Section 2: Sense of belonging and subjective vitality

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Section 2.1 A few linguistic characteristics of the Survey on the Vitality of Official-language Minorities target population
Section 2.2 Sense of belonging
Section 2.2.1 Identification with one or the other of the two language groups
Section 2.2.2 Perceived importance of being able to use the minority language in daily life
Section 2.2.3 Importance of linguistic rights being respected
Section 2.2.4 Importance of provincial government services being provided in the minority language
Section 2.3 Perceived subjective vitality of the official-language community
Section 2.3.1 How the presence of the minority language has changed in the past ten years
Section 2.3.2 How the presence of the minority language will change in the next ten years
Section 2.3.3 Perceptions of the presence of the minority language in various domains in the public sphere
Section 2.3.4 Perceived subjective vitality
References
Notes

The concept of vitality of language communities in a minority situation has at least two dimensions: objective and subjective. In other words, on the one hand there are facts and behaviours, and on the other hand there are perceptions and representations. A number of research studies have revealed a relationship between the perceived subjective ethnolinguistic vitality of a group and its objective vitality. However, other studies have identified major gaps in how the answers shape up on the two scales¹.

According to Harwood et al. (1994:175), a major premise of the theoretical framework for subjective vitality is that for purposes of determining inter-ethnic or language behaviours, the subjective evaluation that the members of a group make of their own group or another group may be just as important as the group's objective vitality, for instance, by their numbers or their demographic weight, or their social or politial status.

Giles and Johnson (1981) thus advanced the idea that for purposes of predicting the language behaviour of the members of a group, a combination of information on objective vitality and subjective vitality was a more precise and more appropriate method than relying solely on objective evaluations of the vitality of the groups involved.

The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) is the first survey conducted by Statistics Canada that asks questions on perceptions in the language sphere. As will be seen, this information is of interest in that the findings shed light on facts and behaviours.

The first part will focus on the objective dimension. A few linguistic characteristics collected from the survey's target population will be presented. The two other parts will focus on the subjective dimension. We will first present a few items for measuring the sense of belonging, and then some key findings on perceived subjective vitality.

Section 2.1 A few linguistic characteristics of the Survey on the Vitality of Official-language Minorities target population

As stated at the beginning of this analytical report, the target population of the survey was selected on the basis of various linguistic characteristics. As may be seen in Chart 2.1, official language minorities in Quebec and those outside Quebec have their own characteristics.

For the provinces other than Quebec, the French-speaking target population is distinguished by the fact that the proportions of adults having French as their mother tongue and those who have French as their first official language spoken (FOLS) are almost identical².

Nearly 47% of the French-speaking target population outside Quebec reported having French as their main language, that is, the language in which people are most at ease when speaking; 39% reported being more at ease in English than in French, while nearly 14% reported being as much at ease in one language as the other.

Quite a substantial variation is observed between provinces for these results. In Ontario, the province that has the largest number of Francophones in a minority situation in Canada, 44% of French-speaking adults report having French as their main language, compared to 41% reporting English.

In New Brunswick, more than 80% of French-speaking adults have French as their main language. It was Saskatchewan adults who reported the smallest proportion of people having French as their main language (13%), with 75% reporting being more at ease in English than in French. In almost all other provinces, slightly more than one French-speaking adult in two reports being more at ease in French than in English.

Chart 2.1
Selected linguistic characteristics of French-speaking adults outside Quebec and English-speaking adults in Quebec, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

In Quebec, in the survey's target population³, 51% have English as their mother tongue where nearly 80% of English-speaking adults have English as their first official language spoken (FOLS). Also, in light of the sizable proportion of allophones having English as their FOLS, 45% of the sample consists of adults who have a language other than English or French as their mother tongue. Lastly, 81% of adults in the Quebec target population report having English as their main language and 89% chose to answer the survey's telephone questionnaire in that language.

The information on the main language of the respondent is of great interest, mainly outside Quebec, where the environment in which French-speaking communities live has a strong influence on their language behaviours.

The results of the survey confirm the relationship between language spoken at home and the main language. Among French-speaking adults who reported speaking English most often at home (38%), nearly three quarters reported being more at ease in English than in French and another 16% reported being equally at ease in both languages.

