatgrx_intezxiew§. Doubtless the most important source of background data was the exploratory interviewing. It was necessary to find out in what ways these guiding hypotheses seemed to be relevant to this fairly large metropolitan area, for although it was well known that there was a great deal of interaction between the individuals in the sev- 'eral social systems, it was not known a priori just what the nature, extent, direction and importance of this interaction might be. The prob- lem was to find social systems (particularly the business and political) which were consciously accepting or rejecting technological change or otherwise involved in the process, and further, to find interaction situations‘which«demonstrated the importance in one way or another of contact in the development of national images, and the subsequent effects of these images on interaction patterns. The problem was met by interviewing the fellowing people: members of the faculty at Texas Western College in El Paso, who provided consid— erable background information of value, and graciously offered their time and facilities; the mayor and other officials in both cities; presidents and other members of the Chamber of Commerce in both cities; leaders in finance, commerce, and industry in both cities; several small store owners; and labor, religious and educational leaders in both cities. For the most part those holding formally recognized positions of importance were chosen, (a) because it was felt that in general they would have more international contacts than the average citizen. (b) be- cause it was eXpected that contacts between such personS'would more nearly approach "status equality" than contacts at other levels, and (c) because it seemed almost of necessity that technological change as conceived in the general objectives would involve the leaders of the two cities. In light of all the data that was gathered, it appears that point (a) above is in need of modification since the average citizen of Juarez spends 801 of his earnings in El Paso, and between 60-70% of the population of El Paso is Spanish-speaking, with almost every family having some relatives living in Mexico. Also to be considered here is the fact that between 15-20% of the working force of Juarez works daily in El Paso. The kind of technological change and image development that all this implies cannot be guessed at here. Point (b) seemed to hold for at least the majority of leaders inter- viewed, especially for the ones chosen for the final study. Certainly the 11,000 or more Juarez residents who work daily in El Paso do not work under conditions of status equality, as they hold the most menial jobs. U1 In fact, several business leaders remarked that "Anglos" in El Paso refused to work in factories and department stores where they would be occupying positions similar to those held by Mexicans. No data at all was gathered on the nature of visiting patterns at other than leadership levels, simply because of lack of time and the fact that the exploratory interviews had quickly revealed an area for research which fitted the gene al objectives of the project and the particular interests of the researcher. 'While it became clear from the data that as suggested by point (e) above the leaders are involved in the technological changes that are taking place on the border, they are not the only ones so involved. This study made no attempt to compare the role of the leaders versus the aver- age citizen in this important process, although it is the researcher's impression that the role of the average Juarez citizen at least is an important one. In the introductory meeting between the researchers and the prOposed respondent, the researchers very simply explained the project as one aimed at understanding the nature of international relations on our border. It was explained that we were interested in learning about the kinds of contacts that took place between Mexicans and Americans, and the way that people felt about them. It was suggested that their own experi- ences in international relations might make possible some insights into h. The researcher was fairly fluent in Spanish, and so was able to converse directly with the Spanish-speaking leaders of Juarez. His Masters thesis had dealt with the political philosophy of the Mexican Revolution, and he had an extensive background in Latin American studies. Besides, he had previously studied and travelled in Mexico, paying particular attention to the political and economic aspects of Mexican life. Thus, his interests early came to focus on the political and business leaders of the two cities. 42 how to improve international relations in general. 'We*were approaching the leaders because it was assumed that they would know more about the situation than the average citizen. Most of these respondents were very happy to be of help. The exploratory interviews were very general and broad and Open ended in nature, and reSpondents were encouraged to speak at length on any matters that they considered important. Such specific questions as were asked were the result of hints from the guiding hypotheses, content analysis of the newspapers, observations, previous interviews, or the researchers' general knowledge about the stereotyped images commonly held by Mexicans and Americans of each other. The aim in each case was to get a clear picture of the extent of contact between members of par- ticular sub-systems, the existence of conscious or planned technological changes or borrowing, and the nature of national images held by various leaders, and finally, the possible effect of these images on interaction. The major findings of this eXploratory phase of the study may be summarized as follows: practically no formal or informal contacts existed between leaders of labor, education, and religion in both cities; this is especially surprising for religion since the Catholic Church is numer- ically predominant in both cities. Special historico—political problems in Hexico during the last 100 years are at least in part an eXplanaticn for the lack of contact among these leaders. In the case of education and labor, the value orientations of the leaders and their systems were so different as to almost preclude any significant contacts. Both educa- tion and labor are closely tied in with the political system in.Mexico, and leaders in El Paso were frank to admit their hesitancy about attempting any close interchange of ideas or'activities under these circumstances. “3 0n the other hand, it was found that there were both extensive and intensive, formal and informal contacts between leaders in the political and business systems, contacts that cut across all four systems. That is, political leaders in both cities had formal and informal contacts with each other and with the business leaders of both cities. There was only little evidence of consciously directed technological interchange, however. It seemed that such change as took place as a result of these contacts was not generally recognized as such. A typical example of this may be cited here: one of the leading bankers of Juarez, a man who was highly respected by El Paso leaders, was recommending to the re- searcher that the latter should make a trip to Chihuahua City to see what a typical Mexican city was like. "We, in Juarez," he said, "are always in a hurry, we're always rushing around. Chihuahua City is much more relaxed." l — the fact that good contacts had been established with business and political leaders in both cities; 2 - the fact that a mayoralty campaign was approaching for El Paso, one in which both business and political leaders of the city were getting involved; 3 - the fact that a bitter struggle had erupted in Juarez between a group of top business leaders and the municipal govern- ment leaders over business, civic and political affairs and how they should be run; 4 - the fact that there was a high rate of interaction among the leaders concerning business and political matters, eSpecially trying to arrive at satisfactory relations in business and politi- cal matters of an inter-city nature, and also the many banquets and other events held for "Good Neighbor" purposes; 5 - the fact that the leaders as a whold were a highly liter- ate group, with definite but varying national images and attitudes, which for the most part they were willing to discuss; 6 - the fact that the cities were of such size that groups of leaders within the various systems large enough for some sort of statistical analysis could be delineated. #4 7 - the above factors suggested that images of the two nation— al systems, which might be latent under other circumstances, could be expected to'become clearly focused under these conditions. In other words, the course of'events in both cities seemed to offer an ideal setting for contrasting images and attitudes about social systems which theorists and others had long held to be so different. Hence, the research design became formally focused on a study of the nature and extent of the interaction between the images held by the "elites" of business and government in El Paso and Cd. Juarez, as well as the particular elite structures themselves. The images were to center mainly on selected aSpects of social action within these social systems. ‘While the guiding hypotheses seemed to be supported in general by the data, it was found necessary to modify them somewhat, in line with factors 'whichxvere at least Operating along the border. For example, relations between all the elites seemed to be much more friendly than had been anticipated, and this seemed to effect the ima es. These factors will be covered in more detail in subsequent pag*s. ‘ t e ' . As stated above, the tech- niques of observation, content analysis, and interviewing were used to obtain initial information about the border setting; the researcher also had a considerable fund of knowledge about commonly held images of Mexicans and Americans which were included in the exploratory interviews wherever possible. In each interview the respondent was asked a few questions about his personal background (e.g., age, education) and then very broad questions relating his particular occupation to the border setting. For example, a banker'was asked to explain the different kinds of banking problems that had to be faced in this international situation and how they might differ from strictly national problems. Respondents were encouraged to Speak at length on whatever they deemed important, in 7”” f their own particular situation, in international relations in general, or on what they thought we should know about Mexico and Mexicans, or America and Americans (more usually Texas and Texans). The interview was always conducted in the language which the respondent preferred. As interviewing continued, the interviews became more directed in nature, as our fund of knowledge built up, and we came to see certain images and problems as central and tried to focus on them, but always allowing and encouraging the respondent to give us all the time he wanted to. Some of the following images became quite common: "America is the land of opportunity;" businessmen andpolitical officials get along very well; honesty and effort pay off; if you pay your taxes you never have to worry about the government. on the other side, MexiCO'was seen as a land torn by conflict between liberals and conservatives, the conserva— tives usually being allied with the businessmen; family name meant every- thing, and one was either rich or poor and that was all there was to it. This strongly held image of Mexicans as being either rich or poor with no inpbetween has a long historical tradition to it, which seemed to be well known on both sides of the border. Comparative images were also in evidence, e.g., "Mexicans are loyal citizens, just like us," or "They have a different system of business ethics; I wouldn't say that ours is better; it is just different." or again, "As a rule, the businessman in Mexico is against the government; it is just the opposite in the United States." It was on the basis of such data as these that the interview schedule was developed. (The Interview Schedule is reprinted in full in Appendix A.) #6 These images were generally in accord with those found in the liter- ature about Mexicans and Americans (Cf. Chapter I above). The fact that there was such a strong similarity between the Mexican image of Americans and those images of Americans held by EurOpeans and Asians found in the literature and delineated in Chapter I raises some interesting questions about images in general and stereotypes in particular, which, while be- yond the scope of this study, may be noted in passing. Is there an inter- national distribution of national images, eSpecially stereotyped ones? Does the fact of their similarity imply that more than a "Kernel of Truth" runs through them all? Are they the results of similar or dis- similar kinds of contacts?5 2. W1 of the W Schedule. The interview schedule was gradually developed out of the results of the more than two months of exploratory research, with the questions designed to test Specific hypotheses derived from the guiding hypotheses listed above. The schedule was divided into three parts: part one consisted of questions on personal background (e.g., age, education, occupation, the nature and extent of actual contacts with members of the other systems under study and evaluation of these contacts); part two consisted of questions dealing with the economic system, and included comparative questions on the systems as they functioned within the national systems as a whole and within the two cities; and part with the political systems of the two countries, particularly as they compared with each other. 5. E. Terry Prothro, and L. H. Melikian in "Studies in Stereotypes: v. Familiarity and The Kernel of Truth Hypothesis," from ignznal, of Social W, 41:3-10 (Feb. '55), considered this problem at some length, and suggested that much research is needed in the field before any conclusions can be drawn. 1&7 The interview schedule was sent to the Department of Sociology and AnthrOpology for critical comment and suggested changes. At the same time it was submitted to several professional peeple at Texas ‘Western College who were sufficiently well acquainted with the situation to be able to offer helpful advice and suggestions. Finally, the schedule was pro-tested on both sides of the border and among members of all four social systems, and the Spanish translation was carefully checked for accuracy. All respondents were asked to criticize the schedule in any way they saw fit and to make recommended changes of improvements. No major changes or questions were added because of this. The most severe problem posed by the schedule after all necessary changes had been made was its length; it was feund to require from one and oneahalf to two hours to complete, and there was some question raised as to whether the respondents would be willing to give us that much time. Actually, of the nearly two hundred interviews that were completed less than five people complained about the length, and the great majority of the interviews were closer to two hours in length. 3. Selection _a_r;d_ validation 9f; the, subjects 39 pg W. With the hypotheses and the questions designed to test them all spelled out, the next problem was to decide exactly the size and nature of the groups to whom the study was to be administered. The decision to study the images and contacts of the business and political elites still left open the question of who were the elites. The technique of using a random sample of the known list of businessmen and political or govern- mental leaders was avoided because it was felt that such a list so derived would not meet the peculiar needs of this study as it had been set forth. ’48 So instead, a modification of the technique used by Hunter6 to get the power structure of "Regional City" was adopted. From the beginning. each person interviewed was asked to give several names of people most influential in the affairs of his city as well as the names of a few people he might know to be influential in the other city. All names thus received were carefully kept on cards indicating the names. Master lists were also kept, so that it was easily possible to know who had been named and how often. Before the interview schedule was put into its finalibrm.it was feund necessary to modify and redefine this question somewhat. It had become apparent that in asking merely for the names of some of the more influential peeple we were not always being provided with the names we wanted. Since we were desirous of having the universe of top business and political elites in order to insure a maximum possible comparability of data about status equals and their contacts. and since the question as originally posed did not make Specific reference either to business- men or political leaders, it often occurred that so called "social" and "civic" leaders not connected with either of these systems were included. So the original question was revised into two questions on the final schedule as follows: at the end of the section of questions on business, the question was asked: "Will you please give us the names of the most influential businessmen in city? (or Whom do you consider to be some of the most influential businessmen in city?) At the end of the section on politics and government, the question was asked: "Would you please give us a list of names of the peeple who 6. Hunter, m0: Appendix: "Methods of Study." 