EDMONTON — The upcoming holiday gatherings with relatives may feel ripe for conflicts over politics, relationships, and social issues, but an online survey suggests a majority of Canadians still feel it's important to spend time with loved ones.

"Over 70 per cent of Canadians feel these are important events," said Leger's executive director, Andrew Enns, in an interview Sunday about the market research company's latest online poll on how Canadians feel about family gatherings.

The survey has also found that more than half (52 per cent) are more cautious about what they say in discussions than they were a few years ago.

"You should think family gatherings would be the most comfortable place to raise topics for debate, and you would hope it could be a respectful debate because, after all, they're family," said Enns.

"But that's not the case."

Leger conducted its online survey of 1,500 people across the country during the Thanksgiving long weekend.

The results of the online poll cannot be assigned a margin of error because they........

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