Canadians And Christmas

Most Canadians continue to view Christmas as a time to be with their families, rather than a time to reflect on the birth of Jesus Christ, a time for sharing and gift exchange, or a festive winter season. Putting up a Christmas tree and having a turkey dinner remain popular activities for a large majority of Canadians, while between five and six out of every ten Canadians say they will be hanging stockings, attending church and setting up a nativity scene in their homes this holiday season.

These findings were yielded by a National Angus Reid/Southam News Poll conducted among a representative cross-section of 1506 Canadian adults between November 20 and 26, 1995.

On the consumer spending front, one-half of the Canadians surveyed said they plan to spend about the same amount of money this Christmas as they did last year, although the remainder are more likely to say they plan to cut back rather than increase their expenditures.

The Meaning of Christmas to Canadians

Asked to choose one of four descriptions which best reflects what they feel is the most important thing about Christmas, a majority (57%) of surveyed Canadians selected "a time for family". Less than half as many viewed Christmas as primarily "a time to reflect on the birth of Jesus Christ" (21%, down from 27% in a December 1987 poll) - the number picking this characterization ranged from 10 percent in Quebec to 33 percent in Atlantic Canada. The remaining two options remain the least popular: "a time for sharing and gift giving" (8%); and, "a nice festive season in the middle of winter" (7%). Generationally, older Canadians (55+) were somewhat more likely than their counterparts under 55 to view Christmas as a time to reflect on the birth of Jesus Christ (28% versus 18%). (Table 1)

Canadians' Christmas Traditions

As to what kinds of things Canadians plan to do this Christmas, the vast majority (86%) of those polled said they will have a Christmas tree in their home. This number ranged from 79 percent of Quebecers to 94 percent of their Atlantic Canadian counterparts. (Table 1)

• Three-quarters (75%) of Canadians will have turkey for Christmas dinner. At least eight in ten Canadians from all major regions expressed this intention, the notable exception being residents of Quebec (51%).
• Nearly six in ten (58%) of those surveyed indicated they will hang stockings this Christmas season. This number was in the 62 to 71 percent range in all regions except Quebec (40%).
• A similar number (55%) of Canadians have intentions of going to church this Christmas, identical to the figure recorded two years ago but lower than the 65 percent measured back in 1987. Plans to attend church are most common among Atlantic Canadians (71%), least so among British Columbians (43%).
• Almost one-half (47%) of interviewed Canadians said they plan to set up a nativity scene in their home this Christmas. This figure surpassed the majority mark among Quebecers and residents of Manitoba/Saskatchewan (58% and 51% respectively), but dropped to 41 percent in Ontario.

Consumers' Christmas Spending Intentions

Almost one in seven (15%) consumers surveyed indicated they plan to spend more money this Christmas than they did last year, but twice as many said they intend to spend less than they did last Christmas. The single largest number said their Christmas expenditures this year will be comparable to what they spent last holiday season (49%). This is a more bullish outlook than consumers offered in three consecutive sounding taken in the early '90s. For example, the November 1993 Angus Reid Poll found much more cautious Christmas spending intentions: fully 46 percent reported they intended to spend less that Christmas season versus only 9 percent who intended to spend more. It is important to note that these current figures represent the proportion of consumers who report intentions to increase, maintain or reduce their Christmas expenditures, not the actual money that will be spent by them and which will be subsequently reflected in retail sales figures. In virtually all major regions, the number saying they intend to cut back on Christmas spending this year exceeded the number saying they will be increasing their expenditures, especially in British Columbia (32% spend less versus 11% spend more) and Alberta (32% versus 10%); the lone exception was the breakeven observed among respondents from Manitoba/Saskatchewan (23% spend more, 22% spend less).

When asked how much money they intend to spend on the Christmas gift they will buy for their "significant other", a plurality of four in ten (39%) indicated it will be over $100, 22 percent said it will be in the $51 to $100 range, and 18 percent stated they will spend $50 or less on this present. (Thirteen percent volunteered that they do not have a significant other, and 8% were either unsure or said they do not celebrate Christmas in any way.) Plans to spend more than $100 on a Christmas gift for their significant other were relatively less prevalent among consumers from Quebec (25%), women (30% versus 47% of men), and less affluent consumers (18% of those from households where total annual pre-tax income is under $30,000, rising to 40% from middle income households and to 56% of those from $60,000+ households).

The Survey Questions

"Christmas means different things to different people. Which one of the following is closest to what you think is the most important thing about Christmas: a time for family; a time to reflect on the birth of Jesus Christ; a time for sharing and gift giving; a nice festive season in the middle of winter?"

"People follow all sorts of different traditions at Christmas time. We'd like to get an idea of the kinds of things people do. This Christmas, will you...?"

"This Christmas, do you think you personally will be spending more money this year than last, will you spend about the same, or will you be spending less money this year than you did last Christmas?"

"And how much do you think you will be spending on the present you buy for your significant other?"

This National Angus Reid Poll was conducted by telephone between November 20th and 26th, 1995 among a representative cross-section of 1506 Canadian adults . The actual number of completed interviews in each region was as follows: B.C. - 202; Alberta - 135; Manitoba/Saskatchewan - 120; Ontario - 529; Quebec - 400; Atlantic - 120. These data were statistically weighted to ensure the sample's regional and age/sex composition reflects that of the actual Canadian population according to the 1991 Census data. With a national sample of 1506, one can say with 95 percent certainty that the results are within ±2.5 percentage points of what they would have been had the entire adult Canadian population been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population.

For further information, contact:

Angus Reid
Chairman & CEO
Angus Reid Group
(604) 257-3200

Darrel Bricker
Senior Vice-President
Angus Reid Group
(613) 241-5802

John Wright
Senior Vice-President
Angus Reid Group
(416) 324-2900