Resilience Revisited: Assessing the Impact of the 2007–09 Recession on 83 Canadian Regions with Accompanying Thoughts on an Elusive Concept

Abstract

Dubé J. and Polèse M. Resilience revisited: assessing the impact of the 2007–09 recession on 83 Canadian regions with accompanying thoughts on an elusive concept, Regional Studies. Viewing the 2007–09 recession as an exogenous shock, the paper proposes an assessment of the ‘resilience’ of 83 Canadian regions using four standard metrics: population, employment, unemployment and employment rates. For each metric, regions are evaluated on three posited dimensions of ‘resilience’: resistance, rebound and recuperation. The results point to generally responsive regional economies with a range of reactions to the recessionary shock a priori compatible with the notion of ‘resilience’. However, the range of observed responses, depending on metrics used, methods applied and contextual considerations, leaves much room for interpretation, making it difficult to exclude players. The assessment serves in turn as a laboratory for a reflection on ‘resilience’ as a useful analytical concept in regional studies. It is concluded that the operational definition of ‘resilience’ remains problematic.

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