1&9 are and have been the most influential in the government and politics of city in recent years?" This question was followed by: "Can you give us the names of a few people who have the greatest influ- ence and power in city (i.e., the one across the border)?" By the time that the exploratory ohase of the study had be com- pleted, between 15 and 20 elites in each city had been clearly identi- fied, and these were interviewed first. An individual was selected to be interviewed as an elite when his name was given by three elites themselves.7 In some cases the researcher interviewed individuals who were only mentioned once or twice, if it seemed that the individual occupied a strategic position in one of the systems which was not gener- ally recognized by the elites. The researchers were always aware of the danger of certain cliques only naming themselves; the researchers were satisfied that they were able to identify all such cliques and that such a situation did not arise. A small group of individuals did stand out above the rest, and received most of the votes; in many cases they were individuals who were completely Opposed to each other. Below this small group was a long list of names of individuals many of whom received only one or two votes. The lists themselves will be carefully analyzed in Chapter III. Towards the end of the study it became apparent that there were more or less two distinct groups within each elite system, the real "tops" and the more or less ”knowledgeables". Hunter8 made 7. Some of the people who were interviewed in the exploratory phase also became part of the final sample. and thus were interviewed twice. There was a lapse of at least five weeks in all such cases. The only questions emitted were those dealing with factual background data which had already been obtained. Responses to similar questions did not change. 8. Hunter, nggit.. Appendix. 50 the same finding, only he called his second group the sub-elites whereas they are labelled knowledgeables in this study. The knowledge- ables9 were the members of the systems under study who were closely related to the t0ps and their activities, but who clearly did not enjoy the same amount of influence as the tops did. on the other hand, in some cases, they seemed to have an even clearer view of the power struc- ture and the problems of international contacts than the top elite did. In other cases, they served as front man for the tops, who used their influence from the shadows. Actually, three groupsxaere asked to choose the elites of their respective communities: The businessmen elite, political elite, and knowledgeables. In order to attempt to validate this list of elites beyond the researcher's own evaluation of it, the writer made up a number of sepa- rate lists of names of all those chosen, and submitted the lists to several judges in'both cities. The judges were individuals whom the researcher had come to recognize as having extensive knowledge about the situation and a reasonable ability at objective analysis. (Objectivity became extremely important on a conscious level when one of the leading businessmen of Juarez was approached and asked to be a judge; his dis- like of the political leaders was so intense that he just couldn't get himself to acknowledge that any of them had any influence.) Each judge was asked to select in order of their influence, in so far as this was possible, the tOp twenty elites in each system as labelled on the list, and if need by, to add names of individuals who should have been listed 9. They were labelled knowledgeables because we used them to provide us knowledge and not as representatives of secondary elites, which they were. Thus, we have no systematic sample of secondary elites. 51 and weren't. There was remarkable agreement between the choices of these judges and the overall vote, as well as the evaluation of the re— searcher himself. In essence, then, the individuals chosen for this study are the elites of their respective systems insofar as the technique used is a valid one. In fact, the technique provide 5 the image which elites have of the elite structures within their own reSpective cities. The questions asked regarding influentials were themselves imagery questions, so that there is no final answer to the exact power structure of these two cities, or perhaps of any city. h. Specigl prgblems encoggtered in Lhe_g§mini§tgatign bethis study, As might have been anticipated, a study in a cross-cultural situation such as is presented by these two large cities on the United States-~Mexico border is fraught with difficulties not ordinarily found in research within one culture. This section attempts to delineate some of these difficulties and how they were met. Some limitations of the study will be apparent from the poor strategy used in trying to handle some of these difficulties in the field. Of course, bv the same token, the sucess of the study may be attributed in part to overcoming some of these same difficulties. The areas to be discussed here are: a. language fluency and historical perspective. b. Importance of residence. c. Gaining rapport and defining the study for the respondents. d. Allotment of time for each city. e. Objectivity and the researcher's own images. a- WWMMWW It would have been impossible to carry out this study had not the researcher some 52 fluency in Spanish. Only a small number of’Eexican influentials spoke English well enough to converse in it freely. The ability to speak their language well meant being able to probe for answers, to get beyond the pat answer, to meet them on terms of status equality. Coupled with language fluency was the historical perspective which the researcher had. In the first place, it made the clash between the political and business leaders understandable. Secondly, having this knowledge meant that the researcher could converse knowingly with the respondents on many topics of Special interest to them, and could also of course be right up on the news in the Mexican newspapers. Mexican respondents were generally pleased that an American should know something about Mexican history, and it is the researcher's impression that this encouraged respondents to provide more information than they might otherwise have given. Several El Paso leaders were also clearly pleased with the fact that the research work in Juarez would be carried on in Spanish. Finally, of course, a considerable amount of time and money was saved in not having to rely on an interpreter. And since there was such a cleavage between the two groups in Juarez, probably two separate interpreters would have been necessary, if they were hired in Juarez. b. Closely tied to point a. was th§,2rgbl§m,gfl.residgnge. 'When presented with the possibility of choosing between.and American city and a Mexican city, it is all too easy and perhaps more comfortable for the researcher with family to choose the American city. But aside from personal comfort was the significance of the meaning of residence to the subjects of the study. Several important leaders in both cities asked the writer where he was living. The writer defended his choice on the 53 grounds that since he had to spend an equal amount of time in both cities, he simply rented the first place that seemed adequate to him. The writer later learned that there was much resentment both ways against certain members of the United States Consulate who were living in El.Paso while their jobs were in Juarez. There was also strong re- sentment expressed by some Mexican leaders against a certain small seg- ment of their group who were living in El Paso, eSpecially as the El Paso eXplanation for such residence patterns was the superior living conditions of El Paso. Despite all this the researcher was satisfied that no one resented his choice of residence. A complication in the residence problem occurred later on. He did consider the worth of moving to Juarez for the experience and change; but by this time leaders of the two opposing groups in Juarez, both of whom owned large amounts of real estate, had offered to provide the writer with "excellent" facilities if he chose to move. It seemed im— gvossible to make the move without offending one or the other party, so the researcher stayed in El Paso. Perhaps an early acceptance of an apartment before knowing about the cleavage could have impaired the study. c. Naturally, the ability to Speak Spanish and the historical knowledge about Mexico were major fators in establishing_gggd_rappgrt with the Mexican leaders. Another factor of significance was that the tOp leaders of the Opposition groups in Juarez were both favorably dis- posed to such a study. They were impressed that an American University should be interested in them, and they were very willing to provide letters of recommendation (in fact, they suggested the idea) and calling cards to fellow influentials within their own groups or within the group 51* of neutrals who took no part in the controversy. Ninety five percent of the interviews obtained in Juarez were obtained by the use of a letter of recommendation or the personal calling card of one of the leaders. On the other hand, the problem of gaining rapport in El Paso was considerably different. 'While most of the leaders were pleased to help us out, theytqere not so impressed by the presence of personell from a northern university. There was only one top leader who was willing to provide the researcher“with calling cards of any sort. 'While the general manager of the Juarez Chamber of Commerce had offered to write a letter of recommendation to any businessman in Juarez, the El Paso general manager insisted from the first interview that he couldn't do this. and that we would have to present ourselves to whomeverwwe wanted to speak without the support of an introductory letter. The researcher was then accepted or rejected on the basis of his own ability to convince each "elite" of the value of the study and of the need for his cooperation. It seemed to the researcher in retrospect that this was a clear illustration of the gemeinschaft-gesellschaft orientations within the various systems. On the Mexican side the researcher could proceed only with some sort of note from one of the top leaders, but when he possessed such a note, he could count on the 1003 cooperation of the respondent, without having to make detailed assurances about the nature and backing of the study. Such a particularistic technique was alien to the ways of El Paso elites. Here the researcher had to validate his study to each respondent individually. All of this meant that it was much easier to get to tOp men in Juarez than it was in El Paso. d. Allotment of. time. Since so many things that were going on in Juarez seemed so unusual and different to the researcher there was 55 always the temptation to slight El Paso in favor of Juarez. To mitigate against this. however. was the prOblem of bridge crossing. To get caught in bridge traffic at certain times of the day meant waiting an hour or so in line. This had its value for the observation of "border" activity that it permitted, but it was always a factor to contend with. To arrange appointments in both cities for the same afternoon meant care- ful timing. and sometimes the fear of cutting a respondent short in order to give oneself time to get back to the other city. The researcher in such a cross—cultural setting is also caught up in the very concept of "time" and the varying cultural patterns related to "business" hours. One could be reasonably certain that an appointment would be kept on time in El Paso; and, of course, the researcher was well adjusted to the 8-5 work day there. Neither of these regular cul- ture patterns held for Juarez. The hour of appointment seemed merely a formality to please the American in many cases. The researcher spent many hours sitting and waiting for respondents to appear for their appointment. Records that were kept of these occurrences show that the more a leader tended to be a gemeinschaft-like orientation, the less likely he was to keep his appointment on time. Nest if not all of the late or completely forgotten appointments occurred with Mexican politi- cal elites. The writer also had to get used to the fact that all of the elites in Juarez took a two or three hour break in the afternoon (one which the writer himself came to appreciate when he got used to it); at times the writer found himself in JuareZ'with a morning interview just ended and three hours for lunch, since the afternoon interview wasn't scheduled for three hours or so. (It was frequently on occasions like this that 56 the respondent would fail to appear on time, so that a u P.M. interview might not begin until 5:15 or 3:30, if the respondent appeared!) only once did a political elite apologize on the following day for having forgotten our apgointment. To redeem himself, he insisted on granting the interview right in the middle of a busy morning schedule. It was accomplished amid several interruptions in just less than two hours. 9. W and the W images. The problem posed in this regard was a personal one for the researcher: how to keep his own :images from biasing the situation. The points stressed above give some indication of the kinds of problems facing the researcher as he tried to establish an adequate role for himself in the field. The advantages that the elites offered for this study were somewhat offset by several important factors that had to be taken into account. The elites of El.Faso were quite concerned less thexariter should do anything or write aunything to disturb the harmonious relations which they felt they had ilabored so long to develOp. Some of the questions, especially those dealing with comparative political systems, caused them to be upset. As <3ne man put it, "Sure, there's a lot of corruption there; but we have to :10 business with them and live near them, and I don't want to lose any customers or friends over this." These elites of El Paso who hesitated xecutive officeholders were chosen as elites, and with only one Lon they all received ten or more votes. The three treasurers state and federal) were named; as one El Paso elite said: 1 all be rich before they get out of office." The federal or disagreed with this notion, but did acknowledge that he had y turned dovm a 500 peso gift from a taxpayer who was surprised L action. Influence is derived from the executive office; as previously, authority and influence are located at the same . Such offices were never named as influential in El Paso. e mayors of both cities were the tOp vote receivers, with the ' the Cd. Juarez mayor approaching unanimity. But this latter on was also more conditional. That is, while he held office. d deriveinfluence from it which he could use “to his own personal ge. But, as many respondents remarked, ”once he leaves office e's dead politically.” Although a few also said this about the f El Paso, most insisted that he would continue to be influential affairs for years to come. More important seemed to be the fact 9 mayor of 3"l Paso was chosen for his accomplishments in office, he had dominated the political _. scene in recent years, and be- f his phenomenal success as a businessman. Pe0ple voted for Cd. Juarez, the mayor was important because he was a member of 106 the P31 party. and had been given an office by the party. This fact alone gives him personal influence. In both cities the lack of importance of the legislative branch of government is apparent, while there is again some contrast between the influence of the judiciary in El Paso and the lack of influence in Gd. Juarez. This seems to point up the fact that it is not the office as such but the individual who counts in El Paso. The mayor and the sir-mayor were millionnaire businessmen; the county clerk was a young man of Spanish-speaking background who had a strong popular following and had demonstrated considerable administrative skill. The city councilman chosen was also of Spanish-speaking background. a good The others chosen were lewers administrator with popular support. and businessmen. There were very few full time government career men in the political lite structure of El Paso as compared with that of Gd. Juarez. The as]. political influentials are only partially visible in the formal .ite structure of El Paso, while they are wholly visible in Gd. Juarez. Summary and Conclusions. In this chapter the elite groups within 1 two cities under study were described, and an attempt was made to ineate their significant features by a comparative analysis. This Lysis indicates that there is more similarity in the business elite .ps than in the political elite groups of the two cities; and that a is a. definite interpenetration of the two aoups in El Paso lead- :0 a. high degree of cohesiveness. Just the opposite characterizes aarez: that is, there is a cleavage between business and political 3 leading to an almost complete impasse and structural breakdown in areas of vital city-wide concern. 