Also, as table 2.1 shows, there is a strong relationship between the main language of French-speaking adults outside Quebec and the weight they represent within their municipality of residence.

Outside Quebec, 39% of French-speaking adults live in municipalities where they represent less than 10% of the population. Generally, in those municipalities, only 25% reported French as their main language compared to 59% who reported being more at ease in English than in French and 16% being equally at ease in both languages.

In comparison, among the French-speaking adults residing in municipalities where the weight they represent is larger or equal to 70% of the population, 91% reported French as their main language.

Table 2.1
Main language of French-speaking adults by the proportion that they represent in their municipality of residence, Canada less Quebec, 2006

Main language	Proportion of French –speaking adults in the municipality of residence
	< 10	10 to 29.9	30 to 49.9	50 to 69.9	>=70	Total
	percentage
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.
French	25	48	51	69	91	47
English	59	34	32	20	5	39
French-English	16	18	17	12	5	14
Total	100	100	100	100	100	100

Section 2.2 Sense of belonging

Section 2.2.1 Identification with one or the other of the two language groups

The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) asked members of official language minorities, based on their experience, which group they identified with the most, namely Francophones or Anglophones. The answers to this question are interesting, since they reveal an important aspect of inter-linguistic dynamics, namely the direction of the sense of belonging. For example, among French-speaking adults outside Quebec, very few identify only with the Francophone group, namely 14%, while 20% identify mainly with this language group. Also, nearly one adult in two (48%) said that they identified with the two language groups equally, and nearly 15% said that they identified primarily (mainly or only) with the Anglophone group.

The results presented in Chart 2.2 also show that in New Brunswick, 61% of adults reported that they identify primarily with the Francophone group. In the other provinces east of Saskatchewan and in the territories, that proportion ranges between 20% and 30%⁴, whereas it ranges between 10% and 20% for French-speaking adults in the three provinces west of Manitoba. Also, in almost all provinces, a large proportion of adults reported that they identify with the two language groups equally. As well, Newfoundland and Labrador (27%), Saskatchewan (36%), Alberta (29%) and British Columbia (30%) have the largest proportions of adults who identify primarily with the Anglophone group.

The results presented in Chart 2.2 also show that in New Brunswick, 61% of adults reported that they identify primarily with the Francophone group. In the other provinces east of Saskatchewan and in the territories, that proportion ranges between 20% and 30%⁵, whereas it ranges between 10% and 20% for French-speaking adults in the three provinces west of Manitoba. Also, in almost all provinces, a large proportion of adults who reported that they identify with the two language groups. As well, Newfoundland and Labrador (27%), Saskatchewan (36%), Alberta (29%) and British Columbia (30%) have the largest proportions of adults who identify primarily with the Anglophone group.

Chart 2.2
French-speaking adults by the degree of identification with the Anglophone and the Francophone groups, provinces and Canada less Quebec, 2006

Note:
1. Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
2. Due to the "refusal" or "don't know" responses, results presented in this chart do not always add up to 100%.
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

With these results, it is hardly surprising to observe a link between the proportion of French-speakers in a given region and identification with one or the other of the two language groups (Chart 2.3). In New Brunswick, for example, the North is the region with the largest proportion of French-speaking adults who identify primarily with the Francophone group, namely 73%. In the Southeast region and in the rest of the province, the corresponding proportions are lower at 52% and 38% respectively. The proportion of adults identifying equally to the two groups grows from the North to the rest of the province, the proportion of French-speaking adults becoming lower and lower.

A similar situation is observed in Ontario. Thus, where the proportion of Francophones is greater, namely in the Southeast of the province, nearly one French-speaking adult in two (48%) identifies primarily with the Francophone group, while in Ottawa and the Northeast of the province, the corresponding proportions are 43% and 33% respectively. In Toronto, only one adult in four identifies primarily with the Francophone group, while 27% report that they identify primarily with the Anglophone group.

