POR Annual Report 2001-2002
General Aspects of Public Opinion Research
Annual Total Cost and Number of Public Opinion Research Projects
 [D]
The Government of Canada systematically gathers information on a wide range of topics in order to facilitate decision making. Public opinion research is one of the methods used to understand the points of view and expectations of citizens and various other populations. The use of public opinion research allows the Government of Canada to consult with and engage Canadians and other audiences in the fields of communications, government policy and program development, as well as in the evaluation of services.
The importance the Government of Canada places on listening to Canadians is clearly reflected in the consistent growth of public opinion research over the past decade. For the fiscal year 2001-2002, the total project dollar volume of public opinion research projects coordinated by Communication Canada was $26.2 million. This represents an increase of 31% in dollars invested in public opinion research and an increase of more than $6 million compared with the dollar volume of fiscal year 2000-2001.
This increase in expenditures in public opinion research may be attributed to several factors including the current Government of Canada emphasis on citizen-focused service delivery, the new Communications Policy’s emphasis on consulting with the public, meeting the needs of Canadians through government-on-line initiatives, and measuring client satisfaction levels for government services.
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