Survey says: Canadians are sexiest in the eyes of Ukraine's citizens (05/04/97)

Survey says: Canadians are sexiest in the eyes of Ukraine's citizens

by Christopher Guly

OTTAWA - Ukrainians think Canadians are just the sexiest, according to the results of a recent survey.

The global poll, conducted by Canada's Angus Reid Group, asked a series of questions of people in Canada, the United States and 18 other countries, including Ukraine.

The sample included 1,000 Canadians and 1,004 Americans, which provides an over-all margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. In other countries, a sample of about 200 was taken, which provides for an error margin or plus or minus 7 percentage points.

The other countries included Mexico, Brazil, Chile, the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Russia, Israel, Egypt, South Africa, Japan, South Korea, China/Hong Kong, India and Australia. All respondents were given a list of questions on a range of topics.

When asked whether they felt Canadians were "polite," 85 percent of Ukrainians said "yes."

Eighteen percent felt that Canadians were "sexy." No other country reported as high a "sexy" rating for Canadians. Other high scores for Canadians came from the Belgians and Germans, at 76 percent each, and the Japanese, at 75 percent.

Only 62 percent of Russians - a percentage point higher than the rating Canadians gave themselves - and 50 percent of Americans were as inclined. Even lower scores on the sexiness of Canadians came from Brazilians, Chileans, Italians, South Africans and British - all in the 30s. The lowest: from the Chinese, at 27 percent.

However, there was more consensus on the politeness scale. Most Canadians, at 92 percent, felt they were polite, and 91 percent of the Americans surveyed agreed. Russians, at 71 percent, were not as convinced. At 65 percent, Egyptians even less so.

There were other questions.

One asked respondents whether they strongly or moderately agreed with the statement, "I'm very happy with my life as it is right now."

People in Australia topped the list at 91 percent, followed by those in Canada at 87 percent and people living in the U.S. at 85 percent. Ukrainians reported the lowest score on the happiness index at 21 percent.

In a more limited survey of 14 nations, 65 percent of Canadians - the highest rating in this category - said they believed in the integrity of their justice and police systems. Only 40 percent of Americans felt the same.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, 88 percent of Ukrainians and Russians felt their own systems were riddled with corruption. They, and South Africans, also felt the least safe walking alone at night near their homes. (Canadians and Japanese said they felt the most safe.)

Canadians scored themselves lower, (87 percent), than Ukrainians and Americans in ranking Canada as one of the top 10 countries they admired most.

When Ukrainians were asked how they would feel if Quebec separated from Canada, only 20 percent said they would feel "sad," 5 percent "happy" and 76 percent had no opinion. In contrast, 31 percent of Americans and 67 percent of Canadians (the highest in the category) said they would feel sad about the break-up of Canada.

In terms of the products most associated with Canadian industries, 24 percent of Ukrainians cited lumber and pulp and paper, while 1 percent, like the Americans, pointed to aerospace. Among U.S. respondents, 22 percent said pulp and paper was the most representative Canadian industry.

Canadians, meanwhile, gave pulp and paper a 43 percent rating and aerospace 5 percent - but 75 percent said high-tech industries.

In addition to the sexiness meter, another interesting question in the survey asked people whether they had ever heard of anyone mentioned on a list of 10 people. Not surprisingly, a hockey superstar, Wayne Gretzky, earned the highest recognition rating among Canadians: 98 percent. He was followed by Quebec chanteuse Celine Dion, at 93 percent, Nova Scotia vocal veteran Anne Murray, at 90 percent, and Vancouver rocker Bryan Adams, at 88 percent.

In the U.S., Mr. Gretzky ranked numero uno, at 80 percent, followed by Ms. Murray, at 76 percent. But most Ukrainians haven't really heard of Wayne Gretzky (38 percent) or Anne Murray (21 percent) - or Celine Dion, at 16 percent, for that matter. In their eyes, superstar Adams is Canada's king, with a 55 percent recognition rating, followed by TV's Baywatch babe Pamela Anderson Lee, at 47 percent.

The Angus Reid "Canada and the World" poll was conducted in February and March on behalf of Canada's Foreign Affairs Department to gauge how Canadians see themselves and others see Canadians.

Yevhen Polishchuk, first secretary at the Ukrainian embassy in Ottawa, said he thought Ukrainians gave Canadians such high ratings - at least in the sexy and politeness departments - because they are polite themselves. "Very few Ukrainians know very much about Canadians. That's why they answered so positively," he said. "Unless they have some personal connections with Canada, they know very little about it."

| Home Page |