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Sense of pride/belonging to Canada
Domain
Society
Subdomain
Culture and identity
Indicator
Sense of pride/belonging to Canada
Definition
- Proportion of the Canadian-born population by level of pride in being Canadian.
- Proportion of the immigrant population by level of pride in living in Canada.
- Proportion of the population by strength of sense of belonging to Canada.
Measurement
This indicator is measured through the General Social Survey (GSS) - Social Identity, the Canadian Social Survey (CSS), and the Survey Series on People and their Communities (SSPC).
Sense of pride in being Canadian
In the GSS on Social Identity, survey respondents who were born in Canada are asked:
How proud are you to be Canadian?
- Very proud
- Proud
- Somewhat proud
- Not very proud
- Not proud at all
- No opinion
Sense of pride in living in Canada
In the GSS on Social Identity, survey respondents who were born outside of Canada are asked:
How proud are you to live in Canada?
- Very proud
- Proud
- Somewhat proud
- Not very proud
- Not proud at all
- No opinion
Sense of belonging to Canada
In the GSS on Social Identity and the CSS (Wave 5), survey respondents are asked:
How would you describe your sense of belonging to Canada?
- Very strong
- Somewhat strong
- Somewhat weak
- Very weak
- No opinion
Data sources
This indicator is measured through more than one Statistics Canada survey. Estimates can vary between data sources due to differences in reference periods, targeted or sampled populations, data collection and other methodology.
- General Social Survey (GSS) - Social Identity
- Table 89-640-X – Sense of belonging to Canada, province and local community, by age group and sex, Canada, 2008
- Table 43-10-0064-01 – Sense of belonging to the local community, town, province and Canada and trust in people, by groups designated as visible minorities and selected sociodemographic characteristics, 2020
- Canadian Social Survey (CSS)
- Survey Series on People and their Communities (SSPC)
Data visualizations
- Proud to be Canadian (Statistics Canada – Infographics, June 23, 2015)
Data analysis
- Areas with high rates of hate crime also report lower scores on quality of life indicators (The Daily, February 8, 2024)
- Almost three in four Canadians have a strong or somewhat strong sense of belonging to Canada (StatsCAN Plus, June 30, 2023)
- Immigrants' sense of belonging to Canada by province of residence (Economic and Social Reports, June 28, 2023)
- Filipino Canadian proud with a strong sense of belonging (StatsCAN Plus, June 19, 2023)
- Sense of belonging to Canada, the province of residence and the local community (The Daily, June 29, 2015)
Additional information
The General Social Survey of Social Identity also asks respondents about the pride they feel for selected Canadian achievements. See the analysis General Social Survey – Social Identity, 2020: A snapshot of pride in Canadian achievements among designated groups for more information.
Frameworks
This indicator aligns with the following framework:
- Social inclusion indicators for Canada's ethnocultural groups
- Social connections and personal networks
- Strong sense of belonging to Canada
- Strong sense of belonging to the province
- Social connections and personal networks
- Date modified: