A Study Of Resiliency In Communities

Profile Of Participants

At the end of each consultation, all 179 participants completed the demographic questionnaire. Its primary use was to confirm that the selection of participants by purposive sampling had achieved a good cross-section of the population of the three communities. The following section presents the information compiled from the questionnaires.

Sample Size

The distribution of participants by community is shown in Table 1. Sixty-six participants took part in individual interviews and 113 participants took part in focus groups.

Table 1 : Sample Size

Type of Consultation	Isle Madame	Cheticamp	Dildo	Total
Individual interviews	15	30	21	66
Focus groups	40	42	31	113
Total	55	72	52	179

Gender

Gender distribution by community is shown in Table 2: 42% of the participants were male; 58% were female.

Table 2 : Gender

Gender	Isle Madame	Cheticamp	Dildo	Total	%
Male	20	39	16	75	42
Female	35	33	36	104	58
Total	55	72	52	179	100

Age

Age distribution by community is shown in Table 3. The youngest participant was thirteen years of age; the oldest was 80. The majority of the participants (56%) were between 31 and 60. 26% were under 31, and 18% were over 60.

Table 3 : Age

Age	Isle Madame	Cheticamp	Dildo	Total	%
to 20	8	3	10	21	11
21-30	10	8	8	26	15
31-40	11	9	6	26	15
41-50	12	19	16	47	26
51-60	3	12	12	27	15
61-70	4	14	-	18	10
71 +	7	7	-	14	8
Total	55	72	52	179	100

Employment Status

There was a relatively equal distribution of participants who were employed full time, who were unemployed, and who were retired (see Table 4). Each of these three groups comprised approximately one quarter of the total sample.

Table 4. Employment Status

Employment Status	Isle Madame	Cheticamp	Dildo	Total	%
Employed full time	11	21	13	45	25
Employed part-time/seasonal	4	11	7	22
Unemployed (incl. TAGS)	19	9	14	42	23
Student	8	3	101	21
Homemaker	-	-	3	3
Retired	12	28	3	43	24
Unknown2	1	-	2	3
Total	55	72	52	179

¹ Includes two adults
² A seniors' focus group was held in Isle Madame (10 participants) and Cheticamp (12 participants) but not in Dildo.

Note: A number of students indicated that they were employed part time (especially in Isle Madame). Some of the 'unemployed' could be seasonal workers. Seven of the 28 retirees in Cheticamp were under 60 years of age, indicating a trend toward early retirees returning or settling in this community.

Length of Time in the Community

Over three quarters of the participants had lived in their community for at least half their life (see Table 5). Only 7% had been in the community for five years or less.

Table 5. Length of Time in the Community

Length of Time in the Community	Isle Madame	Cheticamp	Dildo	Total	%
Long-term residents: Lifetime	38	31	29	98	55
Long-term residents: 1/2 lifetime +	12	13	13	38	21
Short-term residents: 5 years or less	1	12	-	13	7
Total	51	56	42	149

Note:

1. Cheticamp was the only community to hold a focus group with recent arrivals/returnees. They account for 7 of the 12 short-term residents.
2. Five participants in the Dildo sample were non-residents (service providers).
3. Ten participants did not indicate length of residence.