Description:

The Canadian Work, Stress, and Health study (CAN-WSH) is a nationally representative longitudinal survey of the Canadian workforce.  

The objective is to study the demands and resources in work and family life and their implications for stress and health among Canadians over time.

Data collection began in 2011 with approximately 6,000 Canadians across all regions of the country. Follow-up interviews occurred every two years: 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2019.  

The CAN-WSH study:  

(1) brings together measures from existing data sources and integrates them with new measurement innovations of work-family role blurring activities;  

(2) assesses comprehensive measures of the demands and resources in work and household roles;  

(3) collects longitudinal data on a national sample of adults that allows for the evaluation of selection processes and changes in health over time.  

“Selection” refers to transitions into and out of work and family roles. For example, a worker might change occupations or sectors, reduce paid work hours, or leave the paid workforce because of the onset of new family role responsibilities (e.g., the birth of a child, caring for an aging parent), high levels of work-family conflict, or poor health.