It’s not for nothing that “it’s going to be fine” is a slogan here. A new survey on COVID-19 infections and attitudes reveals that Quebecers have been more resilient than the rest of Canada.
“Quebecers are more optimistic. And that has been a constant since the start of the pandemic, ”observes pollster Jean-Marc Léger.
A Léger poll conducted for The Canadian Press in early April shows that Quebecers are more calm in the face of the virus and the health crisis.
For example, 45% of Quebecers consider their mental health to be “excellent” or “very good”, compared to 37% for the country as a whole.
In addition, 68% of Quebecers believe that the worst of the crisis is behind us, compared to only 45% in Ontario.
Less fear
The majority of Quebecers (53%) are “not really” or “not at all” afraid of catching the virus, compared to 45% in Canada as a whole.
How to explain this trend? Jean-Marc Léger, who has already studied the cultural traits that distinguish Quebecers, explains it in particular by thinking focused on the short term, which is often associated with the “bon vivant” side of the Belle Province.
In the rest of Canada, planning for the future tends to be more important, while Quebecers value the present moment more.
In this context of crisis which drags on, it is therefore an advantage, explains Mr. Léger. Some 22% of Canadian adults say they have contracted the coronavirus in the last two years, reveals the survey.
Among them, only 20% had symptoms severe to the point of having to stay in bed and 1% to the point of being hospitalized.
“It’s good news,” remarks the pollster Jean-Marc Léger about the weakness of the symptoms felt.
“Which does not prevent picking the wrong number and having it [la COVID-19] more rough than the others,” recalls Mr. Léger.
Mutation
These figures illustrate how much the virus has mutated. In a Léger poll published in December 2020, one in three people said they were afraid of dying so hard was the disease.
Unsurprisingly, it is young people aged 18-34 who have been most infected, as well as partially or unvaccinated people.
” The people [avaient] twice as likely to be infected if they were not vaccinated ”, since 38% of them said they had caught COVID-19 against 20% for the vaccinated, notes Jean-Marc Léger.
Non-vaccinated apart
Despite everything, only 10% of partially or unvaccinated people say they are “very” or “somewhat” afraid of the virus, a figure very far from that of the Canadian population as a whole (44%).
“Them, they are really not afraid,” summarizes Mr. Léger.
Overall, the perception of the health crisis has also evolved. For about a year, Canadians have tended to believe that the situation will improve.
This perception dropped sharply in the fall with the arrival of the Omicron variant, before rising again at the start of 2022.
ARE YOU PERSONALLY AFRAID OF CONTRACTING THE VIRUS?
SEVERITY OF SYMPTOMS
PERCEPTION OF THE EVOLUTION OF THE PANDEMIC SINCE MARCH 2020
Methodology : Web survey conducted among 1,538 Canadians between April 8 and April 10, 2022. The results have been weighted to make them representative of the general population. A margin of error cannot be calculated for this type of sample, but for comparison, a similar probability sample would have a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5%, 19 times out of 20.
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