107 Another important factor brought out by the analysis is the difference in the distribution of influence as between the two cities. Influence - the ability of an individual to see to it that decisions made by those in authority are in accord with his personal goals -- is of course more easily defined and analyzed in the political structure than in the business structure. In the political structure there is a legitimized, somewhat hierarchically arranged distribution of power through the authority vested in specific offices. In both Mexico and the United States this has official public sanction. However, while the formal political structures of both cities appear to be very similar, the locus of power is very different because of the different ways in which influence is distributed. In the Mexican system, apparently, influence is an extension of the actual authority positions more than n the United States. The municipal codes may clearly delimit the nount of power vested in any particular position, but the process of mtitutionalization of the rational-legal form of government has been nerally lacking. The more gemeinshaft-like orientation makes it ISible for those in authority to derive temporary personal influence m the office. Since the Mexican government is strongly centralized- 3r proceeds downward from the president to the governors of the ral states, and through them to the munic ipal leaders--the executive :11 has so far been the main source of power, with the judicial and Llative branches acting more as stamps of approval than as independent as of power in their own rigit. At least, this is the image of resulting from the data presented in this chapter. and which con- closely to the historical and actual situation in Mexico as depicted a 1 i. terature. 108 Afurther point related to the above concerns the problem of personalism in Latin American governments. Tannenbaumfiu Wise.35 and others have laid great emphasis on the importance of the leader, the caudillo, and Mexican literature is replete with references to the same theme.36 The analysis above would seem to suggest some clarifica- tion of this theme along the following lines. Whatever the merits of the caudillo theme historically, it seems evident now that the occupa- tion of a particular office is also a prime factor in the distribution of power in Mexico at least at the local urban level, and that one obtains these offices through PRI party membership. To occupy the office is to have power, both authority and influence, with both diminishing as one descends the hierarchical ladder. From the point of view of the individual, it is the office which limits his power. The lines of pe0ple that form three or four times weekly outside a particular governmental office are strong evidence that the mass of the People recognize the locus of power, and the way in which they seek to interact with the particular official shows that it is not his 9ersonal dynamism that counts but the kind of influence which his »ffice makes possible. The individual brings a personal element to play when he dis- eibutes bureaucratic offices under his control according to kinship d particularistic considerations rather than considerations of “— w?— T'annenbaum, ”Personal Government . . .". 21;. gig. George Wise, Antonio Guzman Blanco, Portrait Q_f_ g Gaudillo gel-met... g‘N"‘v’¢l ‘31...." I'LL-,1. :- ".v x I-‘ For a full bibliography' on this subject see, W. Y. D'Antonio, M. A. thOSlS, O O gin-t. 109 technical competence. Thus, in Chihuahua state, the governor gave lmportant posts throughout the state, including key municipal positions. ;0 his relatives and close friends.:37 This certainly is a form of audillismo. The situation in the United States is not so simple. Certainly incoln Steffens uncovered data about American cities not dissimilar u this. But recent community studies38 seem to confirm the findings signed in this chapter, namely that authority and influence are not often located at the same address in the United States as they used be. The bureaucracy has advanced to such a degree in cities like Paso that the holding of a political office does not necessarily 1y any Amount of personal influence on the part of the Officeholder. re has been an effective penetration of the political structure by economic structure in recent years, one which on the one hand care- y restricts the power of the political off iceholder, and on the r exerts tremendous influence on these same officeholders. This s it extremely difficult to locate the locus of influence. lbs :ical elites chosen in this study were chosen for their influence, because of the offices they occupied. While some political offices as those of City Councilman are like their Gd. Juarez counterparts s extent that they are more stamps of approval for decisions reached ters. the difference lies in who has reached the decision. In :— hen the governor was removed from office by the Resident Just ter the end of this study, his relatives and friends were also smoved. Inter, 93. cit.; Schulze and Blumberg, op, cit.: Mills, 92. <_:_i__t_. 110 . Juarez the decisions which the legislative and Judicial officials re asked to approve were arrived at within the executive branch of 3 political group. In El Paso, and other American cities apparently, =h decisions are arrived at outside the immediate governmental group, such as bankers, industrialists, lawyers working for businessmen, etc. s, the difference in the power distribution between Gd. Juarez and Paso is that in Cd. Juarez authority and influence are located at same address, or at least within the general address of the political lp, while in El Paso this is not so. In fact, effective influence vften brought to bear on the political goup by the business elite p. In the pyramid of power in American cities like El Paso the tical and business systems tend to merge into a single hierarchy. axican cities like Cd. Juarez, there are two pyramids of power, led to each other, in an almost constant state of struggle. The D18 of the school lunch program in Cd. Juarez, alluded to above, is me of the many that demonstrate how the two groups seek in vain minate each other. [She problem of describing and analyzing the business elite structure rer terms is made difficult by the lack of a legitimized formal 'ity pattern wherein bankers are ranked higier or lower than rialists, etc. Nevertheless, empirically, it seems that the as elites do recognize some such pattern in common, for there is pparent similarity between the business elite groups of the two control of wealth in one form or another seems to be the major 118.111: of business elite status in both cities, while ability to compute power to bear on political power is a recognized and at factor in El Paso which cannot be overlooked. 1.11 .clueion, the following points may be made concerning the itations with which this study is concerned: ‘. - Mexico or Latin America has no monOpoly on particularistic Lps. Major decisions reached in El Paso during the course of indicate that such relationships are vital here too, and may t. 2 - Kinship is certainly important in Mexico: relatives of the aid important posts throughout the state, including Cd. Juarez. :hing was claimed to be true at the local level with the mayor's . This was not true in El Paso; the mayor's brother was re- tracts although his bids were often better than others presented ame Job.” 3 - The office is extremely important in Mexico. To hold to have influence; it's authority plus. In the United States eholders are often subject to the influence of |"hidden" makers. ll- - Caudillismo still exists in Mexico, but men interested in 1 goals and ambitions also count in the United States, but not tn apes and obvious manner. 5 - There is much similarity between the buSiness systems in ad the United States, although business in Mexico is still far he stage to which it has developed in the United States. With as that are local in nature. kinship is important in both .9 may be a kind of particularism in reverse. "— w_ __- __-_.———-—‘ 112 alizing from El Paso and Cd. Juarez to the larger social which they are a part must be done with care. The elite of El Paso seems to conform closely to what investigators L in other cities,“0 with the notable exceptions that labor Lous leaders were not found to be tep influentials here. This plained by the fact that organized labor is very weak in El it is in most other southern cities. Nevertheless, two labor re included as knowledgeables in this study. The Catholic LiCh predominates in terms of numbers is not yet a major L force mainly because the large number of Americans of Mexican are not at all united or politically aware. generalize from Cd. Juarez is more dangerous, because this is it community power structure study of a Mexican city that the mom of. All that can be said here is that the elites of both ihought that political-business relations in Cd. Juarez were of Mexican cities. It is hoped that the data of this chapter wide. along with those of the next chapter, sufficient back- to_ make meaning‘ul the comparative study of the national images ' these elites. _ A hater, o . cit; Mills, 92. 93.3,“ Schulze, 22, cit,: Miller, 22. git, CHAPTER IV CULTURAL CONTACTS OF THE ELITES OF EL PASO AND CD. JUAREZ ND THE INFIIIENCE OF THESE CONTACTS ON NATIONAL DIAGES much as national images are not only a result of ideas, feel- ! impressions garnered from socialization and intra-national , but also are the product of almost daily interaction of in- 5 within and between cities in a border situation. it seemed ate to consider the amount and nature of these contacts for the .129 groups. The purpose of this chapter is to describe the .' cross-cultural contacts of the business and political elites iso and Cd. Juarez in order to provide further background to iy of their national images. Following this. an index of con- ill be developed in order to test hypotheses regarding the dif- al rate of contacts bemoan the four elite groups and the re— :hip between amount of contact and images. A. Business Contacts number of Juarez elites flatly asserted that the two cities "are 1y interdependent economically." While this comment seemed to be more at the kinds of daily interaction that were discussed in r chapters. still it remained true that for may of the elites of ities much of their economic well-being depended on their neigh- LCI'OSS the river. Whether it was the industrialist in El Paso employees were largely residents of Cd. Juarez. or the large re- nerchant forty percent of whose business came from Cd. Juarez, or . the wholesaler whose Mexican business ran into the millions of 1111- lollars. all were daily aware of the economic importance to them of the [endow people. For their part the Mexican retailers who depended on nerican tourists. or the Custom House Brokers who handled thousands of ollars of American goods daily. or the bankers who were most immed- ately aware of the importance of the favorable dollar balance in the axican economy were constantly concerned about their American neigh- >rs. These brief remarks give only the slightest indication of the {tent of business contacts between the two cities. A special inter- ttioml committee of the Chambers of Commerce has been set up to vster better communication between the business elites of the two .ties in the hope of ameliorating or eliminating problems of mutual ncern. One such problem was the traffic congestion in and around the idges connecting the two cities. At a meeting of this canmittee lch the researcher attended the problem was approached frankly and riously by all the members. and outside experts were called in to try help resolve a problem that was daily becoming more annoying and vublesome. All of the International Civic Clubs have special committees to tile banquets and luncheons of an international nature. and may inessmen from both cities make it a point to lunch occasionally in neighboring Rotary Club. El Paso merchants have tremendously increased their amount of ad- :ising in Juarez newspapers in recent years. which has not been with- its affect on Juarez merchants and their advertising habits. ,0 stations on both sides do considerable advertising of products in the other country. 115 B. Political Contacts ost of the business activity discussed above could not take place t the positive sanctions of the governments concerned. 0n the 1 level. immigration and customs officials have been learning to .n closer harmorw to help reduce friction within the areas of their .1. There is an important water boundaries commission that con- : to labor to try to seek an equitable distribution of the scarce supply from the Rio Grande. Ehe mayors of both cities are in constant contact over mutual ms of police. fire. health. and crime. They have set up their iternational committee to handle these problems. Both cities have military installations. and military reviews. banquets and parades international nature are frequent. The Federal Bureau of Investi- n has been trying to work more with the Mexican government officials prehend and exchange criminals. and to give police instruction desired. In recent years the federal government in Mexico has passed some rictive laws regarding the imports of American goods and general 3r commerce; in turn the Texas legislature has been considering pass- Laws that would restrict the importation of certain goods from :o. notably liquor which is a major commodity of the Cd. Juarez at. The local government elites are constantly working to minimize legislation and to seek freer trade concessions for the area. See Chapter III. Part A above. The Research Site. for other comments m these contacts. The 17.3.1. actually helped to train a special Juarez police unit called the "Bilingual Police." whose main func- tion was to see that tourists and visitors to Juarez were courteously treated and protected. 116 a remarks on the nature of political contacts are meant to be 3 rather than exhaustive. in order to give the reader some idea nplex situation in which these two border cities find them- Among general contacts that occur between all of the elites which take place on the occasion of a major holiday celebra- lational significance in either city. e.g., the Fourth of July. :enth of September. Pan American Day. the Sun Carnival. At as elites of the other country are official guests. or often speakers of the occasion. ally. two interesting areas of contact which could not be ex- or lack of time were: (1) the extent to which the elites read y papers of the city or listened to radio broadcasts or watched on programs originating in the other city; (2) the extent to garez elites sent their own children to schools in El Paso. Re- the latter. indications were that a majority of the business and about twenty per cent of the political elites did so. The .100 of these kinds of contacts cannot be underestimated. C. Measuring Cross-Cultural Contacts e interview schedule included a number of questions designed to : different kinds of cross-cultural contacts; these were mainly .n information derived from the exploratory research. The ques- rere designed to give a general idea about such contacts. and to 2 data which would indicate whether any of the elite groups had ’Lcantly more cross-cultural contact than the others. It was r hoped that it might be possible to relate these data on contact 117 .nal images. the prediction being that there would be a re- ) between amount of contact and the nature of the national. Ld. No attempt was made to set up a series of questions which independent of each other and possessing absolute values. and possible the creation of an additive scale. Several of the clearly overlapped. but not perfectly. There was the further '.hat certain kinds of contact might not be relevant to the four :his turned out to be the case for formal cross-cultural educa- raffic was all one-way from Mexico to the United States. This other questions about contact will be discussed in detail below. the construction of the index of contacts each question will be as an attribute. and individuals will be given a score of 0 or ring on whether or not they had no or some contact with respect luestion. This procedure means a collapsing of categories dis- ting between varying amounts of contact in order to reduce the arbitrary weighting of items. for which there is no criteria Luating their comparative importance. e following questions were asked regarding cross-cultural con- Q. 3: How many years of school did you complete. and where? Q. 33. 