Opinion Research Scan E-newsletter – May 2012

Angus Reid: Canadians are divided on immigration and multiculturalism

Background: This Angus Reid survey polled 1,005 Canadians from January 26-27, 2012 on issues including the effects of immigration, immigration levels, intergroup tolerance and social integration. The survey was conducted via the supplier’s online panel, and data was weighted to reflect the population.

Key Findings:

• When asked if immigration was having a positive or negative effect in Canada overall, results were split, with 39% of respondents feeling negatively and 39% feeling positively (22% were unsure).
  • Men (44%) were more likely than women (34%) to feel that immigration is having a positive impact; furthermore, only 16% of men were unsure of the impact compared to 28% of women.
  • Those in Alberta (45%), Ontario (42%) and the Atlantic region (41%) were more likely to feel the effect of immigration is negative, followed by British Columbia (38%), Manitoba/Saskatchewan, and Quebec (both 32%).
  • Sense of a positive impact increased with education; 55% of those with a university education or higher felt the impact was positive, compared to 35% of those who attended college or a technical school, and 33% of those who completed high school (or less).
  • Those who primarily speak French were more likely to feel that the effect of immigration is positive (43%, compared to 38% of Anglophones).
• When asked if the number of legal immigrants allowed into Canada should be altered, only a minority (15%) felt numbers should be increased. 41% of respondents felt the number should be decreased, 37% felt it should stay the same, and 8% were unsure.
• Half of respondents (50%) felt that illegal immigrants take jobs away from Canadian workers, whereas one third (34%) felt that illegal immigrants are employed in jobs that Canadian workers do not want.
• A majority (62%) of Canadians felt that multiculturalism is good for Canada (16% said “very good”), compared to 29% who felt that it is bad (8% said “very bad”).
• Nearly one in six Canadians (16%) agreed that Canada should be a melting pot in which immigrants assimilate, while only one in three (30%) agreed that it should be a mosaic in which cultural differences are preserved.
  • Those aged 18-34 were far more likely than those 35-54 and 55+ to agree with the concept of the cultural mosaic (with 45%, 28% and 19% support respectively).
  • Support for the cultural melting pot was highest in Quebec (63%), Ontario (58%) and British Columbia (57%).
• A majority (55%) of Canadians felt that racism is not a significant problem, compared to 32% of those who felt it is a significant problem and 13% who were unsure.
• Respondents were asked about whether Canada is a tolerant or intolerant society in regards to several groups (see chart below). Respondents felt that the groups facing the most intolerance are Muslims (33% feel society is intolerant toward them), Aboriginal Canadians (28%), and those originating from South Asia (25%).

Overall, would you say Canada is a tolerant or intolerant society towards each of these groups?

Text version: Overall, would you say Canada is a tolerant or intolerant society towards each of these groups?

Association for Canadian Studies: Canadians have the most diverse workplaces

Background: This study was commissioned by the Association for Canadian Studies (ACS), and was designed to assess the multiculturalism of workplaces internationally. Leger Marketing surveyed 2,345 people online in September and October 2011 for the Canadian portion of the poll. ORC International surveyed more than 3,000 respondents in the U.S., Britain and France on behalf of the ACS in September 2011.

Key Findings:

• 73% of Canadians described their workplace or school as diverse, compared to 70% of Americans, 68% of Britons and 67% of French respondents.
  • Six in ten Quebecers reported working in a multicultural environment, the lowest proportion of any province.
  • 57% of Francophones in Canada described their workplace as diverse, compared to 74% of Anglophones and 83% of people who speak a language other than English or French.
• Eight out of 10 Francophones in Canada said that most of their friends come from the same cultural background, compared to 66% of English-Canadians and 55% of people who speak a non-official language.
  • More than three-quarters of Britons said most of their friends share their ethnic background, while just over two-thirds of Canadians and Americans said so.
• Eighty% of Canadians aged 18-24 described their school or workplace as ethnically mixed, compared to about three-quarters of people in older age groups.
  • Among francophones, 70% of those aged 18-24 said they work in a multicultural environment, compared to 50% of those aged 25-34 and just over 40% in older age groups.
  • Three-quarters of anglophones aged 44 and under described their workplace as diverse, while over of 80% of people 44 and under who speak a non-official language said this.

According to Daniel Lagacé-Roi, professor of ethics in the Department of Military Psychology and Leadership at the Royal Military College, the results suggest that Canadians have a higher “cultural intelligence” than other nations.