Chart 2.3
French-speaking adults by the degree of identification with the Anglophone and the Francophone groups, New-Brunswick, Ontario and their regions, 2006

Note:
1. Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
2. Due to the "refusal" or "don't know" responses, results presented in this chart do not always add up to 100%.
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

The results show that in Quebec, the proportion of English-speakers who identify primarily with the Anglophone group is much larger than the proportion who identify primarily with the Francophone group outside Quebec. Thus, nearly one adult in two in Quebec reports identifying primarily with the Anglophone group. Furthermore, identification with the two language groups is also widespread, being reported by nearly 40% of adults.

The region of Québec and surrounding area stands out fairly clearly from the other regions with respect to the observed level of identification with the Francophone group. It is also worth noting that when, in the target population, the population with English as their mother tongue is distinguished from the population with a third language as their mother tongue (allophone), the results of the survey show that in the former group, nearly 60% of adults identify primarily with the Anglophone group, compared to 43% of adults in the latter group.

Chart 2.4
English-speaking adults by the degree of identification with the Anglophone and the Francophone groups, Quebec and regions, 2006

Note:
1. Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
2. Due to the "refusal" or "don't know" responses, results presented in this chart do not always add up to 100%.
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

Section 2.2.2 Perceived importance of being able to use the minority language in daily life

The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) asked respondents how important it was for them to be able to use the minority language in their daily life. Although a large proportion of French-speaking adults outside Quebec reported that they assigned importance to being able to use French in their daily life, this response was mainly a function of the proportional weight of this language group within the municipality where French-speaking adults reside.

As Chart 2.5 shows, of the roughly 45% of French-speaking adults who live in municipalities where the weight of the Francophone group is less than 10%, just under two-thirds of them assign importance (very important (32%) or important (32%)) to being able to use French in their daily life. Conversely, of those who live in municipalities where Francophones comprise 70% or more of the population, the corresponding proportion is 94%.

Also, when the responses are analysed according to the main language, that is, the language in which the person feels most at ease, it emerges that among those for whom French is the main language, 91% report that they assign importance to being able to use French in their daily life, compared to 58% of those who report being more at ease in English than in French, and 79% of those who report being equally at ease in French and English.

Among Quebec Anglophones, the proportion of adults who assign importance to being able to use English in their daily life is high. Indeed, it ranges between 80% and 90%, depending on the relative weight of this group within the municipality.

Chart 2.5
Adults belonging to the official language minority by the importance given to being able to use the minority official language in their daily life, according to the proportion of minority speaking adults in the municipality, Quebec and Canada less Quebec, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

In Quebec, approximately 12% of English-speaking adults live in municipalities where their weight is less than 10% of the population, compared to 45% of Francophones outside Quebec. In these municipalities, 47% of English-speakers consider it "very important" to be able to use English, compared to 32% of French-speakers with respect to French.

The results shown in Chart 2.5 suggest that the importance that the English-speaking population assigns to being able to use English is less related to the relative weight of this group in the municipality than is the importance of using French for the French-speaking population. This is why, 87% of English speakers in Quebec assign importance to being able to use their language in their daily life compared to 78% of French-speakers outside Quebec.

Note that 69% of English-speakers live in municipalities where their language group comprises 30% or more of the population compared to only 37% of French-speakers.

Section 2.2.3 Importance of linguistic rights being respected

A large proportion of persons in official language minorities assign importance (very important or important) to the respect of linguistic rights e.g., education rights or the right to receive federal government services in the minority language in their province. Thus, outside Quebec, 63% of adults feel that respecting these rights is "very important" and 26% feel that it is "important."

In Quebec the corresponding proportions are 72% and 22% respectively. There is no statistically significant difference between Quebec's different English-language communities as to the importance assigned to respecting linguistic rights.

The perceptions of members of the French-speaking population are related to the language in which they report being most at ease in. Outside Quebec and New Brunswick, approximately 46% of French-speakers report that they feel more at ease in English than in French, compared to 38% who feel more at ease in French. An additional 16% report being as at ease in one language as in the other.

The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) reveals that within the French-speaking population who report being more at ease in English than in French, 48% consider it "very important" for linguistic rights to be respected in their province, compared to 74% of those who report having French as their main language. However, when all those who consider respect for these rights to be either "very important" or "important" are counted, the proportion nevertheless reaches nearly 80% of those who report having English as their main language.