1+: How much prejudice did you encounter: as a student, a worker? Q. 3b: Do you speak the other language? If yes. how well? Q. 6: Do you have contacts with business and/or government gencies in the other country? What kinds of contacts are they? Q. 7a: Do the organizations (fomal associations such as aamber of Commerce. Rotary) of which you are a member have con- acts with similar organizations in the neighboring city? Q. 8: Do you belong to organizations in the other city? tions may be found in the Interview Schedule in Appendix A. 118 Q. 9: Among your six closest friends do am' of them live in neighboring city? How often do you see them? Q. 11: How often do you go to Juarez (E.P.)? w W The data for question three revealed ' the Juarez elites had am cross-cultural education. as was . with more than half of the business elites and one-fourth of 1. elites having some formal education in the United States. that a fifth of the business elites had 10 or more years of :ducation in the United States suggests that this was an impor- lrce of cross-cultural contact for them. Nevertheless. since n was not comparable for El Paso. it is not included in the index. mm 21‘, We. Qaestions 3a and it on amount of prejudice ered in the other country brought forth several isolated cases on t of the Juarez elite. but nothing to suggest any pattern. m 21‘, W; W. QUestion 7a revealed nothing more at such organizations did in iact have cross-cultural contacts asion. This question is not included in the index. W mm]. W W Question 8 revealed that Juarez business elites belonged to the El Paso Chamber of Commerce e El Paso business elite belonged to the Juarez Rotary Club. This .on again gives evidence of the amount of cross-cultural contact a Juarez business elites; it is not included in the index. the items that follow form the index of contacts for this study; coring procedure for the items is found in Table VIII below. The r will find the frequency distribution for each item by elite groups mm B. Table xxxxv. 119 TABLE VIII SCORING PROCEDURE FOR ITEMS IN INDEX OF CONTACTS Item Weight 0 l nguage facility None-little Fair-bilingual rmal business None Some vernment for business reasons None Some vernmental cooperation None Some ternational committee Not a member Member remonial None Some cial-friendship visits None Some ning. entertaining None Some st friends in other city None Some sits to other city Less than weekly Weekly nag: m. While a person can learn a foreign language in thout ever coming into contact with a person to whom the lang- ative. yet ability to speak such language without actual inter— contact is rare. especially for Americans. At amt rate. to be peak another language at all is evidence of contact with another tural system. no matter how indirect. This question revealed jority of all groups had some knowledge of the other language. third of the Mexican businessmen claiming to be completely W m This was an Open-ended question. of the data revealed that the reaponses fell into seven dif- tegories, each of which is considered as a separate attribute dex. While a person could have mentioned as may contacts as . actually no one mentioned more than three such contacts. espondents mentioned all possible contacts or not is not cer- the researcher is satisfied that this is a good approximation. siness. social-friendship and dining-entertaining were the _uently mentioned items. The assumption behind this question 120 t visiting a "best friend" in the other city makes for important unities in cultural diffusion. exchange of ideas. and comparison 3 of doing things. No attempt was made to distinguish between res and non-relatives as best friends. or Anglos and Mexicans. zestion revealed that all four groups acknowledged having some t with ”best” friends‘ in the other city. This was more true of irez business elites than of the others. W 91: my. 1Q 332: gm an. The question of how often :pondent went to the other city for am! reason whatsoever is ob- ' related to and overlaps some of the other variables in the index. Lssumed that the more trips an individual made the more aware he ’e of the other socio—cultural system. He would see more of cus- d immigration officials and perhaps lose some of that suspicion , which seemed to annoy the infrequent traveler. Obvious compar- f traffic conditions and the ways in which traffic is handled are ed to the daily border crosser. estion 11 revealed that the El Paso elites visit Juarez on the of twice a month while the Juarez elites average weekly visits aso. )le IX below smunarizes the amount of contacts which the four maps have. Contacts between Mexican and American elites range to to daily. with the latter category representing individuals >s which speak the other language well. have best friends in the .ty whom they see frequently. visit the other city at least and have extensive business and /or govemment contacts. The friend was distinguished as different from social and friend- isiting as a matter of business or government policy. which is the contacts listed on question 6. 121 TABLE IX :QUENCY DISTRIBUTION OF ELITES BY GROUPS AND CONTACT RANK >ntact Rank EPB EPP J B JP TOTAIS rw (0-2) 19 8 u 8 39 adium.(3-b) 12 6 8 7 33 Lgh (5-6) .7. _i 25 .7. 9.4. Total 38 19 37 22 116 s not purport to demonstrate the extent of contact of the elite ith each other as such. Nor is it a true index of status-equal although it may and in fact does include status-equal contacts. e index gives a rough estimate of the extent of contact which and Mexican elites have in each other's cities. D. Relationship Between Occupation and Contacts m: The Juarez business elites have significantly greater ’ cross-cultural contact than any of the other elite groups. ,se of the chi-square test of association the following re- s attained:‘ Juarez business elites compared with Juarez political .95: x2 = 9.606 01 p 001 Juareg business elites compared with El Paso business es: X = 19.167 001 p Juareg business elite compared with El Paso political es: X 8 10.061 01p 05 e the probability of such findings by chance is less than one Lree cases. the hypothesis is accepted. Several factors would .ccount for this differential cross-cultural association. In *. place. political systems are primarily concerned with boundary isquares had two degrees of freedom. The other groups were not :an tly different from each other. 3.... Era £0...\u§..rl.4 (It: 3.... 3.... tea... 122 names. so that the focus of their activities. at least at the local will be largely internal. The peculiar conditions of border life a that certain political elites in both systems will have high cultural contacts. but this will not apply to the groups as a This appears to be the case here. >r the business elites the situation would seem to be different. :he focus of business is less boundary conscious. at least on the the El Paso business elites are sure that their system is the me. and that they do not have to learn from the Mexican. While -e keenly aware of their dependence on Mexican customers. their is that the customers will be naturally attracted to El Paso if ernments do not put ”unnatural” barriers in the way of this s Juarez business elites have the greatest amount of contact for r of reasons. In the first place. the Mexican Revolution forced their families into temporary exile in the Southern United where they had much schooling and learned the English language. r. the trend in business throughout Mexico in recent years has rard the "American way. " The border offers Mexican businessmen :ontact with the American business system. Finally. they need y and technical know-how. and these are available in El Paso. tion may be raised here whether the cleavage between business tical elites in Mexico. discussed in Chapter Three. may be ed by this high degree of contact on the part of the business While business and political groups have been at odds histor- .1 Mexico. the situation may be aggravated when the business in a position to compare their lot with that of colleagues 123 the river who seem to be enjoying just those things which they 9 are denied to them. This is one of the problems which will be with further in the Chapter on national political images. Relationship Between Cross-Cultural Contact and National Images me question may now be raised as to whether in fact amount of con- 1f1uences the nature of the image which an individual or group other individuals and groups. In other words. will significant mces occur in the images held by those with high contact as com- rith those who have medium and low cross-cultural contact? m: There are significant differences in the images which ledium. and low contact elite have of Mexican and American business itical practices. I order to test this hypothesis the questions concerning business iness practices and politics and political practices were ex- carefully. Those questions on which there were data sufficiently ntiated according to high. medium and low to make possible chi tests were selected to test the hypothesis; thus. eighteen us were selected. nine each on business and government lity was held constant. so that in fact two hypotheses were 1) That there would be significantly different images among a. medium. and low contact elites of El Paso; and 2) that sig- t differences in images would be found among the high. medium. contact elites of Cd. Juarez. Since the business elites of ad the greatest amount of contact. separate chi squares were tputed for them alone; the results were not significantly dif- either as regards contact or in comparison with the nationality 121+ .ts: Table X shows that there is no relationship between amount '. within the elite groups when nationality is held constant. yvel was reached only once; therefore the hypothesis is rejected. no change when occupational groups were tested separately. TABLE X 33 AND PROBABILITY IEV‘EIS FOR QUESTIONS REIATING CONTACT WITH 3 OF BUSINESS AND POLITICS HEB) BY EL PASO AND CD. JUAREZ BUSINESS AND POLITICAL ELITES El Paso Elites Cd. Juarez Elites an? x2 Probability between x2 ‘Probability between .736 70 P 50 .550 80 P 70 2.685 30 p 20 .527 80 p 70 3.066 30 p 20 .579 80 p 70 .976 70 p 50 l.h35 50 p 30 1.345 70 p 50 5.454 10 p 05 2.400 50 p 30 No differentiation 1.691 50 p 30 1.596 50 p 30 4.100 20 p 10 .446 90 p 80 No differentiation 1.626 50 p 30 2.515 30 p 20 No differentiation 3.674 20 p 10 6.184 05 p 02 5.270 10 p 05 4.524 20 p 10 No differentiation 4.945 10 p 05 No differentiation 4.399 20 p 10 No differentiation 1.762 50 p 30 1.776 50 p 30 .603 80 p 70 0.000 1.00 .991 70 p 50 l chi squares have two degrees of freedom. luestions will found in the Interview Schedule in Appendix A. by which the chi squares were computed will be found in B, Table XI. ppears that whatever the amount of contact. there is little iation in the images held. within national groups. Nevertheless. tents about the various questions and the frequency distribution L order. lam. 0n only one of the nine questions regarding business was ‘- _— 125 real trend toward significance. and that was on Question 33. ion concerned the relative degree of class consciousness of 1d American businessmen vis a via their workers. The high and Ltact elite tended to see the situation as about the same in rice while the low elites strongly favored the image that the msinessman was much less class conscious.‘ respect to the political questions the same pattern among the medium as Opposed to the low contact elites appeared in ques- -. Lil-2. and I+l--3. comparing freedom of speech. freedom of the l freedom of religion in both countries. The more contact there >re tendency there was to see the comparative achievement of 11s as about equal. Regardless of amount of contact. there was mimous agreement on parts ’4. 5. and 6 (honest elections. equal and protection of property rights) that the United States was of Mexico. This suggests that there is some discrimination s by respondents. depending on the question. and perhaps on the contact. At least those with considerable contact are not ally negative in their image of the Mexican. :1 m. It was very difficult to find trends here either. on 23. comparing business—govermnent coOperation in both cities contact elites voted two to one that there was much closer my note: These comparative questions were derived from the pry research and represent the respondents' evaluation of what '.ed favorable and unfavorable practices. The researchers feel fidence that the evaluative statements have been interpreted ' since they were not only interviewers. but observers who came any of the respondents and the area well. 126 n in El Paso. while the medium and lav contact elites split. saying it was the same in both cities and the other half fav- ’aso. It is interesting to note that in no question did they -ez as opposed to El Paso. same trend reappears in question 41. parts 2. 3. it and 5. Lth basic freedoms and protection. While high. medium. and st individuals all tend to say that relative achievement is al. the proportion within each group varies greatly. Thus. contact elites think this at about a two to one ratio. while 1m and low contact elites think so about ten to one. There be some evidence that high contact makes the Mexican more crit- alf aware. This problem will be explored further in the follow- ters. We Since the Juarez business elites had a considerable f formal education in the United States. it was decided to try 1n as a single index of contact related to images. Chi squares Iputed for the Juarez business elites alone. and for the Juarez L group as a whole. In neither case did findings even approach :ance. m In this chapter an attempt was made to give some idea of are and extent of cross-cultural contacts which the business and a1 elites of El Paso and Cd. Juarez have had. An Index of Con- as constructed and by use of the chi square test of association found that the Juarez business elites had significantly more con- xan any of the other three groups. which groups did not differ Lcantly from each other. This supports the hypothesis that the business elites as a group have more cross-cultural contacts than 127 to other elite groups. Llly. an attempt was made to test the hypothesis that images vary tact; that is. that the more cross-cultural contact elites have. their images will vary from those with less contact. Eighteen Ls dealing with business and political practices were submitted square tests. with elite groups tested by nationality and divided mg to high. medium and low contact. The .05 level of signifi- as reached only once among the two groups tested. on a majority questions the responses within each elite group were not suffic- differentiated to establish aw trend with respect to the .esis. However. some evidence for the hypothesis was found on a .ty of questions within each of the groups. In these instances it eem that the more contact the more the images varied from those of contact. Thus. an El Paso elite with high contact was more likely Link the Mexican practices were about the same as those of the 3d States. On the other hand. the Juarez elite with high contact less likely to think so. The lack of differentiation in images on the basis of contacts is meant to imply that the elite groups do not see themselves and each er in significantly different ways. It is just that the factor of ss-cultural contact alone does not appear to account for the dif- ences. It should be recognized that it is quite possible that the user simply did not gather data on all the kinds of contacts that ght be significant in the development of national images. As stated love. an important kind of contact may be that which takes place within xelite group. If one of the important members of the group has a high agree of cross-cultural contact. and it leads to enhancement of his 128 steam. his image of the other social cultural system may become age of his friends and colleagues who have less cross—cultural t. This suggests that a general border climate exists such that 11 images are the product of a socialization process involving rt contacts which were not measured here. Further study is needed spect to this factor. the following chapters nationality and occupation will be con- as attributes which may be significant in the develOpment of L images. Chapter V will be devoted to the images of business >ter VI to politics. CHAPI'ER V IMAGES OF BUSINESSMEN AND BUS INFSS PRACTICES A. Hypotheses 1e purpose of this chapter is twofold: (l) to test hypotheses 1g occupation and nationality to images of businessmen and business :es; (2) to delineate the substantive images of American and Mexi- sinessmen and business practices held by the four elite groups of :udy. In the following chapter government officials and their po- L practices will be discussed. '. may be well to review briefly the general hypotheses stated in r II and the modifications that it was necessary to make in light exploratory research. It is assumed that individuals generally [vorable images of themselves and of the social groups with which 'e closely identified. It is further assumed that the more the vrientations of one group differ from those of another the more are individuals within the various groups to have negative images other. With specific reference to the groups with which this s concerned it was hypothesized that El Paso elites. business and al. would have favorable images of themselves and of each other. same time since they perceived that their value orientations dif- 0 much from those of the Juarez elites they were eXpected to have 1y negative images of Mexican business and political practices. tory research seemed to indicate that there was no need to modify ’Lding hypothesis. was likewise anticipated that the Mexican elites would have -e images of themselves and each other. but again. because of the 2d differences in value orientation would tend to be less favor- 130 19 toward American elites. However. some ambivalence was expected cause of recent influence of American business in Mexico. EXploratory search revealed some factors which made it necessary to modify this Lding hypothesis. In the first place. the Juarez business elites seem- to have a great deal of cross-cultural contact and to be strongly im- ed with American business ideology. Therefore, in this instance. it Id be expected that the Juarez business elites would tend to have orable images of their El Paso counterparts. since they represented ideal toward which they were striving. In the second place. the Juarez political elites. with their long torical struggle against businessmen as a background factor. and the Lfe which had broken out during the exploratory research as a present :or. seemed to hold negative images of Mexican businessmen. 