A.
INTRODUCTION
On October 19, 2008, The Muttart Foundation
(“Muttart”), a well known private foundation based in Edmonton,
Alberta, released Talking about Charities 2008: Canadians’
Opinions on Charities and Issues Affecting Charities (“Report”).
Muttart commissioned Ipsos Reid Public Affairs, a leading
survey-based marketing research firm, to conduct Muttart’s
fourth survey on public opinion about charities and issues
relating to charities. Muttart published similar reports in
2000, 2004, and 2006. The results of the 2008 survey are detailed
throughout the 86-page Report. Some of the key aspects that
the Report examines are: Canadians’ attitudes
towards charities, the role charities play in Canadian society,
and their fundraising and advocacy activities.
This Report is an excellent
resource for charities, as it provides insight into how the
public perceives charities and the issues that affect them.
In this regard, charities may want to use the Report to help
them compare their practices with public opinion. This Charity
Law Bulletin provides a brief overview of the highlights
of this important resource tool. For more information on the
details of the survey results, the full Report is available
on Muttart’s website at, http://www.muttart.org/download/TAC2008/TAC2008-03-CompleteReport.pdf.
B.
HOW THE SURVEY WAS CONDUCTED AND ANALYZED
A total of 3,863 telephone
interviews were conducted with Canadians over the age of 18
across Canada between April and June 2008. The sample of individuals
surveyed excluded those who themselves worked or had someone
in their households work for a charity. Quotas were imposed
to ensure that there was sufficient representation in each
province to conduct a provincial analysis. The results were
subsequently weighted according to household size and provincial
distribution. The Report states that with a sample of almost
3900 people, the overall national results are considered statistically
accurate within 1.6%, 19 times out of 20.
In addition to an overall
assessment of Canadians’ views on charities, the study examines
whether or not public opinion about charities and their activities
varies between provinces and other demographic variables such
as gender, age, education, household income and religious
attendance. It also examines whether people’s opinions about
charities and their activities vary according to their familiarity
with charities, their level of trust in charities, and whether
or not they made a charitable donation in 2007.
C.
HOW THE REPORT IS ORGANIZED
The Report sets out key findings on Canadians’
overall opinions about charities and their practices. The
national results are presented first, followed by other differences
in the findings, such as provincial and demographics. The
following is a list of areas that the Report canvasses with
respect to Canadians’ perceptions and opinions of charities
and their activities, and how these opinions have changed
over previous years that the survey was conducted:
¨
Familiarity with and perceived
importance of charities
¨
Trust in charities and their
leaders
¨
Fundraising
¨
Information provided by charities
¨
Monitoring charities
¨
Advocacy activities
D.
KEY FINDINGS
1.
Familiarity With and Perceived
Importance of Charities
According to the Report,
most Canadians feel they are somewhat familiar with the work
that charities carry out and the role that charities play.
In addition, as in the previous surveys, a high proportion
of Canadians believe that charities are important, play a
key role in meeting the needs of Canadians, and improve their
quality of life.
The Report shows that
advancement in age, education, and household income corresponds
positively with one’s familiarity with charities. Survey results
also demonstrate that Canadians who regularly (at least once
a month) attend religious services are more likely to be familiar
with the work of charities. Another finding that was reported
reveals that as household incomes and education levels rise,
the belief that charities do a better job than the government
in understanding and meeting Canadians’ needs tends to decrease.
2.
Trust in Charities and Their
Leaders
With respect to the level
of trust that those Canadians surveyed have in charities,
the results show that 18% have little trust in charities and
only 4% do not trust charities at all. The Report further
states that not only do 77% of Canadians trust charities,
but they also trust leaders of charities — out of all the
professions asked about in the survey, Canadians only trusted
nurses and medical doctors more than leaders of charities.
The Report also provides
insight into Canadians’ level of trust in different types
of charities. According to the survey, Canadians are most
likely to have a lot or some trust in hospitals and charities
that focus on children or health prevention and research.
The type of charities that Canadians appear to have the least
trust in include those that focus on international development
and the arts.
