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Canadian Sources
- Canadian Internet Use Survey ( CIUS; 2005-present)
Household Internet Use Survey ( HIUS; 1997-2003)
Provides information about the extent to which individual Canadians use the Internet, as well as the scope of their Internet use. The survey content includes the location of use (e.g., at home or at work), the frequency and intensity of use, the specific uses of the Internet from the home, the purchase of products and services (electronic commerce), and other issues related to Internet use (such as concerns over privacy). This content is supplemented by information on socio-economic characteristics (e.g., age, income and education) and some sub-provincial geographic detail.
- Data tables on business and government Internet use
- Data tables on individual and household Internet use
- General Social Survey cycle 14 (2000)
GSS Cycle 14 surveyed individual Canadians about their use of computers and the Internet, the impact of technology on privacy, access to information, and the social cohesion of families and communities. Topics include general use of technology and computers, technology in the workplace, development of computer skills, frequency of Internet and E-mail use, non-users and security and information on the Internet. This is the first time that Statistics Canada has collected detailed information on individual use of technology.
- Intensity of Internet Use in Canada: Understanding Different Types of Users
This paper investigates the intensity and scope of Internet usage among individual Canadians, based on data from the 2005 and 2007 Canadian Internet Use Surveys (CIUS). It profiles various aspects of online behaviour and analyzes the 2007 findings to examine patterns of scope of Internet use by user characteristics. Multivariate analyses are applied to explore the relationships among Internet use behaviour and characteristics such as age, sex, income, and education.
- Internet shopping in Canada: An examination of data, trends and patterns
Before the Internet was launched commercially, few people outside the scientific and academic worlds were aware of this new technology. Commerce has since changed in unimaginable ways and it is now possible to search, purchase and sell just about anything over the Internet. Using data from Statistics Canada's Internet use surveys, this research examines the data, trends and patterns in Canadian online shopping from 2001 to 2007. Despite the enormous growth, the value of online orders is still relatively small compared with total retail sales. Although the Internet is having profound impacts on consumer behaviour, it appears that the potential detrimental effect on traditional retail has not come to fruition, at least not yet. Rather, electronic commerce has become an important complement for traditional retail in some product categories, as well as a substitute in others. In 2007, Internet shopping remained concentrated with a small group of Canadians accounting for almost one-half of online orders and over three-quarters of their value. While some factors, such as concerns for online credit card security, may be delaying electronic commerce from the mainstream, demographic and technological factors should continue to encourage online shopping.
- Internet use in Canada
"This electronic product is a comprehensive reference tool that contains an inventory of surveys, conducted by Statistics Canada, used to measure household/individual Internet use. Product features include survey names; descriptions (including information such as objective of survey, sample size, frequency, target group and response rate); user guides; charts and graphs. Also included is an extremely useful Questionnaire Comparability Chart that displays common content among questionnaires. This is a useful source of background information for respondents, researchers and those involved in survey development and questionnaire design."
- Learning online: Factors associated with use of the Internet for education purposes
This article investigates the use of the Internet for education-related reasons based on findings from the 2005 Canadian Internet Use Survey (CIUS). After providing an overview of Internet use in Canada, the article describes selected social, economic and geographic characteristics of those going online for education-related reasons. It then examines specific reasons for going online for education-related purposes, including distance education, self-directed learning and correspondence courses. Finally, it examines urban and rural differences among those using the Internet for distance education.
- Online activities of Canadian boomers and seniors
This article looks at how Canadian seniors (those aged 65 and older) use the Internet compared with baby boomers (those aged 45 to 64 - the seniors of tomorrow). It examines the closing gap between Internet use rates of seniors and boomers, and describes differences in the types of online activities, as well as in the intensity of Internet use.
