Four in Five (81%) Canadians Believe Pope Francis is Moving the Catholic Church in a Positive Direction

Toronto, ON - In March 2013, Pope Francis was elected via papal conclave after the resignation of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, and has received many a fanfare since his election due to his focus on the world's poor and dialogue between faiths and putting less of an emphasis on taking condemning stances towards controversial issues such as abortion and homosexuality. The election of a new Pope always comes as one of the year's top stories whenever these elections occur, so much so that CTV, Ipsos' media partner, has declared the election of Pope Francis to be the 9th largest news story of 2013.

According to a new poll conducted by Ipsos Reid on behalf of CTV News, Pope Francis's current emphasis towards more pertaining social issues, rather than moral ones, appears to have resonated with many Canadians. Four in five (81%) Canadians `agree' (26% strongly/54% somewhat) that `Pope Francis is moving the Catholic Church in a positive direction'. Conversely, just one in five (19%) Canadians `disagree' (5% strongly/14% somewhat) that Pope Francis is taking the Church in the right direction.

The older Canadians are, the more likely they are to believe in this move towards a positive direction for the Catholic Church, led by seniors (88%, aged 55+), followed by middle-aged (80%, aged 35-54) and younger (73%, aged 18-34) Canadians. By comparison, younger Canadians (27%) are most likely to disagree that the Church is heading in the right direction under Pope Francis.

Interestingly, as the income level of Canadians increases, so does the agreement that Pope Francis is moving the Catholic Church in a positive direction. Canadians in the lowest income category (74%, less than $40,000 annually) are least likely to agree with this sentiment while those earning the highest incomes (87%, $100+ annually) are most likely to believe it.

British Columbians (84%) are most likely to believe that the new Pope is taking the Church in the right direction, followed by Ontarians (83%), Albertans (82%), Atlantic Canadians (78%), Quebecers (77%) and residents of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (75%). Conversely, those from Saskatchewan and Manitoba (25%) are least likely to believe the Church is headed in a positive direction under Pope Francis, followed by Quebecers (23%), Atlantic Canadians (22%), Albertans (18%), Ontarians (17%), and British Columbians (16%).

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between December 9th to 13th, 2013, on behalf of CTV News. For this survey, a sample of 2,535 Canadians from Ipsos' Canadian online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case the poll is accurate to +/- 2.2 percentage points of the entire Canadian adult population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.

For more information on this news release, please contact:

John Wright
Senior Vice President
Ipsos Reid
Public Affairs
416.324.2002
[email protected]

About Ipsos Reid

Ipsos Reid is Canada's market intelligence leader, the country's leading provider of public opinion research, and research partner for loyalty and forecasting and modelling insights. With operations in eight cities, Ipsos Reid employs more than 600 research professionals and support staff in Canada. The company has the biggest network of telephone call centres in the country, as well as the largest pre-recruited household and online panels. Ipsos Reid's marketing research and public affairs practices offer the premier suite of research vehicles in Canada, all of which provide clients with actionable and relevant information. Staffed with seasoned research consultants with extensive industry-specific backgrounds, Ipsos Reid offers syndicated information or custom solutions across key sectors of the Canadian economy, including consumer packaged goods, financial services, automotive, retail, and technology & telecommunications. Ipsos Reid is an Ipsos company, a leading global survey-based market research group.

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About Ipsos

Ipsos is an independent market research company controlled and managed by research professionals. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos has grown into a worldwide research group with a strong presence in all key markets. In October 2011 Ipsos completed the acquisition of Synovate. The combination forms the world's third largest market research company.

With offices in 85 countries, Ipsos delivers insightful expertise across six research specializations: advertising, customer loyalty, marketing, media, public affairs research, and survey management.

Ipsos researchers assess market potential and interpret market trends. They develop and build brands. They help clients build long-term relationships with their customers. They test advertising and study audience responses to various media and they measure public opinion around the globe.

Ipsos has been listed on the Paris Stock Exchange since 1999 and generated global revenues of e1,789 billion (2.300 billion USD) in 2012.

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