Our seventh national poll noted a significant decrease (from 28-24%) in the number of Canadians reporting high anxiety. This represents the first substantive reduction since the start of the pandemic and was driven by a significant reduction of reported anxiety in the 55+ cohort.

The number of Canadians reporting high depression has remained steady. Ontario had the highest levels of self-reported anxiety and depression (at 27% and 18% respectively), but this is down significantly since Poll 6, which occurred during the height of lockdowns.

Younger Canadians continue to indicate the highest anxiety and depression of all age groups, and our results indicate the younger the respondent, the worse the reported levels. For the first time on Poll 7, MHRC collected data from 16- and 17-year-olds: this cohort reported 30% prevalence of high anxiety and depression, and 33% reported suicidal ideation in the past year (and 18% in the last 3 months). Conversely, this group reported a lower incidence of diagnosis of a mental health issue, which could indicate a diagnosis gap. 

These are some of the key findings of MHRC’s seventh poll in our ongoing series of polls on “Mental Health & COVID: How COVID-19 Is Impacting Canadians.” The poll captures Canadians’ perceptions of their levels of anxiety and depression through the pandemic in order to identify and evaluate the factors that influence mental health.  

Over one-third of frontline workers report a formal mental health diagnosis, up significantly from Poll 6. A full 40% indicate a diagnosis, up from 30% in the last poll in April 2021, which could reflect a lag between the crisis and seeking help as the crisis subsides. Previous studies have indicated that the primary profession with a diagnosis inside this category is registered nurses.

Other major findings of MHRC’s study include:  

• Self-reported depression rates did not differ between those with one dose of the vaccine and two, but the polling showed reported depression in those who are not yet or will not be vaccinated (19% for the unvaccinated vs. 15% for the vaccinated). This is in line with previous findings that those who choose to ignore social distancing guidelines were indicating significantly higher levels of depression.

• 45% of those who identify as LGBTQIA2S+ indicate a high level of anxiety, and 27% indicate high levels of depression. This is up significantly from pre-COVID levels where 9% indicated high levels of anxiety, and 11% depression.

Data for our eighth poll will be collected in mid to late August.  

ABOUT THE STUDY

This study was conducted by Pollara Strategic Insights with an online sample of 4,010 adult Canadians and was conducted between June 7th to June 13th, 2021. Results from a probability sample of this size could be considered accurate to within ±1.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. Results have been weighted based on age, gender, and region to be representative of the Canadian population. 

A series of research briefs that provide an in-depth, specific investigation of our polling results can be found here. Results of earlier polls are compared when applicable.  

Findings from Polls 2 to 6 are searchable on our free Data Portal — and the findings of Poll 7 are in the process of being integrated.