January 28, 2022
Next month, the 2022 Winter Olympic Games are set to be hosted in Beijing, China. Given COVID concerns as well as political tensions, there has been discussion of whether Canada should boycott the Games or not. Some are of the opinion that boycotting the Games would be unfair to athletes who have trained extensively for the opportunity to compete, while others may feel that a boycott of the games would send a message about the Chinese government’s role in human rights abuses. When Canadians were asked to weigh in on the subject, opinions were evenly split, with one-half of the belief that Canada should boycott the Games (51%), and the remaining one-half indicating that Canada should participate (49%).
There is little discrepancy in opinions across provinces, genders, and household income categories, where in all instances Canadians remain evenly divided on the issue. However, there are some notable differences of opinion across age and education demographics. Younger residents, aged 18-24, are markedly more likely than their older counterparts to believe that Canada should participate in the Beijing Games (66%, compared with 45% – 49% for those aged 25 and older). Additionally, those with a college education are slightly less likely than their counterparts to agree that Canada should participate in the Games (42%), while those with a university education are more likely to think Canada should participate (55%).
Results are from an online survey conducted November 15-17, 2021, with 2,000 Canadians Results shown are from a survey conducted online January 17-19, 2022, with 1,231 Canadians 18 years of age or older from the Logit Group’s Canadian Omnibus. Fielding every month, the Logit Group’s COVID-19 Omnibus surveys Canadians to ask their opinions and behaviours related to topical issues. Results were analyzed by Narrative Research. Data was weighted based on the 2016 Census, by gender, age, and region to reflect these population characteristics in each province. As a non-probability sample (i.e., a panel sample where residents have joined a panel to share their opinions), and in accordance with CRIC Public Opinion Research Standards, a margin of error is not applied.
The question included in this press release was the following:
Given COVID concerns as well as political tensions, some people say that Canada should boycott the Games. Others say boycotting the Games would be unfair to the athletes who have trained extensively for this event. What is your opinion?
For more information, contact:
Margaret Chapman, COO, Narrative Research – 902.222.4048, mchapman@narrativeresearch.ca
OR
Sam Pisani, Managing Partner, Logit Group – 416.629.4116, sam.pisani@logitgroup.com
Narrative Research (www.narrativeresearch.ca), is a leading public opinion and market research company headquartered in Canada. The company was recently certified as a WBE (Women Business Enterprise). As a non-partisan, 100% Canadian-owned research company, Narrative Research is dedicated to providing clients with state-of-the-art research and strategic consulting services.
The Logit Group (https://logitgroup.com/) is a leading North American data collection and market research execution company headquartered in Toronto, conducting large-scale projects for a variety of well-known research agencies and brands. Logit employs industry-best technologies across an array of methodologies, and is independent, experienced and quality-oriented.
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