As is the case with familiarity
and perceived importance with the work of charities, trust
in charities tends to increase with level of education and
household income. Canadians who expressed a lot of trust in
charities generally attribute their trust to reliability,
integrity, accountability, and personal involvement. On the
other hand, the Report also states that uncertainty regarding
where the charitable money actually goes causes some individuals
surveyed to have some to no trust in charities. In this regard,
trust has a significant impact on the public’s perception
of fundraising.
3.
Fundraising
Since 2004, fewer Canadians
feel that charities do not have sufficient funds to meet their
objectives. However, a majority of Canadians still hold this
view. The Report distinguishes that although almost all Canadians
believe that it takes considerable effort for charities to
raise the funds they need in support of their causes, Canadians
do have reservations about certain types of fundraising. For
instance, the Report points out that commission-based professionals
who fundraise on behalf of the charity is one of the more
contentious fundraising methods that some charities use. In
support of this finding, the survey shows that a strong
majority of Canadians find it somewhat unacceptable for charities
to hire commission-based professionals who fundraise on behalf
of the charity. Despite these concerns over questionable
fundraising practices, Canadians are divided over whether
or not legal limits should be set on how much money charities
can spend on fundraising. Belief that there should
be legal limits on the amount of money spent on fundraising
increases with age.
4.
Information Provided by Charities
Most Canadians agree
that there is a need for greater transparency regarding charities’
spending practices. As in past years, virtually all Canadians
agree that charities should be obligated to disclose how donors’
contributions are spent.
The Report also provides
insight for charities, as it shows that Canadians continue
to feel that it is a priority for charities to provide the
public with information about their activities. For example,
the results of the survey demonstrate that almost all Canadians
think it is important for charities to provide information
on how they use donations; the programs and services they
offer; their fundraising costs; and the impact of their work
on Canadians. The Report points out that only half
of those surveyed or less feel that charities actually do
a good job in providing the above-mentioned types of information.
With respect to the sources
that Canadians rely on for information about charities, the
Report states that those surveyed are most likely to research
a charity to which they may donate by reading its printed
material, despite the volume and accessibility of web-based
information.
5.
Monitoring charities
A further important finding
is that more than half of those surveyed mistakenly think
that there is no organization or agency responsible for monitoring
the activities of charities. In this regard, more Canadians
now than in 2000 and 2004 think a government agency should
be responsible for monitoring charities’ activities.
The survey demonstrates
that those who made a charitable donation in 2007 are more
likely (compared to those who did not) to think that activities
of charities should be monitored by an independent organization
or agency.
6.
Advocacy activities
Another activity in which
many charities engage is advocacy. The Report shows that a
majority of Canadians surveyed agree that the opinions expressed
by charities on issues of public concern have value because
they represent a public interest perspective. In addition,
a majority of Canadians surveyed agree that laws should be
amended to allow charities to advocate more freely for the
causes their organizations support. However, Canadians have
differing views on certain methods that charities use to speak
out about a cause. The Report demonstrates that a significant
majority of Canadians hold the opinion that it is acceptable
for charities to advocate for their cause by voicing concerns
on issues such as poverty and the environment; meeting with
government officials; using research results to support a
message; and placing advertisements in the media. On the other
hand, advocacy methods, such as holding legal protests or
demonstrations and blocking roadways are generally viewed
less favourably.
E.
CONCLUDING COMMENTS
The Muttart Foundation’s
Report provides the charitable sector with important
public opinion survey results with respect to charities and
matters that affect them. Overall, as demonstrated in past
Muttart reports, a significant majority of Canadians trust
charities. According to the Report, areas where charities
should improve upon include providing information about their
activities, especially fundraising; making available information
about where charitable money and donations are spent; and
increasing awareness concerning the various ways in which
charitable organizations are monitored and kept accountable
by independent organizations and agencies. As the Report constitutes
an important resource for charities in increasing their understandings
of how the public perceives them, it will ultimately prove
helpful in educating charities on ways to better garner public
support.