0n the ’r hand. they were treated as status equals by El Paso elites. both ness and political. Also to be considered is the fact that if the ls of the Mexican Revolution of 1910 are to be achieved in any de- a more gesellschaft—like orientation would seem to be required. his guiding hypothesis was modified also. With these modifications hid it is now “ossible to state the specific hypotheses to be tested 11$ chapter. It is predicted that when the four elite groups are l to compare American and Mexican business practices. that: la - El Paso business elites have predominantly favorable images of American Businessmen and American business practices. and predominantly negative images of Mexican businessmen and their practices. lb - El Paso political. elites have predominantly favorable images of American businessmen and their practices, and predomi- nantly negative images of Mexican businessmen and their practices. lc - Cd. Juarez business elites have predominantly favorable images of Mexican businessmen and their practices. and 131 mantly favorable images of American businessmen and their es . as they see their system as congruent with the American. - Juarez political elites have somewhat negative images of businessmen and their practices. and they have ambivalent of American businessmen and their practices. i.e. . both la and unfavorable images will be eXpressed about equally. 1e data permit the testing of a related set of hypotheses at ne. This set is based on the notion that there is a signifi- onship between group membership1 and the responses made to ertaining to practices common to or known to the group. Spe- the following hypotheses are to be tested: 3a - El Paso business. El Paso political. Juarez business and 3. political elites have significantly different images of essmen and business practices in both countries. 2b - El Paso elites (combining business and political) when red with Juarez elites (combining business and political) significantly different images of businessmen and their prac- : in both countries. 2c - Business elites (combining El Paso and Juarez) when com- iwith political elites (combining El Paso and Juarez) do not significantly different images of businessmen and their prac- s in both countries. 2d - El Paso business elites when compared with El Paso tical elites do not have significantly different images of nessmen and their practices in both countries. 2e - El Paso business elites when compared with Juarez busi- : elites have significantly different images of businessmen and LI‘ practices in both countries. 2f - El Paso business elites when compared with Juarez poli- al elites do not have significantly different images of business- and their practices in both countries. 2g - El Paso political elites when compared with Juarez busi- s elites have significantly different images of businessmen and ir practices in both countries. 2h - El Paso poltical elites when compared with Juarez politi- .elites do not have significantly different images of business- 1 and their practices in both countries. l—_ e EI‘OUp memberships to be considered are those of nationality and LCmbation. 132 - Juarez business elites when compared with Juarez political ave significantly different images of businessmen and their 5 in both countries. t set of hypotheses defines the content or direction eXpec- images. The second set specifically predicts the conditions ciation which will be related to statistically significant n responses. to fbrmulate the questions which would test these hypothe- gathered during the exploratory research were analyzed and ges formulated. so that questions could be raised concern- these images formed the subject matter for the hypotheses it is pertinent to outline them here. 2 Image of the American Businessman and His Business Practices owing seemed to be the generally held image of American busi- heir practices: 53 He is willing to accept reasonable profits through high unit production and constant reinvestment in his business. made necessary because of keen competition. He prefers broad stockholdings. has achieved rather inherited his position. and conducts his business with impartial treatment to all alike. His education for business has been superior. with proper emphasis on business ethics. He has definite "cultural" shortcomings. however. tative images were formulated on the basis of the data 0b- the eXploratory interviews (of. Chapter II. Part B. Mbthod). ions are found in the Interview Schedule. Appendix A. fih29 2 Image 133 He thinks of labor more as a competitor for profits than as an enemy. but he is somewhat afraid of labor's growing power. While he prefers less governmental interference on the national level. he is proud of the happy marriage of business-government in El Paso. He doesn't have a clear-cut attitude of class- consciousness towards his employees. and moreover. he believes that the only thing holding back a worker from becoming a businessman is his own ambition. His religion is basic to his business conduct. and he is very definitely civic minded. that is. con- cerned with community and welfare prOblems. Although respectful of the Mexican way of life. he is perhaps a bit cold and impersonal in his behavior toward Mexicans . of the Mexican Businessman and His Business Practices He seeks unjustly high profits. which he does not reinvest in his business. and he is satisfied with a limited market. which he can exploit because there is little or no competition in Mexico. He prefers family ownership to "public" stockholding; He inherits his position rather than having to achieve it. and his general business conduct is oriented pri- marily to family and personal ties. His education for businesstduch is inadequate. does 134 not prepare him ethically for business life. How- ever. his education does give him a very broad cul- tural outlook. 3.28.29 He sees labor more as an enemy than as business part- ner. and he objects to the power which labor seems to have relative to management. In this respect he thinks that the American businessman is in a rela- tively superior power position. 3.31 The Mexican government has more power over business than is correspondingly true of the United States situation in labor-management relations. He does not cooperate closely with governmental officials either nationally or in Cd. Juarez. because these officials cannot be trusted. 18 He is very much aware of social class differences that separate him from from his employees; and he doesn't see the average working man as ever becoming a businessman. .36 Religion and business do not mix as far as he is concerned; he is not very "civic-minded. " In order to test the hypotheses most effectively and efficiently. t the same time gather data which would make possible a more pre- delineation of the relevant national images. questions of a com- :ive nature were generally asked. such as. "Comparing Mexican and Lean businessmen would you say that ----?" However. a number of tions relating only to one or the other group were asked. e.g.. ch of the following choices best describes the role of religion in 135 of the Mexican businessman?" The comparative type question zible obtaining two images at the same time. both of which could 1 favorable. had the respondent said that practices were similar countries. was eXpected that different elite groups would respond differently questions; that is. they" would evaluate business and business :5 according to (a) their own national group. and (b) their par- occupation within this national group. anty—six questions were asked which yielded data permitting Chi tests to be made. Fourteen of the twenty-six were comparative in with the remainder concerninr either the United States or Mexico. salts. Tables XII. K II, XIV give the Chi-Square and probability ’or each of the twenty-six questions asked. according to the rele- 'pothesis.* Table XV summarizes the results in these tables. Let sider briefly the results with respect to each of the nine hypoth- elating nationality and occupation to national images. The results valuated by asking the question. what is the probability of r(sig- ht) findings in n(26) number of tests. To find this probability nomial was expanded to the point where it coincided with the r ' of findings for the hypothesis. As a short cut. the publication 2 United States Department of Commerce. lb: 11am: 9f, the, W m Distribution. United States Government Printing Office. 1gton. 19149. was used to find the probability. The probability of .5 that a significant difference would be found for any single ion in the binomial expansion was chosen because it was the most rvative. Thus. the hypothesis is accepted or rejected on the basis Le probability level. found in the extreme right column of table XV}- data for the computation of these Chi-squares are found in Table XVI kppendix Be 136 TABLE XII JARES AND PROBABILITY IEVEIS FOR QUESTIONS ON BUSINESSPEN AND BUSINESS PRACTICES REGARDING HYPOTHESES 2a. 2b. and 2c“ Hypothesis 2a Hypothesis 2b Hypothesis 20 EPB-EPEJB-JP EP—J B-P x2 'probability x2 probability x2 probability 6.231 50 p 30 4.59 20 p 10 .992 70 p 50 17.468a 01 p 001 12.799C 01 p 001 1.10 70 p 50 22.522 01 p 001 13.864 01 p 001 7.534c 10 p 05 27.356 001 p 19.754 001 p 1.314 70 p 50 13.908 05 p 02 8.649 02 p 01 4.440 20 p 10 9.949 20 p 10 a.223 20 p 10 4.216 20 p 10 29.183 001 p 19.286 001 p 7.929 02 p 01 26.471 001 p 15.049 001 p 10.397 01 p 001 17.7598 05 p 02 16.0350 01 p 001 0.5770 95 p 90 38.018 001 p 35.8198 001 p 1.019 70 p 50 8.”?3 30 p 20 1.813 50 p 30 4.622 10 p 05 19.040 01 p 001 13.477 01 p 001 0.312 90 p 80 16.038a 10 p 05 10.181° 02 n 01 0.4600 80 p 70 35.339b 01 p 001 25.892d 001 p 2.349d 80 p 70 20.701 01 p 001 17.600 001 p 2.75# 30 p 20 30.560a 001 p 19.7770 001 p 4.943C 20 n 10 4.794L 70 P 50 0.776 70 p 50 1.819 50 p 30 33.6218 001 r 28.6060 001 p 4.031c 30 p 20 15.276 02 p 01 17.135c 001 p 4.619c 30 p 20 18.490 01 p 001 7.149 05 o 02 5.762 10 p 05 10.730 10 p 05 6.829 05 p 02 2.059 50 p 30 13.497 05 p 02 6.57 05 p 02 2.064 50 p 30 9.889 20 p 10 8.136 02 p 01 0.1475 80 p 70 UB.672 01 p 001 14.946 001 p 5.991 05 p 02 £4.03oa 001 p 41.4180 001 o 9.7590 05 p 02 8.636 20 p 10 2.314 50 p 30 3.549 20 p 10 is otherwise indicated. the Chi-S uares of hypothesis 2a had egress of freedom. those of hypot esis 2b and 2c had two de- of freedom. a. Nine degrees of freedom. b. Fifteen degrees of freedom. c. Three degrees of freedom. d. Five degrees of freedom. e. SeeAgpendix A for exact statement of the questions. in identification of the hypotheses. initials indicating the Jeing compared have been placed under each hypothesis below. tder Hypothesis 2a. EPB-EPP-JB-JP means El Paso Business - Political - Juarez Business - Juarez Political Elites. This I done for each of the three tables. TABLE X111 137 EUARES AND PROBABILITY LEVELS FOR QUESTIONS ON BUSINESSMEN AND ISINESS PRACTICES WITH RESPECT TO HYPOTHESES 2d. Ze. and 21'. 13C: (vr-va' own 4-‘w (000 Itypothesis 2d EPB-EPP X2 probability 0.142: 95 p 90 8.931 05 p 02 0.497al 80 p 70 0.766“ 70 p 50 0.081 80 p 70 0.833 50 P 30 .T.P. 1.00 :N.T.P9 1.00 0.217b 90 p 80 3.6533 20 p 10 0.2728 90 p 80 2.7408 30 p 20 0.038% 98 p 95 2.006 70 p 50 0.248 70 p 50 2.486b 50 p 30 0.842 50 p 30 3.102a 30 p 20 0.907 50 p 30 0.046 80 p 70 2.495 20 p 10 1.175 0 p 20 0.009 95 p 90 0.185 70 p 50 4.152h 30 p 20 Hypothesis 2e EPB—JB X2 probability 5.339a 10 p 05 16.357b 001 p 1].“383 01 p 001 12.7508 01 p 001 5.71“ 02 p 01 2.014 20 p 10 6.942 01 p 001 9.649. 01 p 001 9.8990 02 p 01 36.107a 001 p 3.236a 20 p 10 9.5458 01 p 001 6.676: 05 p 02 19.948 001 p 7.723 01 p 001 19.039b 001 p 2.665a 30 p 20 15.8923 001 p 12.186a 01 p 001 5.394 05 p 02 12.312a 01 p 001 2.810 20 p 10 1.468 30 p 20 8.830 01 p 001 30.714b 001 p 0.026 90 p 80 Hypothesis 2f EPB-JP x2 probability 4.5068 20 p 10 5.0983 10 p 05 1.974a 50 p 30 3.6633 20 p 10 3.817 10 p 05 O.U01 70 p 50 19.826 001 p 13.28h 001 p 8.518b 05 p 02 25.3178 001 p 2.9518 30 p 20 5.2808 10 p 05 3.326: 20 p 10 9.570 05 p 02 15.685b 01 p 001 0.276 70 p 50 15.58ha 001 p 13.132a 01 o 001 0.985 50 P 30 12.458a 01 p 001 0.261 70 p 50 0.555 50 p 30 8.1441 01 p 001 18.777a 001 p 2.306 20 p 10 {knees otherwise indicated the Chi-Squares for hypotheses 2d. and 2f all had one degree of freedom. a. b. C. d. Two degrees of freedom. Three degrees of freedom. See Appendix A for exact statement of the cuestions. N.T.P. means no test possible. 2e. TABLE XIV 138 :33 AND PROBABILITY LEVELS FOR QUESTIONS ON BUSINESSMEN AND IESS PRACTICES WITH RESPECT TO HYPOTHESES 2g. 2h. and 21. Hypothesis 2g Hypothesis 2h EPP—JB EPPiJP x2 probability x2 probability 2.113: 50 p 30 2.885a 30 p 20 :8.666 001 p 17.265b 001 p 6.7828 05 p 02 3.2478 20 p 10 .0.0319 01 p 001 4.528a 20 p 10 3.868 05 p 02 2.972 10 p 05 3.798 10 p 05 1.759 20 p 10 4.481 05 p 02 11.789 001 p 3.51.5b 10 p 05 5.474b 02 p 01 6.888 10 p 05 6.060 20 p 10 .6.2623 001 p 8.338a 02 p 01 1.683a 50 p 30 4.264a 20 p 10 3.856 05 p 02 6.141? 05 p 02 4.2538 20 p 10 2.12 a 50 p 30 4.857b 20 p 10 8.511 0f p 02 3.481 10 p 05 2.095 20 p 10 9.227b 05 p 02 7.370a 10 p 05 0.083a 98 p 95 1.479 30 p 20 7.2223 05 p 02 6.515 02 p 01 7.419a 05 p 02 10.919 001 p 2.088 20 p 10 0.247 70 p 50 5.9968 05 p 02 6.7258 05 p 02 0.060 90 p 80 0.149 70 p 50 0.787 50 p 30 0.304 70 p 50 3.580 10 p 05 3.777 10 p 05 .1.016 02 p 01 8.564 05 p 02 1.843 20 p 10 5.427 02 p 01 :5 otherwise .nd Zi all had one degree of freedom. 8. b. C. Two degrees of freedom. Three degrees of freedom. See AppendixA for exact statement of the questions. Hypothesis 21 indicated the Chi-Squares for hypotheses 2g. JB-JP x2 probability 1.7118 50 p 30 1.7958 50 p 30 0.514a 80 p 70 2.511»La 30 p 20 0.021 90 p 80 0.247 70 p 50 4.602 05 p 02 1.452b 70 p 50 0.063 90 p 80 3.746a 20 p 10 3.157a 30 p 20 0.599a 80 p 70 3.220b 50 p 30 0.025 90 p 80 7.255a 05 p 02 2. 