May 27, 2014 Surveillance and Analysis Division Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention Public Health Agency of Canada Positive Mental Health in Canada

Background Recognizing that mental health is more than just the absence of a mental illness, there has been growing interest in understanding and measuring positive mental health, including emotional, social and psychological well-being. Research has linked high levels of positive mental health to a number of positive health outcomes and has noted rates of positive mental health tend to vary across sociodemographic characteristics. 2

Positive Mental Health in Canada Objective To describe the mental health status of Canadians. In order to contextualize rates of positive mental health in the Canadian population, international estimates of positive mental health will also be examined. 3

Positive Mental Health in Canada Methods Data Source: 2011/12 Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) Population: Canadian population, ages 12 and older, n=87, 265 (with some exclusions). Outcome: The Mental Health Continuum - Short Form developed by Dr. Corey Keyes, included in the 2011/12 CCHS, consists of 14 items representing dimensions of positive mental health. Data analysis: Analysis conducted using SAS EG 5.1. Prevalence estimates and 95% confidence intervals of flourishing, moderate, and languishing mental health were calculated using bootstrapped weights provided by Statistics Canada to account for the multi-stage stratified sampling design of the CCHS. 4

Positive Mental Health in Canada Results Overall, 77.1% (95% CI: %) of Canadians aged 12 and over had flourishing mental health, 1.4% (95% CI: %) had languishing mental health, and 21.4% (95% CI: %) had moderate mental health. While the rates of flourishing were high, estimates of positive mental health were found to differ significantly by province, age group, marital status, income quintile, and education level. 5

Positive Mental Health in Canada Results (continued) 6 Prevalence (95% CI) of flourishing mental health by province, age group, marital status, income quintile, and education (household population aged 12+ years, CCHS 2011/12)

Positive Mental Health in Canada Conclusions The rate of flourishing mental health in Canadians aged 12 and older was 77%. Rates of flourishing mental health varied by sociodemographic factors, including geography, age, marital status, income, and education. Compared to published estimates, rates of flourishing mental health among Canadians are higher than expected and preliminary analysis of the 14 items of the Mental Health Continuum Short Form suggest that responses to all items are higher than expected. The discrepancy between other published results and our findings may be due to differences in population characteristics or variations in the administration of the module (i.e., telephone vs self-administered). Additional work is required to explore potential reasons for this variation. 7

Positive Mental Health in Canada 8 Corresponding author: Louise McRae – Presenter: Jen Dykxhoorn – Acknowledgements Public Health Agency of Canada Louise McRae, Siobhan O’Donnell, Jen Dykxhoorn, Samir Khan, Esther Usborne, Arne Stinchcombe, Simone Powell Contact us