ANXIETY RISING IN CANADA: POLL
Generational differences seen in responses
A majority of Canadians, particularly those in Ontario, B.C. and Quebec are worried about a widespread outbreak of COVID-19 in cities they live in, according to an exclusive poll conducted by research and analytics company Leger Marketing.
The poll, commissioned by the Association for Canadian Studies, surveyed 1,479 Canadians nationally, and showed that 59 per cent of Canadians were worried about the outbreak of the virus, with 20 per cent being “very worried” and 39 per cent “somewhat worried”.
Ontarians showed the highest level of concern about the virus, which corresponded to the fact that the province currently has the largest number of cases in the country. The number of cases continued to climb on Sunday, with Ontario reporting 42 new cases, bringing the total to 145.
The Prairie provinces showed the lowest level of concern about the virus, according to the poll, which still sat at about 50 per cent.
The coronavirus crisis has dramatically escalated since the poll was conducted on the week of March 9 — many provincial school boards and universities announced mass closures late last week, and the federal government issued an advisory cautioning against all non-essential travel while urging Canadians abroad to come home immediately.
“Even before things escalated, the poll showed that concern amongst Canadians about coronavirus was high,” said Jack Jedwab, President of the Association for Canadian Studies.
“The level of anxiety and concern is increasing hourly because of restrictions that are being suggested and the way people are interpreting those things,” he added.
According to the poll, 59 per cent of Canadians were worried that someone in their family would get sick from the coronavirus, with 21 per cent being “very worried” about the prospect of COVID-19 infecting a family member.
There also appeared to be a profound generational difference in the way Canadians were interpreting the severity of the pandemic: 68 per cent of millennials, those aged between 18 and 34, believed the threat of the virus was being exaggerated, while just 39 per cent of those aged 55 and above said they agreed the virus concerns were overblown.
“I think a lot of young people don’t feel that they are going to be affected by it. There has also been messaging suggesting that people with preconditions, or older people are much more directly affected by this,” said Jedwab. “Is that the best messaging given you could put somebody at risk and be a carrier yourself? I’m not too sure,” he added.
The vast consensus among health experts since the virus first appeared in China months ago has been that older people, and those with pre-existing health conditions are most at risk of getting severely ill if infected.
But the virus has killed younger people.
In China, a number of front line health workers in their 20s and 30s who were exposed to the virus for extended periods of time ended up in critical care, or dying. As the number of cases explode in Italy, an increasing number of people aged below 50 are in critical care, according to the latest data from the Italian public health agency.
The poll also queried Canadians on their travel habits in light of the virus. Almost 70 per cent of those surveyed on the week of March 9 said that they would not travel outside the country. This number skewed higher according to age, implying that those between 18 and 34 were still considering travel despite the virus.
On Thursday, ahead of the March break travel season, Ottawa warned Canadians against any kind of international travel, though no travel bans or border closings have been officially implemented. Over the weekend, the federal government urged Canadians who were already abroad, to come back immediately, while commercial flights remained available.
“With what has happened over the last two days, my feeling is that travel number has gone up quite a bit. My guess is that most people are not going to travel,” Jedwab said.
With the exception of Quebecers, many Canadians appeared to be content with what federal and provincial governments were doing to curb the spread of the virus: 58 per cent of Canadians said the government’s preventive measures were adequate, while 47 per cent of Quebecers disagreed with the notion that governments were doing enough to prevent the spread of COVID-19.