561at 30 p 20 N.T.P. 1.00 4.971a 10 p 05 0.843 50 p 30 0.149a 95 p 90 0.406 70 p 50 0.073 80 p 70 0.093 80 p 70 1.072a 80 p 70 1.961 20 p 10 139 TABLE XV EVEL OF SIGNIFICANCE REACHED BY'CHI-SQUARE TEST ON TWENTY-SIX QUESTIONS RELATING TO AMERICAN AND BUSINESSMEN AND BUSINESS PRACTICES, ON NINE HIPOTHESES Total.no. Total not No. of No. Significant at sign. at .05 Sign. at Questions .05 .01 .001 or below .05 level P 26 4 7 7 18 8 .03 26 5 4 ll 20 6 .004 26 3 1 - 4 22 .999 26 1 - - 1 25 1.0 26 4 9 6 19 7 .014 26 3 4 5 12 14 .721 26 9 1 2 12 14 .721 26 8 - 3 11 15 .836 26 2 — - 2 24 .999 rpothesis 2a: El Paso business. El Paso political, Juarez as and Juarez political elites. when compared with each other. Lgnificantly different images of businessmen and their prac- Ln both countries. rpothesis is accented. However. since both nationality and were held constant, it is impossible to determine whether factors is important in the determination of national images. sis is too general in nature. and should be accepted only Ltion of this fact. rpothesis 2b: El Paso elites (combining business and poli- ‘when compared.with Juarez elites (combining business and :s) have significantly different images of businessmen and aractices in both countries. 5 level of significance or below was reached on 20 of the a; this hypothesis is accepted. 11 would appear from this ality may be the more important factor in imagery formation; :upational groups were combined the level of significance 3 well as the number of significantly different questions. rpothesis 2a. 140 Hypothesis 2c: Business elites (combining El Paso and Cd. rez) when compared with political elites (combining El Paso Cd. Juarez) do not have significantly different images of busi- :men and their practices in both countries. : hypothesis is accepted by the fact that on only four of the .ons was the .05 level of significance reached. It will be ut when hypotheses 1a. lb. 1c and 1d are considered. that these 5 of significant differences do not support this hypothesis; hey reflect extreme answers by one of the four national groups not cancelled out when nationality varies. This hypothesis ther support to the discussion abrve regarding hypothesis 2a. amely that it is not occupation but nationality which is the actor in national images. at least with respect to the data of re Hypothesis 2. : El Paso business. elites when compared with [50 political elites do not have significantly different images [sinessmen and their practices in both countries. rpected, a significant difference occurred only once in 26 This finding is very ample surlport for the discussion of the ctures in Chapter III and with the general. theoretical. frame- is thesis. This hypothesis is accented. Hypothesis 2e: El Paso business elites when compared with 2. business elites have significantly different images of busi- in and their practices in both countries. )5 level or below was reached on 19 of the 26 questionS. This irts the hypothesis that nationality rather than occupation is .cant factor in national- images. While the Juarez business ted to see themselves as similar to their American counterparts. were not reciprocated by the El Pasoans. This hypothesis is lLIvl Hypothesis 21‘: El Paso business elites when compared with ezlxflitical elites. do not have significantly different images usinessmen and their practices in both countries. 2 of the 26 questions the .05 level or below was reached. while avelhms not reached on the other 10 questions. However. there iency toward the .05 level on at least six other questions. :he probability levels for these six questions were 20 p 10 or The hypothesis is accepted since the probability of such find- '21. The factors which appear to be operating here are .nd of treatment accorded to the Juarez political elites by o elites. and (b) the animosity between the business and poli- es of Juarez. The data with respect to the hypotheses to follow further insight. Hypothesis 2g: El Paso political elites when compared with 2 business elites have significantly different images of busi- en and their practices in both countries. )5 level of significance was reached on only 12 of the 26 and the hypothesis is rejected. Theoretically. the findings 1 have been similar to the El Paso business—Juarez business (2e). Examination of the data shows that the trends are in ad direction. Nevertheless. on the basis of the statistical tablished for this study. it is not possible to accept this ypothesis 2h: El Paso political elites when compared with ‘political elites do not have significantly different images inessmen and the practices in both countries. 1 of’lJ.qmestions reached the .05 level or below while the d YHDt. The hypothesis is accepted. rpothesis 21: Juarez business elites when compared with political elites have significantly different images of busi- 1 and their practices in both countries. 102 icant differences occurred onlr twice in 26 questions with a 0 significance in only three others. This hypothesis is re- idently the similarity in value orientations on the basis of. is still a primary factor. even though the groups as in this strong animosity toward each other. Of course, it should be here that for different reasons they both have favorable im- rican businessmen and their practices. so that this is an actor in modifying any tendencies toward differences. a. The hypothesis that there is a r lationship between group and national images was tested in nine different ways. Re- d to support the hypothesis that there is a significant rela- tween nationality and national images. while it was impossible y similar conclusion about occupation and national images. appears that this may also be a factor of some importance. earch with more refined tools is especially necessary in the rd. . turning to a discussion and analysis of the first set of one last point may be raised here: ‘were there any questions 3d non-significant findings for all nine hypotheses? If so. :a sunply or suggest explanations. or is the lack of signifi- :tion of the question asked? Four such questions were found. Ind 29; each will be discussed briefly below. sstions Not Yielding Statistically Significant Data . 12: Generally speaking, when compared to American business- ) Mbrican businessmen insist on higher profit rates or not? lups tenled to respond the same to it. namely. that Mexicans ler profits than Americans. However, consensqs on this doesn't :mean.that all four groups considered this equally desirable 143 .rable. Content analysis of statements made by respondents to :tion revealed a wide variation of opinion, with the majority Lg that it was either the custom, or the risk was so great, or off" problem forced them to get what they could while they could. can businessmen even attributed this "fact" to "lack of business e." There is consensus about the image, if not about the ra- hind it. Q. 17: Does the Mexican businessman tend to inherit his busi- position more or less than the American? question reached the 20 p 10 level of significance for six of heses, in the eXpected direction. The Mexican political elite at this is one of the evils of the business system in Mexico. ricans have such a strong achievement orientation“ they could ad to insist that the Mexicans were remiss in this matter. The that the Cd. Juarez business elites split almost evenly on :ion, and it is this split which is almost sufficient to bring ‘.gnificant difference.5 Q. 23: Comparing the degree of cooperation of businessmen :overnment officials in El Paso and Cd. Juarez, in which city Lere closer coOperation? e-quarters of Cd. Juarez business elites said that the two 'ked closer together in El Paso, while for both political air response was just about 50k. About 60% of the El Paso lites gave the same response. Some Americans thought that [— Williams, mm, A. KnOpf Co. N. Y., 1955. Ch. ll. Value Orientations. " as image doesn't necessarily coincide with the facts may be ted by the fact that approximately 50% of the El Paso elites ted their father's occupation, while only some 25:3 of the arez business elites inherited their father's occupation. lhh nore cOOperation in Cd. Juarez; but the responses were generally with the data gathered about the power structures of the two 5 (see Chapter III). Analysis of comments by the El Paso busi- 5 revealed that some of them at least, in saying that coopera- reater in Cd. Juarez, didn't think of it as better, or as the is enjoyed in El Paso. They suggested that c00peration in Cd. closely connected with the "pay off," that in fact you had to 1er with the government there in order to protect yourself. rriter's judgement that for some of these very reasons the Cd. .ness elites saw as more favorable the kind of "working together" believed went on in El.Paso. :. 29: Comparing the labor-management situation in El Paso l. Juarez, is management or labor more powerful in El Paso .ve to Cd. Juarez? was general agreement among all four groups that management Iwerful in El Paso than in Cd. Juarez, vis a vis labor. .ly, there were several other questions which yielded only one ificant findings, so that it appears that there are some national ima es held by these elites which are highly con- fficient data is lacking to make possible any statements which in this congruence. Let us turn now to the first set of hy- hose concerned with the direction and content of the images. n and Content of Images of Businessmen and Their Practices twenty-six questions asked only five yielded responses which the eXpected direction as predicted by hypotheses, la, lb, Befbre considering these hypotheses let us first lock briefly :hese five questions. lh5 . 2%: Is Cd. Juarez typical of other Mexican cities in ss-government relations? atory research had seemed to indicate that the business- squabble in Cd. Juarez was typical of such relations through- » In the study, however, almost one-half of the El Paso responded “no" to the question. Their rationale was that nce of prostitution, narcotics rings, and other forms of vice ez made business-government relations different. The Mexican also stressed the prevalence of vice as a reason fer their ut considered the souabble typical. It may be that the ere wrong since they had only very limited knowledge of , 25: Are labor and management (a) partners, (b) competitors, enemies in the United States? han half of the El Paso business and political elites responded partners, whereas the expected response was to (b) competitors. ow level of union organization in El Paso this response becomes tandable; these elites may be generalizing from their own here. The Cd. Juarez responses were in the expected direction, ey saw labor-management more as competitiors than as partners. . 26: Are labor and management (a) partners. (b) competitors, enemies in Mexico? 3) rGSponses were anticipated from the Juarez political elites 3d. The majority chose (b). which is somewhat surprising con- 3 historical factors involved. However, this may well repre- ;e in attitude as a result of being on the border, where work- are higher. . 3h: 'What is the role of religion in the life of the American ssman? w_v—V—'—_l 1146 'ergence in responses of the El Paso elites represents one occasions when their images were not congruent. What appears 'cted the level of significance here was the resnonse of the tical elites. Fifty percent said that business and religion while it was expected that the majority of political elites at religion was an important positive force in the life of businessman. This was certainly seen to be important to the tes; the Juarez elites in both groups were about evenly 34: What is the role of religion in the life of the Mexican sman? a writer had anticipated that the majority of Cd. Juarez tes would have a positive orientation, but the opposite nproximately three-quarters of them stated that religion and l't mix. The other groups reSponded in the expected direc- 3t be noted here, however, that among the Cd. Juarez business- :nted on the question, there seemed to be a strong suggestion rationalization) that if the two didn't mix in Mexico it was to "mordida" which they were powerless to do anything about. .on was that they would like religion to be basic to their a, but that corrupt government practices made this impossible. the American and W W and His Easiness Emeline: ssible now to consider hypotheses la, lb, lo, and ld. These edicted that when the four elite groups are asked to compare Mexican businessmen and their practices: — El Paso business elites have predominantly favorable images can businessmen and their practices and predominantly nega- ges of Mexican businessmen and their practices. 1h? b - El Paso political elites have predominantly favorable of American businessmen and their practices and predominantly ve images of'Mexican businessmen and their practices. c - Juarez business elites have predominantly favorable images rican and Mexican businessmen and their practices, generally them as congruent. d - Juarez political elites have predominantly negative images :ican businessmen and their practices and ambivalent images of an businessmen and their practices, with favorable and unfavoru mages about equally divided. ,ta support hypotheses la and lb, but only support hypotheses ,n part. Let us discuss each of the hypotheses in turn: in not a single question did the El Paso business elites give response which might be construed as critical of the American 1. The closest they came to this was on question 20, where [sked whether the Mexican or the American educational system broader cultural background; one in three thought the Mexican grior in this regard. Overall. their "self" image was not only it was one which denied that the Mexican could even be compared '21 shows the frequency distribution of responses to the 14 2 questions asked; there was an average of Zn favorable responses 1 practices to all questions and less than four favorable re- the Mexican, or to the perception that the practice was about 1 both countries. Three-fourths of the El Paso elites asserted 1erican was superior on at least eight questions of of 146. ltra3t, only one individual gave a majority of responses saying vactices were tLC same in both countries, and only one gave as 1r responses favorable to Mexico as opposed to the United 1e evidence indicates strong support for the hypothesis. 133 XVIII and XIX o for the individual responses of all four will be found in Appendix B, 148 TABlE: XVII FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONSES TO COMPARATIVE STIONS ON BUSINESS PRACTICES BY ELpPASO BUSINESS ELITES as are in decreasing order of favorableness to the American.) Nature of Response’ estion A S MI N 3: Opportunity to advance 36 l - l 9: Education for business 35 l - 2 5: Civic mindedness 34 3 - l S: Broad stockholding 32 l 2 3 l: Free competition 25 7 3 3 2: Profit motives 25 4 2 7 2: Family vs. business 24 3 - ll 3: Govt.-bus. c00peration 22 9 6 l 5: Mass market 2 2 4 ll 7: Achievement 20 6 2 10 3: Class consciousness l8 2 14 4 1: Business ethics l6 1 l 20 3: Reinvestment 15 7 3 13 3: Cultural background _;g_ _3_ ll, l2 Total 335 5" 1:8 99 Average 23.9 3.6 3.4 7.0 Note: A means that American practice was perceived as favorable. 3 means that practice was the same in both systems. M means that Mexican practice was perceived as favorable.. N means no opinion or no answer. Fable XX reveals approximately the same pattern as that dis- re, strongly ethnocentric, with little tendency to see both similar. A favorable image of the Mexican vis a vis the )es appear as two questions, with Q. 20 the only one that might nredicted. As regards individual responses. three-fourths an- Least 9 of the 14 questions favorable to the American vis a vis 1'while only one gave a majority of responses to the effect ractices were the same, and more saw the Mexican favorably' 149 rn one-fifth of the questions. The data support this hypothesis TABLE.XX F REQUENCY DISTRIflUTION OF RESPONSES TO COMPARATIVE FIONS ON BUSINESS PRACTICES BY EL PASO POLITICAL ELITES 18 are in decreasing order of favorableness to the American) Nature of Response’ astion A 5 3M N 3: Opportunity to advance 16 - - 2 S: Broad stockholding 15 1 - 3 9: Education for business 15 l - 2 5: Civic mindedness l5 - 2 2 3: Class consciousness 12 - 2 6 2: Family vs. business 11 - 2 6 7: Achievement 11 2 - 6 3: Govt.—bus. cooperation lO 5 2 2 5: Mass market 10 2 - 7 4: Free competition 10 2 2 4 2: Profit motives 9 2 1 6 L: Business ethics 6 2 2 9 3: Cultural background 6 l 5 7 H Reinvestment 4 _l _1 _6 Total 150 19 26 66 Average 10.7 1.4 1.9 4.4 Note: A means that American practice was perceived as favorable. 8 means that practice was the same in both systems. Mimeans that Mexican practice was perceived as favorable. N means no opinion or no answer. This hypothesis is supported in part, that is. that the Juarez iites do have predominantly favorable images of American busi- 3 their practices. But in the majority of questions they did air own practices as similar. Table XXI shows some ambivalence nages. On six questions more than half of them clearly saw the s favorable and the Mexican as negative; three questions 150 Lajority of "same" reaponses, and on one question a majority Mexican favorable and the American negative. If "same” and *or Mexico responses are added together, then the Juarez bus- favorable self images on six of the 14 questions. as opposed 9 images of the American on nine of 14 questions. Individ- two of the 37 elites gave five or'more responses favorable I opposed to the United States. Larez business elites seem to be less ethnocentric than their interparts. In other words, when confronted with the task of ;heir practices with those of Americans. they tended to be :al. The data suggest some interesting implications for more >otheses, which will be discussed in the concluding chapter. TABLE XXI FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONSES TO COMPARATIVE 33TIONS 0N BUSINESS PRACTICES BY JUAREZ BUSINESS ELITES >ns are in decreasing order of favorableness to the Americans) Nature of Response‘ estion A. 5 IN N 5: Bus.