Chart 2.6
Proportion of French-speaking adults who assign importance to linguistic rights being respected in their province, by the language in which they feel the most at ease, Canada less Quebec excluding New-Brunswick, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

Section 2.2.4 Importance of provincial government services being provided in the minority language

The importance assigned to the provision of services in the minority language is another item measured in the survey that can be associated with identification with the minority language group. Respondents' views on the importance for them to have government services provided in the minority language, is also an indication of the value that should objectively be assigned to that language by the government. A person may not use that language in his/her daily life and still feel that it should have an important status in the eyes of government.

Outside Quebec, 84% of French-speaking adults state that they assign importance (very important, 54%, or important, 30%) to government services being provided to them in French. In Quebec, the corresponding proportion is 93% for the provision of government services in English, with 67% feeling that it is "very important" for such services to be provided in English. Only New Brunswick registers proportions similar to those observed in Quebec. With the exception of the region of Québec and surrounding area, very little variation is observed from one region of Quebec to another.

Chart 2.7
Proportion of French-speaking adults who assign importance to provincial and federal services being provided to them in French, provinces and Canada less Quebec, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

Section 2.3 Perceived subjective vitality

The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) provides statistics of interest on the perceptions of members of minority language groups regarding the vitality of the language community, the past and future evolution of the minority language and the perceived presence of the language in a number of domains in the public sphere. This information is especially relevant in that it can be compared to what might be termed more objective measures of the vitality of these communities, such as their demographic weight or the use of the languages in the public sphere.

Section 2.3.1 How the presence of the minority language has changed in the past ten years

The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) asked respondents to think about the last ten years and state whether they felt that, in the municipality where they lived, the presence of the minority language had decreased, stayed the same, or increased.

Outside Quebec, we note that more than one French-speaking adult in four (26%) believes that the presence of French has increased in the past ten years, compared to one adult in five (20%) who believes that its presence has decreased. It is in the territories that the largest proportion of the French-speaking population perceives an increase in the presence of French, at 63%.

This perception is shared by a sizable proportion of the French-speaking population of Prince Edward Island (42%) and Newfoundland and Labrador (35%). On the other hand, French-speaking adults in Saskatchewan and Manitoba are more likely to say that the presence of French has decreased in their municipality during that period, at respectively 35% and 27%.

Chart 2.8
Proportion of French-speaking adults according to perception that the presence of French has decreased, stayed the same, or increased in the past 10 years in their municipality of residence, provinces and Canada less Quebec, 2006

Note:
1. Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
2. Excludes adults who indicated that they haven't lived in their municipality for very long, and refusals and reponses of "don't know".
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

Also, the survey data show that this perception does not really differ depending on whether one feels more at ease in English or French.

An examination of the results observed for the regions of New Brunswick and Ontario (Chart 2.9) shows major differences in perceptions. Thus, in the north of New Brunswick, it is not surprising to observe that more than 70% of adults perceive that the presence of French has not changed in the past ten years, since this region is quite heavily Francophone. By contrast, nearly 46% of French-speaking adults who live in the southeast of the province and 47% of those who live elsewhere in the province perceive that the presence of French has increased in their municipality in the past ten years.

The situation in Ontario is also noteworthy. For example, it is in the Southeast region, where the presence of the French-speaking population is strongest, that the sense of a decline in the presence of French seems to be shared by the largest number, namely 35% of adults. In the Northeast and Ottawa regions, just under one adult in four has this impression, namely 27% and 25% respectively. On the other hand, it is also in Ottawa that nearly one adult in three (31%) says that the presence of French appears to have increased in the past ten years.

Chart 2.9
Proportion of French-speaking adults according to perception that the presence of French has decreased, stayed the same, or increased in the past 10 years in their municipality of residence, New-Brunswick, Ontario and their regions, 2006

Note:
1. Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
2. Excludes adults who indicated that they haven't lived in their municipality for very long, and refusals and reponses of "don't know".
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

The perceptions of English-speaking adults in Quebec contrast rather sharply with those of their French-speaking counterparts outside that province. More than 35% of the former feel that the presence of English has declined during the last ten years. By comparison, a similar proportion is observed among Franco-Saskatchewanians with respect to the perceived decline of French, a community whose relative weight went from 2.0% to 1.8% of the Saskatchewan population between 1996 and 2006, based on the last Census data.

