What Does the “Average"

Canadian Family Look Like?

Directed by John Barnard et

al, Canadian Broadcasting
Company (CBC) (2016)
 Statistically Average Canadian Family

Blended

Types of Single-Parent

Families Same-Sex

Immigrant

Living Apart Together (LAT)

Statistically Average Family

Joint Income
40-50s Married of $100
000/year

2 kids (1.9) Heterosexual Caucasian

 • 10.7% of all Canadian families are blended
• 12.6% of Canadian families are stepfamilies
Blended • Majority of common-law stepfamilies plan
to be married
Families • 4 out 5 parents believe they can love a step
-child as one of their own
• Statistically 2nd and 3rd marriages last
considerably shorter than 1st marriages
 330,000 Single Dad
Families in Canada
Single
3.5% of all Canadian
Parent families, single parents
Families
Single Dad Families have
increased 16% in 5 years
 Immigrant Families
• 25% of Canadian couples are
immigrants
• Immigrant's experience an 80-
120% wage increase with extra
education

Families
Same-Sex Families
• Gay fathers are less than 1% of all
Canadian families
• Same-sex families increased by
69% over 5 years
Living Apart Together (LAT) Families

99 % of LAT 70% of LAT couples

7% are over the age
relationship are plan to live together
of 20
unmarried permanently
Shared Experiences-Costs and Work

18% of families have a

Costs $250 000 to raise a stay-at-home parent
child in Canada compared to 50% in the
1970s

69% of families have two

Women spend 13.9
incomes, this number is
hours of housework per
more than double
week, whereas men
compared to 40 years
spend 8.6 hours
ago

6 out 10 parents say

their houses are messy
or unkept
 Shared Experiences-Rearing Children
• 23% of families seek out some form of
counselling
• 40% of parents do not trust their kids
• 57% argue in front of kids
• 82% believe fighting in front of kids have
effects on children
• 61% of those with kids argue at least once a
week
• 88 % of families read with their kids before
bed
• 98% of parents believe teens should have
chores
• 39 % of teenagers sleep with their phones
• Average of 118 minutes per week for
household chores, teenagers only
complete 23 minutes
• 42 % parent think curfews should be 10
pm
• 9 out of 10 parents don’t allow teenage
relationship sleepovers
Shared Experiences-Couples

1 out of 3 couples
46% think their 36% of 18-34 year
report having
partner is more fun olds do online
communication
than they are. dating
problems

24% of couples Average age for

turn to fertility women to give
clinics birth is 30.2