A new survey suggests there are Canadians who believe that warnings from public officials about the threat of COVID-19 are vastly overblown.
Almost one-quarter of respondents in an online poll made public Tuesday by Leger and the Association for Canadian Studies say they believe public health and government officials exaggerate in their warnings, including about the need for measures like physical distancing to slow the spread of the pandemic.
Regionally, respondents in Alberta were more likely to believe the threat was embellished, followed by Atlantic Canada and Quebec, with Ontario at the bottom.
Broken down by age, younger respondents were more likely than those over 55 to believe statements were being exaggerated.
Leger executive vice-president Christian Bourque says the results may explain something else that came up in the survey: That a majority of respondents said they have relaxed how strictly they adhere to public health recommendations.
About 57 per cent of respondents in the survey said that they had eased their adherence to one or more of public health safety measures over the last month.
Proper physical distancing was the most likely to be relaxed at 37 per cent of respondents, followed by wearing a mask outside the home at 33 per cent and not gathering in large groups at 31 per cent.
Respondents age 18 to 34 were the most likely to have relaxed on how closely they followed measures, with nearly three-quarters of them saying they had done so in the past month.
Over the last month, case counts have gone up for young people, with Canada’s chief public health officer warning anew on Monday that the country can’t let its guard down.
globalnews.ca
Almost one-quarter of respondents in an online poll made public Tuesday by Leger and the Association for Canadian Studies say they believe public health and government officials exaggerate in their warnings, including about the need for measures like physical distancing to slow the spread of the pandemic.
Regionally, respondents in Alberta were more likely to believe the threat was embellished, followed by Atlantic Canada and Quebec, with Ontario at the bottom.
Broken down by age, younger respondents were more likely than those over 55 to believe statements were being exaggerated.
Leger executive vice-president Christian Bourque says the results may explain something else that came up in the survey: That a majority of respondents said they have relaxed how strictly they adhere to public health recommendations.
About 57 per cent of respondents in the survey said that they had eased their adherence to one or more of public health safety measures over the last month.
Proper physical distancing was the most likely to be relaxed at 37 per cent of respondents, followed by wearing a mask outside the home at 33 per cent and not gathering in large groups at 31 per cent.
Respondents age 18 to 34 were the most likely to have relaxed on how closely they followed measures, with nearly three-quarters of them saying they had done so in the past month.
Over the last month, case counts have gone up for young people, with Canada’s chief public health officer warning anew on Monday that the country can’t let its guard down.
Almost 1/4 of Canadians believe coronavirus warnings from officials are overblown: poll - National | Globalnews.ca
A new survey suggests there are Canadians who believe that warnings from public officials about the threat of COVID-19 are vastly overblown.
globalnews.ca
