AMI Research Panel Members (Infographic)

Stylized map of Canada showing Canadians who are blind and partially sighted.

AMI's Research Panel serves as an ongoing feedback mechanism between AMI and the community. Canadians who are blind or partially sighted are invited to join and share insights and opinions on accessible technology, TV programming, media consumption and more. This research influences all of AMI's programming and platform priorities. The infographic below highlights some of the recent research that's guided AMI content decisions.

  • Gender

  • The gender of research panel members is divided almost equally. Fifty three percent of the panel identifies as female and 47 percent as men.

  • Age

  • The average age of the AMI Research Panel is 57 years old. The vast majority of members are over 50, with only 32 percent being 49 years old or younger. Since sight loss often increases throughout one’s life, it’s not surprising that less than a percent of the panel is less than 25 years old. The percentages increase along with age, as 10 percent are between 25 and 23, 13 percent are between 35 and 44, 17 percent are 45 to 54, 25 percent are 55 to 64 and the highest percentage of members are in the oldest category, as 34 percent of members are 65 years of age or older. Join Ottawa's Dave Brown for visit to Cycling Without Age, an innovative program designed to enhance the lives of senior citizens.

  • Marital Status

  • Married or common-law is the most common marital status of AMI Research Panel members. Forty four percent identify that way, where 31 percent say they are single and have never been married, 15 percent are separated or divorced and 10 percent are widowed. Learn more about dating with a disability in the Canada in Perspective episode Blind Dating and, of course, there's an app for that! AppTV's Tasia Custode explores Glimmer, an inclusive dating app designed to help people with disabilities make social and romantic connections.

  • Household Composition

  • The vast majority of the research panel members do not have children. Only 15 percent are parents. We’ve received a few questions over the years about why we don’t have more children’s programming. The AMI Research Panel guides many of our programming decisions and these numbers illustrate why there hasn’t been a lot of interest for this programming. However, we do cover many stories relevant to children and families alike on our flagship show, AMI This Week. We recommend watching this segment Special Books by Special Kids and Canada in Perspective's in-depth look at parenting and disability in the episode, Parenting Choices.

  • Employment

  • There are many different types of employment and finding the right fit can be a struggle for anyone. It can be especially challenging for people with disabilities, which is illustrated in AMI-tv’s Employable Me, a documentary series featuring job seekers who are determined to show that having a physical disability or neurological condition shouldn’t make them unemployable. Members of the research panel come from a variety of industries and 47 percent are retirees. Seventeen percent have full-time employment, 11 percent are self-employed, while part-time employees and homemakers each make up nine percent of the panel and seven percent are students.

  • Education

  • Levels of education are divided almost evenly throughout the research panel. Members with a high school education or less represent 38 percent, 34 percent have university or post graduate education and 28 percent responded with trade, vocation or college. AMI visited the University of Toronto's Moving Forward Summer Transition program for first year students who identify as having a disability. Learn about best practices for starting a similar program at other schools.

  • Ethnicity

  • The category British, Scottish Irish or Welsh is the ethnicity that 29 percent of members identified as, and an equal number identified as Canadian. Thirteen percent are Western European, seven percent Eastern European, five percent Black or African Canadian, five percent First Nations, Metis or Inuit and 12 percent responded as other.

  • Canadian Generation Status

  • Canada is often described as a melting pot and it’s also a young country. It should come as no surprise that 20 percent of the panel are first generation Canadians, while 19 percent are second generation. However, 61 percent are third generation.

  • Region

  • Did you know AMI has regional bureaus across the country to help us entertain, inform and empower Canadians who are blind or partially sighted? We also have members of the research panel from coast-to-coast and use a variety of research methods to meet their communications preferences. Fourteen percent of members are from British Columbia, 10 percent from Alberta, three percent each from Saskatchewan and Manitoba, 46 percent from Ontario, 15 percent from Quebec, three percent from New Brunswick, four percent from Nova Scotia and one percent each from Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland. Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut each have three members in the panel.

