Statistics Canada Data Sources on Official-Language Minorities

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May 2013

Purpose of the document

This document is primarily intended as a reference tool on the different sources of language information available to users of Statistics Canada data. It lists, in addition to the census, the surveys and administrative databases that provide information on official languages. The information provided in this document will facilitate access to Statistics Canada data by informing researchers about the availability of survey data, access to databases and, especially, the various themes that can be explored to contribute to what is known about official-language minorities in Canada.

The document begins by providing general information about access to Statistics Canada data. We then present the language concepts measured by the various surveys and the related questions asked in each one. This is followed by summaries of the flagship surveys, or those surveys which, because of their sample size, subject or the range of language questions, are considered the most important sources of data on official-language minorities.

Using a topic-based approach, the following sections contain descriptions of each of the 39 active or inactive surveys of interest for researching official-language minorities. Each description includes a brief summary of the survey’s objectives, frequency, target population, final sample size, sample sizes for Francophones outside Quebec and Anglophones in Quebec, and lastly, the language questions found in each survey’s questionnaire or database. Most of the survey descriptions also include a section entitled, “Examples of publications related to the survey”. This section provides a few references to articles or reports that use the data of the survey in question. Whenever possible, the references provided are those that make use of language data, but this is not always the case. Although these articles or reports may not use language data in their analyses, they nevertheless serve to illustrate the analytical potential of the survey’s data and the type of information that might be drawn from it by adding language variables to these analyses.Note 1

The document also provides information on Statistics Canada’s administrative databases containing language-related information and the various options for accessing it. Administrative data come from government sources or, sometimes, from mandatory surveys. In the case of official-language minorities, the administrative databases of interest are those containing data on immigrants (see the “Ethnic diversity and immigration” section) and school attendance (see the “Education, training and learning” section): Longitudinal Immigration Database (IMDB; 5057), Elementary-Secondary Education Survey (ESES; 5102) and the Postsecondary Student Information System (PSIS; 5017). The descriptions of the administrative databases are presented in the same way as for the surveys.

Sample sizes

The quality of analytical results depends, in part, on the size of the sample and subsamples available. We have therefore included in this document the size of official-language minority samples and subsamples, because it is important to have an idea of the number of respondents in a database before proceeding with analyses of subpopulations such as official-languages minorities. By knowing the size of the sample and subsamples, researchers are in a better position to evaluate the possibilities for analysis.

The databases of the censuses of population, the 2011 National Household Survey (NHS) and the 2006 Survey on the Vitality of Official-Language Minorities (SVOLM), which have quite large samples of official-language minorities, provide the best potential for analysis at a subprovincial level. However, the other surveys described in this document also offer considerable analytical potential, although there may be some limitations at certain geographic levels.

The information on sample sizes is presented both for the English-language minority in Quebec and for the French-language minorities outside Quebec. For each survey, we have chosen to present these figures based on language characteristics available in the survey questionnaire. The preferred approach is to use mother tongue, when available. If not, we have chosen to give priority to other questions and/or concepts from the Canadian census.

Timeliness of the information

All questionnaires available on the Statistics Canada website in May 2012 were viewed.Note 2 Surveys containing at least one language question were selected and examined on the basis of the questions available and the size of the samples according to the chosen language characteristic, which was generally the mother tongue. Some surveys containing language information are nevertheless excluded from this document because their area of interest is too specific and the limited sample size of persons belonging to official-language minorities. On the other hand, some surveys for which the sample size does not necessarily lend itself to very extensive statistical analyses are nevertheless described in the document because of the importance of their subject.

Information on the Statistics Canada website changes frequently. Readers are therefore advised to use the link provided for each survey in order to view the questionnaire as a whole and to confirm information on the new cycles of these surveys, where required.

This document is intended as a work tool to facilitate a variety of analyses on official-language minorities in Canada. The data sources described can be used to expand our knowledge of official-language minorities in such areas as language trajectories, level of education and language of study, health and nutrition, labour market situation and income.

Access to Statistics Canada data

There are several ways to access Statistics Canada data. The Statistics Canada website, www.statcan.gc.ca, remains the foremost source of information and data for the census and surveys, and contains both general and detailed documentation (questionnaires, dictionaries, technical manuals, methodology, coverage, etc.). It also provides access to numerous compilations of statistical data from the census in the form of “topic-based tabulations,” “highlight tables,” “profiles” and analytical reports related to census data, notably, Linguistic Characteristics of Canadians and French and the francophonie in Canada. Additionally, many analytical reports and articles on survey data are available on the Statistics Canada website. With a few exceptions, the information on the website is offered at no charge to the public.

Survey data are available through the Data Liberation Initiative (DLI), which facilitates access to data in participating postsecondary educational institutions. Microdata files are accessible through the Research Data Centres (RDCs), and customized tables may be obtained through Statistics Canada’s National Contact Centre.

The Data Liberation Initiative (DLI) consists of an agreement between Statistics Canada and participating postsecondary educational institutions. The program was created to improve access to data for Canada’s postsecondary institutions. Professors and students of colleges and universities that subscribe to DLI have unlimited access to numerous data products and to the Statistics Canada geographic information system. For example, DLI provides access for participating postsecondary institutions to public use microdata files. DLI membership is more than a data resource subscription. It also provides access to services, training, infrastructure and partnerships, or resources and tools of which the data centres of the member institutions can take advantage. DLI’s services include specialized research assistance, support to data centres, tools that enhance client service, and expert training and consulting services. For more information on DLI, contact dli-idd@statcan.gc.ca.

The Research Data Centres are part of an initiative by Statistics Canada, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and university consortia to help strengthen Canada’s social research capacity and to support the policy research community. The Research Data Centres (RDCs) provide researchers with direct access to microdata files of the population censuses and household and population surveys. The RDCs are accessible to researchers whose proposals have been approved and who have been sworn in as “deemed employees” of Statistics Canada. RDCs are located throughout the country, so researchers do not need to travel to Ottawa to access Statistics Canada microdata. For further information on the activities of the RDCs, visit the Canadian Research Data Centre Network (CRDCN) at http://www.rdc-cdr.ca.

As mentioned earlier, the Statistics Canada website remains the foremost source of information and data for the census and surveys. It offers a complete list of active and inactive surveys conducted by the Agency. The steps for accessing this list are:

  1. Go to the Statistics Canada home page (www.statcan.gc.ca)
  2. Choose your preferred language
  3. Under the heading “Information for…”, select “Survey participants”
  4. The “Complete List of Statistics Canada Surveys” appears at the bottom of the page, listed by subject or in alphabetical order.

When the information available on the website does not meet the specific requirements of researchers, it is possible to request customized tabulations. This customized service, offered on a cost-recovery basis, allows researchers to specify subpopulations or groupings that meet their specific needs. Information on how to contact Statistics Canada is provided on page 2 of this publication.


Notes

  1. The survey-related publications were selected from information available on the Statistics Canada website, the Research Data Centres site and in academic databases. The publications were chosen based mainly on their publication date and, if applicable, on their relation to official-language minorities. They are not exhaustive and are not necessarily representative of all of the research carried out using the databases. These publications are examples to illustrate the analytical potential of the survey in question.
  2.  Alphabetical list of surveys and statistical programs: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/imdb-bmdi/indext-eng.htm

 

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