Seven in Ten (71%) Canadian Parents Say It’s Important to Keep Children Busy With Organized Activities
Toronto, ON, September 4, 2017 — Seven in ten parents (71%) agree (25% strongly/46% somewhat) it’s important to keep children as busy as possible with organized activities, a new Ipsos study for Global News has found. The survey of Canadian parents found that three in ten (29%) disagree (7% strongly/22% somewhat) about the importance of keeping kids busy with organized activities at all times. Indeed, many parents think extracurricular activities can take up too much of children’s free time: more than half (54%) agree (13% strongly/41% somewhat) that children these days spend too much time in organized activities, and not enough time just playing.
The idea that kids need to be kept as busy as possible holds more sway for some parents than others. Those aged 55 and over are most likely to agree (85%), compared to parents aged 18-34 (74%) or 35-54 (68%). Regionally, this idea is most popular in Quebec, where more than eight in ten parents (84%) agree it’s important to keep children as busy as possible with organized activities. By comparison, fewer parents in Alberta (72%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (69%), Ontario (69%), Atlantic Canada (60%), and BC (57%) feel the same. When it comes to feeling that kids may be taking on too much instead of being free to just play, these differences are not significant.
Extra-curricular activities are a fun way for kids to make friends and stay active, and on average, parents think it’s appropriate to start enrolling children in organized activities from age 5. Nearly half (48%) think it’s fine to start enrolling them before this age, while 28% say it should be later. On average, men think extra-curricular activities should start when the child is slightly older (at 5.4 years old, compared to the average of 4.4 years put forward by women). The older the parent, the older they think the child should be: Millennial parents think an average age of 4.2 years old is appropriate, compared to 5 years old for Gen X parents, and 5.9 years old, on average, for Baby Boomer parents.
Parents choose to enroll their children in extracurricular activities for a number of reasons. Parents want to give their children a diverse experience in extracurricular activities – more than nine in ten (94%) agree (47% strongly/48% somewhat) it’s important. This is particularly the case given the variety of available options: a majority (87%) agree (35% strongly/53% somewhat) that options for children’s activities are better today than ever before.
Baby Boomer parents (85%) are more likely to agree that it is important to keep children busy, compared to 68% of Gen X parents and 74% of Millennial parents. At the regional level, parents in Quebec are also more likely to agree (84%), followed by those from Alberta (72%), Saskatchewan/Manitoba (69%), Ontario (69%), Atlantic Canada (60%), and British Columbia (57%).
Looking to the school year ahead, more than four in ten parents (44%) plan to enroll their kids in at least one extra-curricular activity. One in four (25%) will sign them up for two activities, while nearly one in three (32%) plan to enroll their kids in three or more extra-curricular activities.
About the Study
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between August 16 and 22, 2017, on behalf of Global News. For this survey, a sample of 1,001 Canadians parents aged 18+ from Ipsos' 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 within ±3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadian parents been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the 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:
Sean Simpson, Vice President
Ipsos Public Affairs
+1 416 324 2002
[email protected]
For full tabular results, please visit our website at www.ipsos-na.com.
News Releases are available at: http://www.ipsos-na.com/news-polls/
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. Ipsos ranks fourth in the global research industry.
With offices in 88 countries, Ipsos delivers insightful expertise across five research specializations: brand, advertising and media; customer loyalty; marketing; 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 €1,782.7 million in 2016.