Considering their very strong concentration in Montreal, the perceptions of the English-speaking community in that area are almost identical to those observed for Quebec as a whole.

It is in Estrie and the south of Quebec that the impression of a decline of English appears to be shared by the largest number, namely nearly 48% of the English-speaking population, followed by the east (37%) and west (28%) of the province.

Chart 2.10
Proportion of English-speaking adults according to perception that the presence of English has decreased, stayed the same or increased in the past 10 years in their municipality of residence, Quebec and regions, 2006

Note:
1. Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
2. Excludes adults who indicated that they haven't lived in their municipality for very long, and refusals and reponses of "don't know".
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

Section 2.3.2 How the presence of the minority language will change in the next ten years

Perceptions regarding the change in the presence of the minority language in the next ten years may rely on the assumption that the future will resemble the past.

The results obtained for the question on the future of the language's presence reveal perceptions quite similar to those concerning its past. Thus, the similarities between the responses to the two questions, among both French-speakers outside Quebec and English speakers in Quebec, are striking.

Outside Quebec, provinces where a large proportion of French speakers feel that the presence of French has increased in the last decade are also those where there is the greatest optimism about the future (Chart 2.11). In general, with respect to both the past and the future, French-speaking adults outside Quebec seem more optimistic about the change over time in the presence of French in their municipality than are their English-speaking counterparts in Quebec regarding the evolving presence of English in their community (Chart 2.12). Whereas one-quarter of the former believe that the presence of French will decline in the next ten years, 36% of the latter foresee a decline in the presence of English. Also, among French-speaking adults living in the main regions of New Brunswick and Ontario, the perceptions regarding the future are basically the same as those regarding the past.

Chart 2.11
Proportion of French-speaking adults according to perception that the presence of French will increase, stay the same, or decrease during the next 10 years in their municipality of residence, provinces and Canada less Quebec, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

Chart 2.12
Proportion of English-speaking adults according to perception that the presence of English will increase, stay the same, or decrease during the next 10 years in their municipality of residence, Quebec and regions, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

Section 2.3.3 Perceptions of the presence of the minority language in various domains in the public sphere

Perceptions regarding how the presence of the language has evolved in the last ten years and how it will evolve in the next decade provide both a rear view and a forward view of the language's presence. A bridge between these two perspectives is provided by perceptions of the current presence of the language in various domains in the public sphere. Of course, these perceptions may also be examined in relation to perceptions regarding individuals' current language behaviours in these contexts.

The Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) results reveal that 60% of the adult English-speaking population of Quebec believe that the presence of English in the media is either strong or very strong. As to the presence of English in stores and businesses, the corresponding proportion is approximately 40%, while conversely, nearly 35% instead believe that this presence is either weak or very weak, or even non-existent.

The presence of English in locally provided federal government services is perceived as being nearly equal to its presence in stores and businesses, while that presence is perceived as being much weaker in services provided locally by the provincial government. In fact, nearly 46% of English-speaking adults perceive the presence of English in locally provided provincial government services as being weak, very weak or non-existent.

Once again, the perceptions of the French-speaking population outside Quebec contrast sharply with those of the English-speaking population of Quebec. Whereas 31% feel that the presence of French in the media is strong or very strong, nearly 48% consider that presence to be weak, very weak or non-existent.

While perceptions regarding the presence of French in local services provided by the federal Public Service are similar to perceptions observed in Quebec, there is a major contrast regarding locally offered provincial government services. Nearly 40% of the French-speaking population believe that the presence of French in their municipality is strong or very strong. This proportion can be explained mainly by the fact that New Brunswick is the only province in Canada to be officially bilingual and that Ontario is a province where legislation on the provision of services in French is in force.

Outside these two provinces, only 16% of the French-speaking population believe that the presence of French in provincial government services in their municipality is strong or very strong, compared to 53% of the population who consider the presence of French to be weak, very weak or non-existent.

