Strong majorities of residents of all regions are in favour of the legislation that came into effect in January 2022.
Vancouver, BC [April 29, 2022] – The recently enacted prohibition of the practice of “conversion therapy” is endorsed by more than three-in-five Canadians, a new Research Co. poll has found.
Proponents of “conversion therapy” believe that individuals who identify themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, gender diverse, queer, and Two-Spirit (LGBTQ2+) can be “converted” into heterosexuals through psychological or spiritual intervention.
Legislation that came into effect in January 2022 makes it illegal to promote, advertise, or profit from providing “conversion therapy”, or to subject a person, consenting or not, to “conversion therapy” in Canada.
In the online survey of a representative national sample, 62% of Canadians agree with “conversion therapy” being illegal in Canada, while 21% disagree and 17% are undecided.
Support for the nationwide ban on “conversion therapy” is highest in Atlantic Canada (66%), followed by British Columbia (64%), Ontario (63%), Alberta (62%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (61%) and Quebec (57%).
“At least seven-in-ten Canadians who voted for the New Democratic Party (NDP) (71%) and the Liberal Party (70%) in the last federal election are in favour of the new guidelines,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “They are joined by a majority of those who supported the Conservative Party in 2021 (57%).”
Most Canadians (57%, +2 since a similar Research Co poll conducted in November 2020) continue to believe that individuals who identify themselves as LGBTQ2+ cannot be “converted” into heterosexuals through psychological or spiritual intervention. This includes 69% of Atlantic Canadians, 63% of Canadians aged 55 and over and 60% of women.
Compared to 2020, there is little fluctuation when Canadians are asked about the legal recognition of same-sex couples in the country.
Two thirds of Canadians (66%, -1) believe same-sex couples should continue to be allowed to legally marry. Significantly fewer side with the notion of same-sex couples being allowed to form civil unions and not marry (12%, =) or not granting any kind of legal recognition to same-sex couples (10%, =).
More than two-in-five Canadians (42%, +3) think people are born as LGBTQ2+. However, 28% (=) believe people choose to be LGBTQ2+, while 31% (-2) are not sure.
Methodology: Results are based on an online study conducted from April 16 to April 18, 2022, among 1,000 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region. The margin of error, which measures sample variability, is +/- 3.1 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.
Find our data tables here and download the press release here.
For more information on this poll, please contact:
Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.
778.929.0490 [e] mario.canseco@researchco.ca