  • Blindness/Partial Sight

  • The percentage of research panel members who identify as blind is 29 percent, while 67 percent are partially sighted and four percent are print restricted. Sight loss can occur at any time during one’s life and our data reflects that diversity. Twenty five percent have been blind or partially sighted since birth, 23 percent for 5 years or less, 14 percent for six to 10 years, 14 percent for 11 to 19 years and 24 percent for over 20 years.

AMI Research Panel Personas

AMI currently has close to 1,200 panel members comprised of French and English-speaking Canadians.

Based on active members of the research panel, we created three personas to show what type of personal, programming and technology the diverse members of the national research panel is likely to be interested in. Personas help create a realistic representation of typical users based qualitative and quantitative research. Let's meet a few of AMI's panel members.

  • AMI Research Panel Member Olivia

    Profile card for Olivia: 57 years old from Ontario, married with no kids, retired, high school education, British/Scottish Irish/Welsh ethnicity. Partially sighted since six years old.

    Olivia is a 57-year-old, married woman living in Ontario. She has been partially sighted since the age of six, but this does not prevent her from living a very fulfilled life.

    After working for 30 years in the food industry, Olivia is recently retired and enjoys cooking and creating delicious recipes. Her favourite AMI-tv show is Menu Match-Up, where two home cooks with sight loss, each paired with a professional chef, battle it out in an effort to impress judges. Olivia likes to experiment with new dishes that she can easily prepare herself.

    Olivia and her husband enjoy listening to Kelly and Company on AMI-audio. She appreciates hearing from various blind community groups, such as the Toronto Trailblazers Tandem Cycling Club.

    Olivia and her husband have been riding with the Toronto Trailblazers for nearly five years now. As retirees, they like to stay active and often participate in long bike rides to various destinations in southern Ontario.

  • AMI Research Panel Member Liam

    Profile card for Liam: 43 years old from British Columbia, common-law with two kids, self-employed, university/post graduate education, Canadian ethnicity. Born blind.

    Liam is 43 and blind since birth. He is self-employed and works from his home in British Columbia, which he shares with his common-law spouse and two children.

    Liam is a fan of AMI-audio and listens to live events such as the Canadian National Blind Hockey Tournament and magazine-style programs such as The Guardian and The Walrus with Lloyd Robertson.

    In his spare time Liam often takes advantage of the favourable west coast weather and goes on long walks with his family and his guide dog, a Labrador Retriever named Rocky. He is also a volunteer at the local CNIB branch where he mentors children and teenagers who have recently lost their sight.

  • AMI Research Panel Member Amélie

    Profile card for Amélie: 48 years old from Quebec, single with no kids, full-time employment, university/post graduate education, Black/African Canadian ethnicity. Partially sighted since 32 years old.

    Amélie is a 48-year-old African Canadian who resides in Quebec. She has been partially sighted since the age of 32 and uses a cane.

    Amélie is single and has no children She has a post-graduate degree in healthcare and works full-time. Amélie has a lengthy commute to her workplace in downtown Montreal and often streams AMI-audio live or downloads podcasts of Live from Studio 5 and Kelly and Company.

    In her spare time, she enjoys home renovation projects and has been inspired by AMI-tv's do-it-yourself (DIY) program, Eyes for the Job.

    Amélie shares her sight loss story openly and often speaks at community events hosted by the Canadian Council of the Blind and the Foundation Fighting Blindness.

Join the AMI Research Panel

AMI is committed to learning more about the interests of the blind and low vision community in Canada.

As the only media source in Canada with 24-hour accessible programming for persons who are blind or partially sighted, AMI provides audiences with content that is entertaining, informative and interactive.

We continually strive to improve the quality and relevance of our services to be as inclusive as possible. To learn more about the AMI Research Panel visit AMI.ca/research or call toll free 1-855-839-4772.

 
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