Do Canadians have confidence in their public institutions?

Over three in five Canadians reported a good or great deal of confidence in the police in the fall of 2022, while just under one-third reported a good or great level of confidence in the Federal Parliament or the Canadian media, according to a new study.

Many institutions play a pivotal role in the wellbeing of Canadians. Public institutions, such as the Federal Parliament, establish the laws under which Canadians operate. Others, such as the justice system and courts, determine how these laws are upheld.

Exploring Canadians’ confidence in public and private institutions can provide insight into how these institutions are perceived, in terms of reliability and effectiveness.

The Canadian Social Survey, conducted from October to December 2022, asked Canadians about their level of confidence in five separate institutions: the police, the justice system and courts, the school system, Federal Parliament, and the Canadian media.

Overall, more than three in five Canadians (62%) reported a good or great deal of confidence in the police. Just under half of Canadians reported a good or great level of confidence in the school system (47%) and the justice system and the courts (46%). Meanwhile, just under one-third of Canadians reported a good or great level of confidence in the Federal Parliament (32%) or the Canadian media (31%).

Older Canadians more likely to have higher levels of confidence in institutions

In general, confidence in institutions was highest among older Canadians.

For example, 44% of Canadians aged 75 years and older and 39% of those aged 65 to 74 years reported having a good or great deal of confidence in the media. By contrast, roughly one-quarter of those aged 15 to 24 years (26%) or 25 to 34 years (23%) reported having a good or great deal of confidence in Canadian media.

The same pattern held true for the level of confidence Canadians had in Federal Parliament, with 42% of those aged 75 years and older reporting a good or great deal of confidence in the institution, compared with 33% for those aged 15 to 24 years.

Canadians with high life satisfaction or a hopeful view of the future are more likely to report having a good or great deal of confidence in institutions

The Canadian Social Survey includes several self-reported measures that assess one’s quality of life—such as one’s satisfaction with their life as a whole and their overall level of hopefulness. These measures shed light on the relationship between indicators like the confidence Canadians have in institutions and their overall well being.

When asked to rate how they felt about their life as a whole, almost half (46%) of Canadians reported having a high sense of satisfaction. Within this group, about 4 in 10 (41%) reported having a good or great deal of confidence in the Federal Parliament.

By contrast, one-quarter (25%) of those who did not report a high sense of satisfaction with their life reported having a good or great deal of confidence in the Federal Parliament.

This relationship—between high life satisfaction and confidence in institutions—was apparent for every institution that respondents were asked about. Canadians with high levels of life satisfaction were much more likely than those with low levels of life satisfaction to report confidence in the media (40% versus 24%), the justice system (57% versus 38%), the school system (58% versus 38%) and the police (73% versus 53%).

Beyond life satisfaction, Canadians who reported that they often or always felt hopeful were more likely to report a good or great level of confidence in public institutions. For example, 71% of those who reported that they often or always felt hopeful had a good or great deal of confidence in the police, compared with about half (51%) of those who sometimes, rarely or never felt hopeful.

Immigrants more likely to report confidence in institutions

In many cases, the decision to move to a new country comes with an inherent belief in the governance and ideals of that country. In general, immigrants were more likely to report confidence in Canadian institutions.

Just under half (46%) of immigrants reported having a good or great deal of confidence in the Federal Parliament, which was nearly twice as high as the level of confidence expressed by of non-immigrants (27%).

Newer immigrants were even more likely to report having a good or great deal of confidence in Federal Parliament. For example, more than half (56%) of immigrants who have been in Canada for 10 years or less reported having a good or great deal of confidence in the Federal Parliament, compared with 41% of immigrants who have been in Canada for more than a decade.

Want to learn more?

Confidence in institutions is an indicator in Canada’s Quality of Life Framework.

The infographic Confidence in Canadian institutions was released on November 14, 2023. Additional data on confidence in institutions by gender, province and other sociodemographic characteristics are available in table 45-10-0073-01 and table 45-10-0074-01.