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Study: Concerns over resuming activities in Canada

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Released: 2020-07-27

Various reopening measures are well underway in most parts of Canada. The question is, how comfortable are Canadians about resuming "everyday" life activities, such as visiting a friend's home, going to the doctor, dining out or catching a movie during a pandemic?

Those questions were asked in a recent survey conducted from June 15 to 21, and the new study "Concerns over resuming activities in Canada" reveals that many Canadians are "very concerned" about resuming once-commonplace activities.

Almost two-thirds of Canadians are very concerned about the health risks associated with attending a live event or plane travel

The risk of contracting COVID-19 in a public setting depends upon a number of factors, including the type of activity engaged in, the number of people involved and whether it takes place indoors or outdoors. The level of concern expressed by the respondents often reflect these risk factors.

For example, almost two-thirds of respondents were "very concerned" about the health risks associated with attending shows, festivals, movies or sporting events (66%) or plane travel (64%). Over half of Canadians said they were "very concerned" about large gatherings such as weddings and religious services (57%) or visiting someone in a retirement home or long-term care facility for seniors (55%).

Conversely, Canadians were almost four times more likely to report being "not concerned at all" (38%) about gathering in small groups and visiting other people's homes than being "very concerned" (10%).

Young Canadians, singles, and people working outside the home were less likely to be "very concerned" about the health risks associated with the reopening

Young Canadians under the age of 35, singles, and those working outside the home were generally less likely to be "very concerned" about the health risks associated with resuming activities, while those aged 65 and older expressed the highest levels of concern.

For example, about half of single Canadians reported being "very concerned" about large group gatherings (48%) or air travel (51%). Meanwhile, two-thirds of seniors were "very concerned" about the health risks of large gatherings (67%) and over three-quarters were "very concerned" about plane travel (78%).

Immigrants are more likely to report being "very concerned" about the health risks associated with the reopening than the Canadian-born

The study also shows that immigrants are more concerned about the health risks associated with the reopening than the Canadian-born, particularly when it comes to attending a movie or live event (81% versus 61%) or large gatherings such as weddings and religious services (70% versus 53%).

These results are consistent with findings from previous studies that showed that immigrants were generally more concerned about the social and economic consequences of the pandemic than the Canadian-born.

Those most concerned about the resumption of activities in Canada are more likely to want to take precautions to limit the spread of COVID-19

Those who expressed a high overall level of concern about the health risks associated with the reopening were more likely to take various precautions to limit the spread of the virus.

They were also significantly more likely to want to receive the COVID-19 vaccine (73%) once it becomes available than those who expressed little concern (49%) about resuming activities in Canada. A recent study showed that those who expressed a higher level of confidence in others and in various levels of government were more likely to be vaccinated.

  Note to readers

The data for this study come from Statistics Canada's new Canadian Perspectives Survey Series, which represents a group of Canadians who have agreed to complete a number of short online surveys. Since the survey series uses a probability panel, it is representative of the general population. The survey series allows Statistics Canada to collect important information from Canadians in a more efficient, faster and less costly manner than using traditional survey methods.

In the study, people who expressed a "high overall level of concern" are those who scored in the top 25% of respondents for an index of overall concerns based on responses for each activity (such as attending shows, travelling by airplane, etc.). Those who were the least concerned were those who were in the bottom 25% of scores for the index.

Products

The study "Concerns over resuming activities in Canada" is now available as part of the series StatCan COVID-19: Data to Insights for a Better Canada (45280001).

Contact information

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; STATCAN.infostats-infostats.STATCAN@canada.ca) or Media Relations (613-951-4636; STATCAN.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.STATCAN@canada.ca).

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