What does it mean to be a citizen in Canada? Environics study measures views of native-born and foreign-born Canadians

Background: This study, conducted by Environics in partnership with the Institute for Canadian Citizenship, the Maytree Foundation, the CBC and RBC, asked Canadians what it means to be a good citizen of Canada. The results are based on a telephone survey conducted by the Environics Research Group with a representative sample of 2,376 Canadian residents (18 years and older) between November 18 and December 17, 2011.

Key Findings:

• Canadians were asked, unprompted, to identify which actions and attributes make someone a good Canadian citizen. According to the Environics report of findings, “some are the basics of obeying the law (35%), paying taxes (10%) and voting in elections (8%). But even more prominent are responses that speak to an engaged commitment and outlook, such as active participation in one’s community (25%), helping others (17%), accepting other’s differences (14%), sharing Canadian values (12%) and respecting other religions (9%).” (page 2)
  • When given a list of attributes to choose from, those deemed important for being a good citizen included: treating men and women equally (95% said this is very important to being a good citizen in Canada), obeying Canada’s laws (89%), being tolerant or respectful of others who are different (82%), voting in elections (82%) and protecting the environment (80%).
• “When asked what kinds of things they do that makes them feel like a good citizen, Canadians [were] most likely to emphasize doing volunteer work (34%) and being kind and generous to other people (26%); ahead of paying taxes (21%), obeying the law (20%) and voting in elections (17%).” (page 2)
• “There [was] an overwhelming consensus that immigrants are as likely as native-born individuals to be good Canadian citizens,” said the report. “Nine in ten (89%) [said] they believe someone born outside Canada is just as likely to be a good citizen as someone born here.” (page 3)
  • 81% of respondents believed that permanent residents are just as likely to be good citizens.
• When asked to identify, unprompted, the ways in which newcomers must adapt to become good citizens, popular responses included “learning about Canada’s culture and ways of life (36%), learning English or French (32%), adapting to Canadian values (27%) and following Canadian laws (26%).” (page 3)
  • “Immigrants who have become Canadian citizens [were] more likely than permanent residents to say it is important for newcomers to learn about Canadian culture (39% vs. 25%, respectively) and to give up their own culture (9% vs. 4%, respectively).” (page 3)
  • A majority (56%) of respondents agreed that Canadian society does enough to help newcomers adapt, while 26% disagreed and 18% were uncertain.
    • When asked what Canadian society should do to help newcomers adapt, popular responses included reaching out and including them (33%), helping them find jobs, and helping them develop language skills (both with 17%).
• Most Canadians disagreed with the suggestion that those who are not yet citizens should have voting rights. 23% of respondents supported voting rights for non-citizens at the federal level, with slightly higher support at the provincial (27%) and municipal (38%) levels.
• A majority of Canadians (54%) responded that they are “not very” or “not at all” familiar with the requirements to become a legal Canadian citizen.  
  • “Despite their limited knowledge,” said the report, “Canadians [were] more likely than not to feel the current requirements for legal citizenship are appropriate. Close to half (47%) [believed] the rules are just about right, compared to one-quarter (26%) who [believed] they are not strict enough and six% who [believed] they are too strict.” (page 4)
  • The majority of the respondents felt current rules were adequate in regards to the three-year waiting period (69% felt this was adequate) and the requirement to speak and understand English or French (86%).
• 71% of Canadians were comfortable with the idea of dual citizenship; however, 52% of respondents agreed that “there should be some limits around citizenship in relation to concerns about individuals holding citizenship without ever residing in the country”
  (page 5).
• Environics also compared responses between Canadian-born and foreign-born citizens, and found that:
  • 88% of foreign-born citizens felt “very proud” to be Canadian, compared to 81% of Canadian-born citizens;
  • “Foreign-born individuals [were] more likely to say a good citizen obeys laws
    (41% vs. 33% of native-born) and vote (12% vs. 8% of native-born).” (page 6)
• When asked what makes them most proud of Canada, respondents were most likely to say that it is Canada’s freedom and democracy (28%), our caring and humanitarian population (11%), and that Canada is respected internationally (8%).
• “The most common reasons why foreign-born citizens [said] they decided to become a legal citizen are because they want to stay permanently (26%) or to confirm they belong here (17%).” (page 6)
• When asked about the citizenship process, 59% of foreign-born citizens considered the process “very easy”, and 22% considered it “easy”, compared to those who found it “somewhat difficult” (8%) or “very difficult” (4%).
• When asked when they begin to feel like a Canadian citizen, foreign-born citizens offered the following: “One in four (25%) [said] they started to feel like a citizen the moment they arrived in the country. Some [cited] specific milestones such as at their citizenship ceremony (16%), when they first voted (9%) or when they got their first passport (5%). Others [referred] to times when they became involved in Canadian society (such as finding a job; 11%), started learning about Canadian culture (5%), became comfortable in English or French (4%) or became involved in the community (4%).” (page 7)

