General Social Survey: Canadians at Work and Home (GSS)
Detailed information for 2016 (Cycle 30 Pilot Survey)
Status:
Active
Frequency:
Every 5 years
Record number:
5221
The two primary objectives of the General Social Survey (GSS) are to gather data on social trends in order to monitor changes in the living conditions and well being of Canadians over time; and to provide information on specific social policy issues of current or emerging interest.
The mandate of the GSS (Canadians at Work and Home) is to explore people's views about work, home, leisure and well-being, and the relationships between these. Data from this survey will help decision makers select the programs and policies that will best serve Canadians.
Data release - Pilot data are not released.
Description
Canada's rapidly changing demographic profile, along with its accompanying social and economic issues, has led to much discussion concerning the relationship between work, lifestyle and well-being. Gauging the quality of life at work can help diagnose issues relating to productivity, morale, efficiency and equity. Charting patterns of home and leisure activities can take the temperature of Canadian culture. Bringing these two together will provide insight on the health and well-being of Canadians as they meet the challenges of the future.
The General Social Survey Program's new cycle, Canadians at Work and Home, takes a comprehensive look at the way Canadians live by incorporating the realms of work, home, leisure, and overall well-being into a single unit. Data users have expressed a strong interest in knowing more about the lifestyle behaviour of Canadians that impact their health and well-being both in the workplace and at home. The strength of this survey is its ability to take diverse information Canadians provide on various facets of life and combine them in ways not previously possible with surveys that covered one main topic only.
The survey includes a multitude of themes. In the work sphere, it explores important topics such as work ethic, work intensity and distribution, compensation and employment benefits, work satisfaction and meaning, intercultural workplace relations, and bullying and harassment. On the home front, questions include household conflict and resolution, family activity time, and the division of labour and decision making. The survey also covers eating habits and nutritional awareness, the use of technology, sports and outdoor activities, and involvement in cultural activities. New-to-GSS questions on purpose in life, opportunities, life aspirations, outlook and resilience complement previously asked ones on subjective well-being, stress management and other socioeconomic variables.
Within Canada, all levels of government, academics and not-for-profit organizations have expressed interest in the results. Data from this survey will assist with program and policy decisions and research of all kinds interested in exploring the workplace, home life and leisure activities of Canadians from all areas of life. In addition, much of the data from this survey will be comparable internationally, thus allowing for the comparison of the well-being of Canadians to those in other countries.
Statistical activity
This record is part of the General Social Survey (GSS) program. The GSS originated in 1985. Each survey contains a core topic, focus or exploratory questions and a standard set of socio-demographic questions used for classification. More recent cycles have also included some qualitative questions, which explore intentions and perceptions.
Subjects
- Society and community
Data sources and methodology
Target population
The target population is all non-institutionalized persons 15 years of age or older, living in the ten provinces of Canada.
Instrument design
The questionnaire was designed based on research and extensive consultations with data users. Qualitative testing, conducted by Statistics Canada's Questionnaire Design Resource Center (QDRC), was carried out, with respondents in four cities, who were screened in based on representative criteria. Questions which worked well and others that needed clarification or redesign were highlighted. QDRC staff compiled a detailed report of the results along with their recommendations. All comments and feedback from qualitative testing were carefully considered and incorporated into the survey whenever possible
Sampling
This is a sample survey with a cross-sectional design.
This survey uses a frame combining landline and cellular telephone numbers from the Census and various administrative sources with Statistics Canada's dwelling frame. Records on the frame are groups of one or several telephone numbers associated with the same address (or single telephone number in the case a link between a telephone number and an address could not be established). This sampling frame is used to obtain a better coverage of households with a telephone number.
The sample is based on a stratified design employing probability sampling. The stratification is done at the province/census metropolitan area (CMA) level. Information is collected from one randomly selected household member aged 15 or older, and proxy responses are not permitted.
3,000 letters are being sent to selected households across Canada with an expected completion of 1,000 cases.
Data sources
Data collection for this reference period: 2016-02-01 to 2016-03-13
Responding to this survey is voluntary.
Data are collected directly from survey respondents.
Canadians at Work and Home uses the full multi-mode collection method: an Electronic Questionnaire (EQ) and telephone interviews (CATI).
The initial contact occurs in one of two ways:
1. Those with known addresses will be sent a letter in the mail (EQ sample)
2. Those with no known addresses will be contacted by telephone (CATI sample).
The sequence after initial contact is as follows:
For those in the EQ sample, the letter requests that an eligible household member (ages 15 or over) go on line using the link provided and roster the household. The application will then randomly select someone from the household. There are two possible scenarios:
1. If the person who rostered the household is selected, he/she will continue directly to the survey content.
2. If someone else in the household is selected (secondary respondent), the rosterer will be asked to provide an email address for this individual.
i. If an email address is provided, an email invitation will be sent to the secondary respondent with a link to the survey.
ii. If no email adress is provided, the case will be transferred back to CATI immediately and the secondary respondent will be contacted by phone.
Other reasons for transferring cases from EQ to CATI either immediately or when the portal closes:
• When there is no response to the initial letter, reminder letter or email invitation (transfer when portal closes)
• When the selected respondent logs in but does not complete the survey (transfer when the portal closes)
• When the rosterer indicates that the telephone number listed for verification does not belong to the household (transfer immediately)
• When the rosterer indicates that the telephone number listed for verification is out of scope and there are other telephone numbers available (transfer immediately)
• When the secondary respondent indicates that their name or address are incorrect (transfer immediately)
Once a case is in CATI, it will not be transferred back to EQ. There are no proxies allowed in this survey.
View the Questionnaire(s) and reporting guide(s) .
Disclosure control
Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information it collects that could identify any person, business, or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent or as permitted by the Statistics Act. Various confidentiality rules are applied to all data that are released or published to prevent the publication or disclosure of any information deemed confidential. If necessary, data are suppressed to prevent direct or residual disclosure of identifiable data.
In order to prevent any data disclosure, confidentiality analysis is done using the Statistics Canada Generalized Disclosure Control System (G-Confid). G-Confid is used for primary suppression (direct disclosure) as well as for secondary suppression (residual disclosure). Direct disclosure occurs when the value in a tabulation cell is composed of or dominated by few enterprises while residual disclosure occurs when confidential information can be derived indirectly by piecing together information from different sources or data series.
Documentation
- The General Social Survey: An Overview
Last review : January 7, 2021
- Date modified: