Fake award gets strong recognition in government survey
Privy Council poll finds most Canadians have heard of non-existent medal
More than half of the 3,534 Canadians polled by the federal government earlier this year said they had heard of Canada’s National Medal of Service, and most of those had some idea of why it’s awarded.
The trouble is, Canada does not have a National Medal of Service. The survey asked them a fake question.
The randomized online poll, commissioned by Privy Council Office and conducted from Feb. 17 to March 7, sought to determine how familiar Canadians are with various awards and honours.
The Order of Canada came out on top, with 82 per cent having heard of it, followed by Decorations for Bravery, at 67 per cent. The next two were foreign awards, Order of the British Empire (60 per cent) and the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom (57 per cent).
The survey also threw in the fake National Medal of Service to test for genuine recognition – and the bogus honour came in fifth (56 per cent).
“Of the top five ‘most familiar’ honours and awards, two are international (UK/USA), and one is fake (National Medal of Service),” says a survey report, obtained under the Access to Information Act. The results raise questions about the accuracy of recognition for the genuine awards.
The access-to-information package is available here:
The poll of adults aged 18 and older was conducted as part of a project by Privy Council Office, the prime minister’s own department, and the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General, intended to increase the diversity of nominations for the Order of Canada. The Rideau Hall Foundation, a charitable group, also participated.
Internal statistics have shown that people who nominate candidates for an Order of Canada are predominantly older, male and English speaking. “Further, these nominators are extremely likely to nominate older male candidates from their own community or province,” says a briefing note.
The project wants to encourage more nominations from under-represented groups, such as Francophones, women, young Canadians and immigrants, to help improve the demographic balance of the final winners.
Early analysis of the survey results found “widespread misunderstanding” and “surface-level awareness” of the Order of Canada and the Governor General, says a summary. Very few respondents knew how nominations are made, and who chooses successful candidates.
Order of Canada nominations originate from the public and a special non-government panel, headed by the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, selects the winners, which are announced in two batches each year. The 13-member panel’s deliberations are confidential.
The poll also found that respondents believed such things as saving lives, public service, human rights, scientific breakthroughs and military service deserved recognition. Business and economic contributions to Canada were far down the list. In fact, some critics have previously complained of too few business winners for the Order of Canada.
Some felt the Order of Canada should spotlight more everyday heroes, such as teachers, community activists or artists making a local impact. Others felt the award is biased or fraudulent. Some called it ridiculous.
The documents indicate Privy Council is doing a deeper dive on the survey results, to better target messages to under-represented groups about increasing nominations. The project has also conducted a so-called “sludge” audit, to determine whether the mechanics of submitting nominations is unnecessarily complicated or difficult. The audit’s results are not yet public.
Notably, the researchers say they want to ride a current wave of patriotism to drive the message home, “capitalizing on the current surge of trust in Canadian institutions and pride in Canada” to attract more diverse nominations.
The Order of Canada was created in 1967, and an official database currently lists more than 8,000 recipients. Tracking by former public servant Andrew Griffith has found greater diversity among the winners in recent years.