-govt. cooperation 28 7 2 - 3: Opportunity to advance 26 7 l 3 ): Education for business 26 8 3 - : Broad stodkholding 24 ll - 2 : Family vs. business 22 13 - 2 5: Civic mindedness 22 I3 1 1 3: Profit motives 17 ll 1 8 i: Class consciousness 17 10 7 3 ’: Achievement l6 l4 1 6 t: Reinvestment 14 21 l 1 L: Free competition ll 16 8 2 5: Mass market 10 21 l 5 _: Business ethics 7 22 3 5 ): Cultural background _5, __Z 24, _fi Total 245 I76 53 44 Average 17.5 12.6 3.8 3.1 ate: A means that American practice‘was perceived as favorable. 3 means that ractice was the same in both systems. M means that xican practice was perceived as favorable. N means no Opinion or no answer. 1d - The data do not support this hypothesis. the overall image of the American practice is favorable; a clearly nega- ' tive image appears only on Question 20. more than any of the other three groups, tended to see practices as the same in both countries. Table XXII shows that this group. 151 In the first place Comparison of this table with Table XXI shows that both elite groups evaluate many comparative practices similarly. FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION OF RESPONSES TO COMPARATIVE TABIE XXII QUESTIONS ON BUSINESS PRACTICES BY JUAREZ POLITICAIIEIJTES (Questions are in decreasing order of favorableness of the Americans) Nature of Response* Question Q. 16: Broad stockholding Q. 12: Profit motives Q. 15: Mass market Q. 23: Bus.-govt. cooperation Q. 19: Education for business Q. 36: Civic mindedness Q. 32: Family vs. business Q. 13: Reinvestment Q. 18: Opportunity to advance Q. 17: Achievement Q. 33: Class consciousness Q. 14: Free competition Q. 21: Business ethics Q. 20: Cultural background Total Average ‘ Note: Individually, one-third gave seven or more favorable responses to the Americans, while one-quarter said it was the same on seven or more responses. A means that American practice was perceived as favorable. A 12 11 10 10 10 8.5 S \o I +4 ,4 \s<>~ao\ Kfi0% of the El Paso elites believe that labor has too much power. When the question is asked about El Paso it- self, however, there is general agreement that business has more power than labor, and further that business in El Paso is more powerful than business in Juarez via a vis labor. Again, all feel satisfied that in labor-management relations the United States government has Just about the proper amount of power. Th3 W m U}: W: The American businessman is highly motivated to civic action, which he sees as a duty and moral obligation. One of the best statements of this attitude was given by an El Paso business elite: As an American businessman, I feel that this is my responsibility, as it is yours also, to help out in these (community) programs. This is what has made America strong. One Juarez businessman expressed it this way: The American businessman feels more responsible with- in society and he lives in a more perfect society where he has confidence in his government. The. Marissa W and Mass There seemed to be a clear image of the American businessman as respectful of Mexican ways. and 156 about as warm and personal in his behavior toward Mexicans as they them- selves would desire. In view of the more prevalent image of the American as critical and standoffish this image may be surprising. Yet it does follow the favorable pattern that has been delineated above, and seems to lend some support to the hypothesis that increasing amounts of contact between different groups, under conditions favorable to both, leads to favorable images. The following comments from Juarez political elites illustrate the point: Americans adapt wonderfully. Some complain of coldness, but I have never found Americans so. Any criticism is due to surprise at the differences. While the Cd. Juarez businessmen in the main held a favorable image, there was a strong negative image held by a minority which some of the following quotes illustrate: I have known both kinds, but the courteous kind seem to predominate. Good fellows. One of the fine things about American educated men, they know how to act. If it is convenient for him he is personal, if not, he is cold. His interest is in economic exploitation. Stems from the typical American thinking that the rest of the world is not his equal. Summary: The image which the El Paso businessman has of American business is strongly supported by the other three groups in this study. Let us turn now to the Mexican businessman. F___g—= 157 W for W: The Mexican lives in a society where the Opportunity to work one's way up from the bottom is perceived to be greatly restricted. Especially on the American side, the belief persists that there are only "two classes in Mexico, the rich and the poor, and if you're down you stay down.“ Only the Cd. Juarez businesr~ elites came close (5075 to 45%) to saying that the Mexican businessmen don't inherit their businesses any more frequently than their American counter- parts. But even they agreed with the rest in large majority that the Mencans tended to concentrate their businesses in the family rather than in broad stock holdings, and that family and personal concerns do impinge on their business affairs. A majority of all four groups agreed that busines.c and religion do not mix in Mexico. The fact that the ratio was two to one among the Cd. Juarez elites, while only a little better than one to one for the El Paso elites suggests two possible answers. Either the El Paso elites are projecting their ovm strong religious orientation into this question, or they tend to confuse the "fact" that luexico is 95% Catholic with the idea that this automatically should mean that religion and business do mix. The latter seems the more likels.r probability. The following quotations illustrate the point: Catholic religion is very powerful. I have heard stories how powerful the Church has been, but not so much anymore. It's different there; one religion has tried to set controls. looking at some of the comments of the Cd. Juarez business elites for some insight for the apparent paradox of much "Catholic Action" 158 versus their negative view on this question, the following quotes may be suggestive: Too often a businessman feels that a small contri- bution to Church fulfills his duty. Catholicism here is more a claim than a reality. Most Mexicans are Catholics, but don't let the principles guide them in business. The Mexican by instinct deceives the customer in business transactions. But here on the border we have been able to learn from the American the honorable way to do business. The American, no matter what his religion, lives up to it in busi- ness practice. W The Mexican businessman is generally seen as being courteous, gracious, and highly "cultured," having been educated in the classic European tradition. There was no other question which offered the Mexican businesanan such an Opportunity for a favorable image. How- ever. some Americans simply could not bring themselves to see the Mexican superior under any conditions. Another interesting facet of this image is that a small minority of Mexicans, while expressing pride in their broad cultural background, did suggest that perhaps a little more prac- ticalicality in their educational program would benefit their business habits considerably. While both Cd. Juarez groups thought that their ethical preparation for business life was at least as good as that of the American's, the El Paso groups did not share the feeling, expressing a strongly negative view in this respect. Consider the following comments: NO ethics in Mexico; it‘s the make-up of the peOple. It is difficult to understand this but what the American calls ethics seem silly to many Mexicans. As I have said, most of them have been educated in our schools. They do business with us our way. with their own peOple another way. 159 The ethics I have encountered I know could not have been learned in school. Apparently much of this criticism evolves from the "mordida." about which more later. A§,g_bn§1ng§§mgn: The Mexican businessman still prefers high pro- fits from limited production to the "American way." However, a majority of Cd. Juarez businessmen insisted that lack of experience rather than lack of interest was responsible for this continued practice. As to what the businessman does with his profits, he irage is not so clear. The El Paso business elites generally thought that he spent it on ”high living," or in buying land or in other business ventures. The El Paso political elites hedged more, thought perhaps the Mexicans were reinvest- 1ng even more than Americans do. The two Cd. Juarez groups insisted that Mexican businessmen reinvested at least as much as Americans, although each group had large negative minorities. From the Mexican viewpoint the situation is best summed up by the following : Tkle mass market idea has finally infiltrated our economy, but we are still many years behind the United States in our thinking. Even chain stores are now appearing backed by men who ten years ago would have been insulted by the idea of investing in such a business. The groups were split again on the matter of the extent of free competition in Mexico, with the El Paso groups as expected saying that there was no comparison, that all.Mexican businesses of any size were monOpolies. The Cd. Juarez groups disagreed, saying that there was as much if not more free competition in Mexico. The position of the Cd. Juarez business elites was that the examples of limited competition in Mexico were closely patterned after prevalent practices in the United States which they were aware of. Quaing§§.3nd_ggggxgm§nfifi All groups agree that businessmen and governmental officials do not get along as well in Cd. Juarez as they do in El.Paso, and the Cd. Juarez groups in this situation are typical of Mexico in general. As discussed previously above, the El Paso groups split on this, because of what they considered to be "peculiar" border factors. While the Juarez business elites talked much about the "peculiar" border factors, they didn't think it was more than another form of govern- ment corruption and dishonesty which made it so difficult for Mexican businessmen in general to work with government officials. The following statements eXpress the Juarez businessman's views: Our Chamber of Commerce has always tried to main- tain the best possible relations with the local government. It is the government that chooses not to cooperate. ‘we keep hoping for a mayor who will reapect our rights, and give us his whole-hearted support in our efforts to improve Juarez business, but this present one has been interested only in enriching himself and has made impossible condi- tions for cooperation. So we have had to fight for our rights. Government's fault for split here; most of the men in government today have very low moral stand- ard; as result, the businessmen lack confidence in the government, they cannot trust anything they say. 0u1~ governments don't think they are servants. They think the people are their servants. They are always trying to rob us,vand SO‘We retaliate by looking for every chance to gyp them. In El Paso you can be both businessman and poli- tico; here there is a line of demarcation between the two. If the peOple waited for the government for help they'd starve. The Juarez politicos see the picture in a slightly different way: Our Chamber of Commerce is made up of the rich of the city. They have gotten themselves involved in 161 politics where they don't belong. They charge the government with being guilty of the high cost of living here, but it iS'they themselves that are guilty of charging the high prices, and we know that and we have been fighting them. They don't cooperate with the government at all like they should. Business in the United States is in the habit of solving its own prdblems. Here the government al- ‘ways steps in to help business solve its problems. They have never been united h re, and now because of the politics they are more separated than ever. The lack of cooperation between business and govern- ment is due to two things: 1) personal egoism on the part of the businessmen; 2) the fact that they know that their tax money will not be used for preper purposes. So the fault is only partly of the businessmen. Ensiness.and.laborfi The majority of Cd. Juarez business elites see labor equally as competitors and as political enemies, an image with which the El Paso elites are in partial agreement. Almost a fifth be- lieve that leaders of labor and management are in collusion against the workers, an image not supported by either Mexican group, for obvious reasons. Strangly enough, the Cd. Juarez political elites, who might have been eXpected to hold the image of being "enemies," gave majority support to the image of "cornpetitors," with almost 30% saying that labor and management were "business partners." The only eXplanation the writer can think of is that this reflects their own strong belief in their achievements of better condidtion for labor in Mexico. The image is even less clear in respect to the relative power of labor, management and the government. It is only clear that labor and the government are closely tied together, although not necessarily to the real benefit of labor. The Cd. Juarez business elites believe that labor has more power than it has in the United States, but the El Paso 162 groups see management in Mexico as having more power than management in the United States vis a vis labor. The Cd. Juarez political elites think that the situation is about the same in both countries. All but the Cd. Juarez politicos believe that the Mexican government has more power in labor-management affairs than does the American government within its Jurisdiction. The Cd. Juarez political elites see the Mexican government as "the good arbiter" in labor-management affairs. The Juarez businessmen do not agree, insisting that the "Politicos generally use unions for their own ends," expecially near election times, and this, they feel interferes with their legitimate rights. The El Paso elites see a strange alliance of business and government in Mexico, as the following statements indicate: "Business has an in with the controlling power; it‘s all in amajor group." "It is a combination with the government used as a tool when itis needed." flu W m in; mm: Apparently closely tied in with the image of the Mexican businessman as deeply concerned with his family and close friends is the image that he is not "civic minded." The ques- tion did not encompass the idea of belonging to such civic clubs as Rotary, Lions, etc. A majority of all groups -- a great majority of the Americans —- said that the Mexican has less concern for general com- munity problems than his American counterparts. Some comments from El Pasoans indicate this personalistic attitude of the Mexicans: ...I have known some in Mexico to take on a whole community and help everyone in it. They look at it differently than we do. Each takes care of his own, they don't know about social welfare. .. 