Chart 2.13
Proportion of adults belonging to the official-language minority according to perceptions regarding the presence of the minority language in selected domains in the public sphere within their municipality of residence, Quebec and Canada less Quebec, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

Section 2.3.4 Perceived subjective vitality of the official-language community

The preceding few sections provide a brief overview of perceptions regarding the language's presence and, indirectly, the "linguistic vitality" of communities. However, the Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM) also asked a more direct question on the perceived subjective vitality of the minority official language "community" within the municipality of residence. That question was worded as follows: "Overall, if you had to describe the vitality of the (Francophone or Anglophone) community of your municipality, would you say that it is … very strong, strong, neither strong nor weak, weak or very weak?".

The information shown in Chart 2.14 shows that nearly 42% of French-speaking adults outside Quebec believe that the vitality of the Francophone community in their municipality is strong or very strong. Also, the results observed on this subject in the provinces located to the west of Manitoba are consistent with most results obtained throughout this survey.

Chart 2.14
Proportion of French-speaking adults according to the perception of the vitality of the Francophone community in their municipality of residence, provinces and Canada less Quebec, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

The information shown in Chart 2.15 specifically concerns the main regions of New Brunswick and Ontario. As may be seen, while adults in the north of New Brunswick are quite likely to give a positive assessment of the vitality of their Francophone community, those in the other regions are also fairly likely to have a rather positive perception. As for Ontario, the Southeast (66%) and North-East (57%) regions have more positive perceptions of the vitality of their community than those living in other regions.

Chart 2.15
Proportion of French-speaking adults according to the perception of the vitality of the Francophone community in their municipality of residence, New Brunswick, Ontario and their regions, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

Finally, it will hardly be surprising that the orientation of the perceptions regarding the perceived vitality of the Francophone community in a given municipality evolves in direct relationship to the community's relative weight within the municipality (Chart 2.16). Thus, where the French-speaking population is less than 10% of the municipal population, very few adults believe that the vitality of the Francophone community is strong or very strong. On the other hand, as the proportion grows, so does the perceived subjective vitality.

Chart 2.16
Proportion of French-speaking adults according to the perception of the vitality of the Francophone community in their municipality of residence, by the proportion of minority speaking adults in the municipality, Canada less Quebec, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

In Quebec, the proportion of the English-speaking population that believes that the vitality of the Anglophone community is strong or very strong, at nearly 42% is almost as large as that observed elsewhere in Canada among French-speaking adults. It is in Eastern Quebec (52%) and the Western part of the province (46%) that the largest proportion of the English-speaking population believes that the vitality of the Anglophone community is strong or very strong⁶.

In Montreal, home to the majority of Quebec's English-speaking population, only 43% of adults believe that the vitality of their municipality's Anglophone community is strong or very strong. Conversely, nearly 29% of adults there say that its vitality is neither strong nor weak.

Finally, just as was observed regarding the French-speaking population, perceptions regarding the vitality of Quebec's Anglophone community are also directly related to the weight of the English-speaking population within the municipality of residence.

Chart 2.17
Proportion of English-speaking adults according to the perception of the vitality of the Anglophone community in their municipality of residence, Quebec and regions, 2006

Note: Please refer to Appendix E to obtain quality indicators (coefficient of variation (CV) for the estimates used to produce this graph).
Source: Statistics Canada, Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities, 2006.

References

Bourhis, Richard Y., Howard Giles and D. Rosenthal (1981).
"Notes on the construction of a "Subjective Vitality Questionnaire" for ethnic groups." Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 2, 145 to 155.

Harwood, Jake, Howard Giles and Richard Y. Bourhis (1994).
"The Genesis of Vitality Theory: Historical Patterns and Discoursal Dimensions." International Journal of the Sociology of Language, 108, pp. 167 to 206.

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Notes

1. See, for example, litterature review presented by Harwood et al. (1994) or studies done by Bourhis et al. (1981).
2. A small proportion of the target population has English as its first official language spoken (9%). This basically corresponds to persons with French as their mother tongue who reported no longer being able to conduct a conversation in French.
3. The sample of allophones with French as their first official language spoken is not included in the target population of the survey. It will be dealt with in subsequent analyses.
4. These percentages may be slightly under 20% or slightly over 30% due to the confidence intervals associated to them.
5. Single responses.
6. Note that due to the sample size in Eastern Quebec, the difference between these two estimates is not statistically significant.