The thesis of this paper is that methods of social control as well as attitudes toward and behaviors within the criminal justice system are best understood in terms of a "cultural personality" which is defined as "the whole of the unconscious concerns and interests, defenses, and coping mechanisms that characterize the members of a cultural group." The author attempts to sustain his thesis using the continuity of Alaskan Eskimo approaches to the resolution of disputes. Extensive discussion of Eskimo "cultural personality," as revealed in psychological tests and other personality studies, serves as background to descriptions of the Eskimos' response to the changing legal system imposed on them by the American government beginning early in this century. Hippler contends that Eskimo reactions have remained continuous in ways consistent with their "cultural personality," despite drastic changes in the judicial system.