163 The Juarez business elites saw the problem in a slightly different light: Mexican. businessman limits radius of interest to his business. He lacks preparation for prOper attitude towards civic responsibilities. They will gladly help until you ask them to serve on a committee, and then they find that they are too busy. In Mexico such things were always thought of as government projects until recently. Ideal of service has long history in United States. The American businessman feels more responsible with- in society and he lives in a more perfect society where he has confidence in his government. The Easiness. manual 2f the harder- While the El Pasoans were in general uncertain about the border area of Mexico as a source of future economic eXploitation, both Cd. Juarez groups thought that Ameri- cans were not investing enough. Not only is there no risk involved, but they see the country as having unlimited possibiities. This is a great region for investment, and Juarez and El Paso should grow hand in hand. We export raw materials from this region which we later purchase as finished products. Wmr not manufacture these products here where labor is cheaper? The entire country is an excellent spot for in- vestment. Good guarantees, good prospects. The savings in taxes, plus profit rate and labor market far outweigh the risks involved. Some of the Cd. Juarez businessmen did attach reservations to their statements, however: The whole country is ripe for investment although the border possibilities are somewhat limited to mining, lumber and their byproducts. Also, pro- perty restrictions exist on the border, and all manufactured products must go through customs here. It should be investment which will keep the money in Mexico for reinvestment. We don't gain if the profits leave the country. We are jealous of our 16h integrity and we don't want to be absorbed by the United States. The El Pasoans, by contrast, were considerably less optimistic, as these quotations indicate: There is not enough on this side. On the other the risks are too great to make it worthwhile. You never know what the government will do in Mexico from one day to the next. On this side of the border all right but in Mexico it is really a risk. (July a fOOl would risk capital in Mexico unless he has a partner that is a citizen. There is an element of risk in any country. The risk is not due so much to the country, but the kind of business and the know-how by the person who is investing. No risk if he will familiari'e himself with all the problems . WWW This chapter was devoted to the attempt to test two sets of hypothe- ses about national images and to delineate the iuages of Mexican and American businessmen and their practices. The first set of hypotheses predicted that when the four elite groups were asked to compare American and Mexican businessmen and their practices, that both El Paso groups would hold more favorable images of the American than of the Mexican; while the Juarez business elites would see both groups as similar, and the Juarez political elites would tend to be negative toward both. The data support the hypothesis with respect to the El Paso elites; the Juarez elites tended to be more self critical and less antinAmerican than anticipated. ‘While it must be recognized that more adequate hy- potheses and instruments are needed than were used here, nevertheless, the data do present a rather clear-cut picture of a highly favorable 165 image of the American businessman and a much less favorable image of the Mexican'by comparison. The border with the high rate of international contacts it makes possible for these elites may be a factor keeping the Rhaican from seeing himself in as favorable a light as might be expected theoretically. The second hypothesis that there is a relationship between one's group association and the kinis of responses one will make to questions dealing with common group practices, was supported at least as regards nationality. Tasts failed to produce conclusive evidence of a relation- ship between business and political occupations and national images. Further study involving more adequate and refined hypotheses is necessary before it can be definitely shown either that occupational group, separate from nationality group, is or is not a significant factor in imagery develOpment. Finally, the substantive images were delineated, and they tended to approximate the tentative images which had been developed in the explora- tory research. The perceived images support the nrOposition that the American is more gessellschaft-like and the Mexican more gemeirschaft- like. CHAPTER V1 IMAGES OF GOVERMENT OFFICIALS AND POLITICAL PRACTICES A. Hypothesis The same procedure used in the previous chapter will be followed in the present chapter to examine the data on images of government officials and political practices in the United States and Mexico, and to delineate the substantive images. It may be well to restate the guiding hypotheses of the study, and the modifications that were made as a result of the exploratory research in order that the hypotheses to be tested in this chapter will be clearly understood. First, peOple generally see groups to which they belong in the most favorable light, and have somewhat less favorable images of other groups. Therefore, it was expected that American business and political elites would have favorable images of themselves and of each other be- cause there is a merging of these two identifications in the United States. These groups were expected to have negative images of their counterparts in Mexico because they perceived them to be gemeinschaft-like. The explanatory research did nothing to alter this hypothesis. The Mexican business and political elites were likewise expected to have favorable images of themselves and each other. And, since their value orientations were supposed to differ from those of the American it might be eacpected that their images of Merican business and political elites would tend to be negative. However, the exploratory research revealed an open split between the business and political elites of Cd. Juarez, which had historical roots. Therefore, it was predicted that the business elites of Cd. Juarez would reflect this struggle in 16? their images of Mexican politics wish would tend to be negative rather than positive. They saw themselves as striving for a more gesellschaft- like system but perceived the political elites as Operating government for themselves in a particularistic way. The political elites had the Opposite image of themselves, as expected. The problem of the Mexican business and political elite images of the American system could not be derived directly from the basic hypothesis of ethnic ethnocentrism. Since it is assumed that both the business and political systems in Mexico are moving in the direction of more gesellschaft-like orientations, considerable ambivalence may be expected in their images of the American systems, as well as of themselves (Cf. Chapters I and II). The point of concern here is the degree to which they perceive themselves and are perceived to approximate one or the other orientation. In this case the Mexican business elites charge that the governmental system is particularistic, and both American elite groups concur. The Mexican politico denies this situation, and claims to be like the American which he accepts as the ”ideal." However, he does not approve of business domination of government so that if he perceives such a situation to exist in the United States, he may tend to become ambivalent in his images of the American political system. Against this negative factor is the actual border situation, in Wish the Cd. Juarez political elites are treated as status equals by both El Paso elite groups. In the previous chapter it was found that there were no significant differences in the images of the Mexican and American businessmen held by the two Cd. Juarez elite groups. In other words, the current 168 controversy, with all its historical considerations, did not make the ca. Juarez political elites more critical of Mexican businessmen than were the business elites themselves. One of the questions to be answered in this chapter is whether the Gd. Juarez business elites will have images of Mexican governmental officials and political practices that differ from those held by the Gd. Juarez political elites. Vith these factors in mind, it is predicted that when the four elite groups are asked to compare Mexican and American government officials and political practices: la) - El Paso business elites have predominantly favorable images of American government officials and their political practices, and predominantly negative images of Mexican governmental officials and their practices, that is, the image of the Mexican is not in the least congruent with the way they see Americans. lb) - El Paso political elites have predominantly favorable images of American government officials and their practices and predominantly negative images of Mexican government officials and their practices, that is, they will not see the Mexican practices as similar to their own. lc) - Cd. Juarez business elites have predominantly negative images of Mexican government officials and their political practices, while their images of American govern- ment officials and their practices are predominantly favorable. 1d) - Gd. Juarez political elites have favorable images of Mexican government officials and their political practices, and predominantly favorable images of American government officials and their practices, because they see the American system as congruent with their own. While this first set of hypotheses is concerned with the evaluation of images a second set of related hypotheses, testing the relationship of national images specifically to the variables of occupation and nationality, may now be prOposed: 169 2a) - El Paso business, El Paso political, ca. Juarez business, and Cd. Juarez political elites, when compared with each other, have sigiificantly different images of Mexican and Anerican government officials and their practices. 2b) - El Paso elites when compared with Cd. Juarez (holding nationality constant in both cases) have signi- ficantly different images of Mexican and American government officials and their practices. 2c) - Business elites when compared with political elites (holding only occupation constant) have similar images of Mexican and American government officials and their practices. 2d) - El Paso business elites when compared with El Paso political elites have similar images of Mexican and American government officials and their practices. 2e) - El Paso business elites when compared with Gd. Juarez business elites have similar images of Mexican and American government officials and their practices. 2f) - El Paso business elites when compared with Gd. Juarez political elites have significantly different images of Mexican and American government officials and their practiceS. 2g) - El Paso political elites when compared with Gd. Juarez business elites have similar images of Mexican and Amsrican government officials and their practices. 2h) - El Paso political elites when compared with Gd. Juarez political elites have significantly different images of Mexican and American government officials and their practices. 21) - Cd. Juarez business elites when compared with Cd. Juarez political elites have sigiificantly different images of Mexican and American government officials and their practices. Ennis, while the first set of hypotheses defines the direction vhich the images will take, the second set predicts the various relationships between group association and national images. Fran the data gathered during the exploratory phase of the study. tentative images were formulated and from them the specific questions 170 to test these hypotheses were drawn. The images as tentatively drawn at the time were as follows: B. (1.42 Qp51 .“9 .53 . 56. TENTATIVE IMAGE OF THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENTAL OFFICIAL AND HIS POLITICAL PRACTICES The Mexican governmental officials generally represent lower class backgrounds, and are inclined to graft and corruption. They have institutionalized the “mordida.”I They are still characterized more as caciques or caudillos (political. boss) than as true servants of the peOple. However, this is not the image held by the Mexican politico; he sees government officials as representing all classes and the government as relative- ly effective and just. even if not efficient. Not only are Mexican officials personally opposed to any mixing of politics and religion in their own life, but they are militantly Opposed to any effort by the clergy to influence Mexican political life. This is evaluated as bad by all but the Cd. Juarez political elites. While government officials would like to get along better with Mexican businessmen they feel that the former are the ones responsible for the rift that exists. The other three groups in this study hold the Opposite view. The politicos see government ownership of business as necessary and good for Mexico, but this image is not supported by others. in C. 171 While the Mexican official is very proud of his achieve- ments with respect to making real the universally held political ideals of free speech, free press, etc., others see him as mouthing high somding phrases which have little to do with reality. TENTATIVE IMAGE OF THE WRICAN GOVERNMENTAL OFFICIAL AND HIS PRACTICES In contrast with the Mexican, the image of the American governmental official seemed to be more consistently held by all four groups. The following appeared to be the slient features of this image: Q’ 1+2. 43! M, 47’ 1+8 Q.- 51. 52 Q- 5". 55. 57 The American politician is generally drawn from all social classes. While he is not above graft and corruption, when compared with his Maxican counterpart, he is considered relatively non-corrupt. Furthermore, political bossism is not generally prevalent in the United States; it is practiced only in certain large cities. The Mexican official concurs less in this. The American politician is sensitive to the demands of the clergyman, and does not hesitate to affirm his faith in public. American clergy are perceived to have a healthy influence on political life. Again, the Mexican official concurs less in this. Both government and business are happily married in the United States. Government regulation of business is Just, extending itself only where necessary for the general welfare. 172 Q. #1 The political ideals for which most of the rest of the world is still striving are realities of everyday life in the United States. Q. 60 The one aspect of American government that is Open to criticism from all four groups is its foreign policy, especially as involving foreign aid. The United States is ignoring important neighbors to the South, while spending money in dubious ventures in Asia and.Europe. Once again, the questions in the interview were generally of a comparative nature, requiring the respondents to ascertain whether a practice was more, less, or equally, prevalent in his country compared to the neighbor- ing one. There were also several questions dealing with political practices in each country separately. A total of twentybfour questions yielded data for hypotheses 2a.- 21, while thirteen yielded data per- taining to hypotheses la - 1d. All twenty-four yielded data on the substantive images. Let us consider first the relationship between national images and the variables of nationality'and occupation. The Chi Square test was used to test hypotheses 2a - 21. D. Results. Tab] es XXIII.”qu give the Chi Squares and level of probability for each,of the twenty-four questions, according to the relevant hypotheses.* TableXXVI summarizes the results in Tables XXIII, XXIV and XXV. Let us first consider briefly'the results with.respect to each of the nine hypotheses relating nationality and occupation to national images. *Data for the computation of these Chi-squares are found in Table XXVII. Appendex 3. 173 IAsns XXIII CHI-SQUARES AND PROBABILITY IEVELS FOR QUESTIONS ON GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL PRACTICES WITH ESPECT T0 HYPOTEESES 2a, 2b, and Zc mpothesis 2a Hypothesis 2b Hypothesis 2c d arsampruJB—JP EPLJ B-P Questions I? probability* x? probability x? probability - 2 27.523 001 p 17.006 001 p 9.769 01 p 001 — 3 36.349" 001 p 31.933° 001 p 3.7646 10 p 05 - 4 30.885b 001 p 14.437c 001 p 8.936c 01 p 001 - 5 24.257 001 p 7.578c 01 p 001 16.014c 001 p - 6 57.432b 001 p 53.298° 001 p 3.678c 10 p 05 - 7 24.196 001 p 22.100 001 p 2.020 50 p 30 42 71.587 001 p 36.227 001 p 10.331 01 p 001 43 24.4523 01 p 001 18.862b 001 p 4.342b 30 p 20 44 14.1473' 20 p 10 4.83hb 20 p 10 4.224.0 30 p 20 45 9.300 20 p 10 1.910 50 p 30 3.76“! 20 p 10 #6 7.083 50 p 30 0.943 70 p 50 2.573 30 p 20 47 27.694 001 p 15.101 001 p 8.734 02 p 01 48 28.640 001 p 14.215 001 p 8.802 02 p 01 49 17.823 01 p 001 11.830 01 p 001 13.640 01 p 001 51 26.4073 01 p 001 15.498b 01 p 001 8.141.0 05 p 02 52 8.702 30 p 20 1.272 50 p 30 2.037 20 p 10 53 24.392 001 p 19.333 001 p 3.560 20 p 10 54 20.630 01 p 001 8.037 02 p 01 3.538 20 p 10 55 45.03? 001 p 34.609 001 p 8.666 02 p 01 56 41.666 001 13 33.969 001 p 3.675 20 p 10 57 59.190 001 p 144.343 001 p 7.000 05 p 02 58 46.106 001 p 41.880 001 p 1.578 50 p 30 6o 3.949(:1 95 p 90 0.056" 100 p 99 2.925” 50 p 30 Note: Unless otherwise specified the Chi Square tables of hypothesis 2a had six degrees of freedom; those of hypotheses 2b and 2c had two degrees of freedom. a. Nine degrees of freedom. b. Three deyees of freedom. c. One degree of freedom. (1. Questions will be found in the interview schedule in Appendix A. mam XXIV 174 CHI-SQUARES AND LEVELS OF PROBABILITY FOB.QUESTIONS ON’GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL PBACTICES WITHJRESPECT T0 HYPOTHESES 2d, 26, and 2! Questionsc hi- 1 I I I I ~d