Forum Research: Vast majority of Canadians support removal of niqabs at citizenship ceremonies

Background: This telephone survey, conducted by Forum Research with 1,160 Canadians, asked respondents if they approved or disapproved of the law requiring women to remove their veils to take the Canadian citizenship oath. The poll was conducted December 13, 2011 as part of an omnibus survey. Results are deemed to have a margin of error of 2.9 percent, 19 times out of 20.

Key Findings:

• Across Canada, 81% of respondents approved of the niqab ban for citizenship ceremonies.
  • Support generally increased with age: Only 68% of those 18-34 approved of the law, compared to 84% of those 35-44, 88% of those 45-54, 87% of those 55-64 and 89% of those aged 65 or older.
  • Regionally, support for the ban was highest in Quebec (89%), Atlantic Canada (81%) and the Prairies (79%), followed by Ontario (77%) and British Columbia (74%).
  • Uncertainty of approval or disapproval was highest amongst those aged 18-34 (9% were uncertain), females (7% were uncertain compared to 4% of males), and those in British Columbia (8% were uncertain).

Ipsos-Reid: Canadians define national identity through free health care, War of 1812, and politeness

Background: This Ipsos-Reid study (PDF, 240 Kb), commissioned by the Historica-Dominion Institute on the 200th anniversary of the War of 1812, was aimed at understanding which items Canadians use to define Canadian national identity. The poll was conducted online from January 26 to 30, 2012, with 1,015 Canadians and 1,015 Americans. Note that data was weighted to reflect the population according to 2006 Census data.

Key Findings:

• From a list of items that could be used to define Canadian identity, Canadians selected
  these items as follows: “Canada has free healthcare” (53%), “Canada beat the Americans in the War of 1812” (25%), “Canadians are more polite than Americans” (15%), “Canadians beat the Americans in hockey” (6%), and “Neil Young is Canadian and not American” (1%).
• 17% of Canadians agreed that the War of 1812 was “most important in the formation of Canadian identity,” compared to World War 2 (46%) and World War 1 (29%).
• 28% of Canadians “strongly” agreed, and 51% “somewhat” agreed, that the War of 1812 “had a significant impact” on the identity of Canada.
• “Testing Canadians’ knowledge of the War of 1812, Canadians were presented with a list of five historical figures and asked which of the five was not a key Canadian figure in the war. Only 35% of Canadians correctly identified Sir John A Macdonald as the figure who didn’t have a role in the War. Others erroneously believed it was Laura Secord (32%), George Provost (18%), General Brock (9%) or Chief Tecumseh (7%).” (page 5)

Canadians divided on abolishment of the monarchy, Forum Research finds

Background: This telephone survey, conducted by Forum Research with 1,211 Canadians, asked respondents if they in favour of, or opposed to, abolishing the monarchy in Canada after the death of the current Queen. The poll was conducted January 13, 2012 as part of an omnibus survey. Results are deemed to have a margin of error of 2.82 percent, 19 times out of 20.

Key Findings:

• 43% of Canadians approved of abolishing the monarchy, while 43% of Canadians were opposed to the idea. 14% of respondents were unsure.
  • Support for abolishment was highest among those 35-44 (53% approved), males (46% of males were in favour of abolishment compared to 40% of females), Quebec (with 67% approval, with Ontario second-highest with 39%), and those earning a yearly income of under 20 thousand dollars (50% support).

In the news:

• Edmonton Journal (December 15, 2011): According to an Ernst & Young survey, 47% of human resource managers with oil and gas firms cited labour availability as the most important issue facing their company. According to Ernst & Young senior manager Lance Mortlock, some firms were attempting to recruit international workers to fill shortages in areas such as field engineers, geosciences staff and drilling services staff.