By Brian Smith
I came across some research that speaks further to the need for a belonging movement. It comes again from the Canadian government, this time Statistics Canada doing research entitled,
2003 General Social Survey on Social Engagement.Here are shortened versions of the questions that were asked in one section of the survey:
How many relatives (excluding those who live in your household) do you have who you feel close to?
How many close friends do you have... people who you feel at ease with, can talk to about what is on your mind, or call on for help?
How many other friends do you have who are not relatives or close friends?
In the last month, how many new people did you meet outside of work or school, that is people who you hadn't met before and who you intend to stay in contact with?
Here are some interesting results that I plucked from the online report:
- The vast majority of Canadians (92 to 93%) reported that they have at least one relative or one friend with whom they are close [GREAT]; 6 to 7% said they have no close relatives or no close friends [NOT GREAT...this means that more than 1.9 MILLION PEOPLE have no close friends or family]
- 13.6% Canadians over the age of 65 years said that they had no close friends whom they could call on [NOT GREAT...this equates to roughly 1.2 MILLION ELDERS whom ahve no close friends]
- The internet played an important role in the maintenance of relationships. Over one-quarter of Canadians (27%) said that in the previous month they had communicated with their friends on a weekly basis using the internet. Many Canadians (39%) had communicated with their relatives in the previous month using the internet, with individuals under 30 years of age most likely to have done so (at 70%). One-third of individuals aged 50 to 64 (33%) had communicated with their relatives using the internet, while this was the case for 12% of persons aged 65 or older.
Table 10. Percentage of Canadians aged 25 to 54 who used the internet in the previous month to communicate with family and friends, by selected characteristics, 2003
| With relatives | With friends |
| % |
43.8 | 48.6 |
39.6 | 47.1 |
48.0 | 50.1 |
17.3 | 14.8 |
37.9 | 41.3 |
44.2 | 49.2 |
62.3 | 71.6 |
30.8 | 36.3 |
38.1 | 39.5 |
41.6 | 44.3 |
45.2 | 52.1 |
54.6 | 62.8 |
42.6 | 48.1 |
43.9 | 48.3 |
37.7 | 42.5 |
55.9 | 56.0 |
| Source: Statistics Canada, General Social Survey, 2003. |
If anyone has analysed this piece of research data further, I would appreciate hearing your remarks.
I came across some research that speaks further to the need for a belonging movement. It comes again from the Canadian government, this time Statistics Canada doing research entitled, 2003 General Social Survey on Social Engagement.
Landscape of Literacy and Disability (Canadian Abilities Foundation publication) by Ezra Zubrow, et al. 
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