Canadian Research Data Centre Network (CRDCN)
Canadian researchers need appropriate data to investigate a wide range of social, economic and health-related issues, ranging from child poverty to eldercare, from school success to workplace stress, from Indigenous Peoples’ well-being to immigrant integration, and from family-life balance to mental health. Their research informs public policy at all levels of government for the betterment of the Canadian population.
The Canadian Research Data Centre Network (CRDCN) offers researchers access to an array of social, economic and health microdata that are collected and administered by Statistics Canada. Microdata are observations at the individual, household or business level, allowing researchers to study group differences. Researchers who have approved projects and security clearance have access to the data in secure computer laboratories (Research Data Centres or RDCs) located on university campuses across Canada and in one research institute in Yellowknife. In the RDCs, researchers have access to confidential and detailed microdata as well as to the workstations, statistical software and technical support that are needed to analyze the data. Several thousand researchers from various disciplines have used this infrastructure over the years to analyze a broad range of socio-economic and health issues.
Starting in 2025, the CRDCN will provide enhanced access to Statistics Canada microdata in RDCs, and for the first time, will also provide remote access to most data through virtual RDCs (vRDCs). Once the vRDC platform is operational, up to 80% of datasets will be accessible remotely to approved researchers at accredited institutions.
The services provided by the CRDCN are made possible by a partnership between Statistics Canada and a consortium of university partners, with the support of the CIHR, SSHRC, and CFI. Strict security regulations and vetting procedures have been adopted to ensure the confidentiality of the data, in accordance with the provisions of the Statistics Act.
Visit the CRDCN website for information on how to:
Overview
Data Holdings
There are currently over 600 cycles of data from population and household surveys and censuses that are available, as well as an increasing number of administrative datasets. The number of datasets available for research is constantly growing.
While the RDCs offer data in many areas of the social sciences, close to a half of all projects undertaken using the RDCs have a health focus and rely on health-related data from Statistics Canada, including the following surveys and collections:
- Impacts of COVID-19 on Canadians: Data Collection Series
- Survey on COVID-19 and Mental Health
- Survey on Access to Health Care and Pharmaceuticals during the Pandemic
- Canadian Health Measures Survey
- Canadian Community Health Survey
- Canadian Health Survey on Seniors
- Canadian Population Health Survey
- Mental Health Survey
- Nutrition Survey
- Healthy Aging Survey
- Canadian Cancer Registry
- Vital Statistics
- Canadian Tobacco and Nicotine Survey
- National Cannabis Survey
- Medical Assistance in Dying
- Canadian Survey on Disability
- Survey on Living with Chronic Disease in Canada
Visit the CRDCN website for a complete list of the data sets that are currently available. To browse the list of projects currently under way, visit the Statistics Canada website.
Training the next generation of researchers
In addition to providing access to detailed micro-data, a goal of the Network is to expand the pool of skilled quantitative researchers across Canada. About a third of the users are Masters or PhD students.
Every year, the CRDCN hosts a conference where researchers can present their research results, and students are encouraged to present and are welcome to attend. RDCs also offer a wide range of training opportunities and workshops, as well as summer schools, to students and researchers interested in developing statistical skills and methods. The list of activities is available on the CRDCN website
Partners
The CRDCN is supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), the Canada Foundation for Innovation, Statistics Canada, more than 45 universities across Canada (including the institutions that host RDCs), and a number of other national and provincial agencies and organizations.
The specific goals of the SSHRC and CIHR funding are to, in a way that is cost-effective, respectful of equity, diversity and inclusion principles, and of Indigenous Rights:
- Make available a wide range of relevant and sought-after Statistics Canada microdata to researchers across Canada;
- Expand the pool of skilled quantitative researchers in Canada and support training of the next generation of researchers;
- Implement a knowledge transfer plan around the projects being undertaken in the CRDCN;
- Strategically engage a broad range of new and existing partners to support CRDCN activities; and
- Implement and continuously improve new ways in which the CRDCN can increase accessibility and availability of data.
Knowledge Mobilization
The CRDCN’s goal is to strengthen the relationships between the Network’s researchers and potential users of the knowledge they generate. Knowledge mobilization (KM) is now part of the normal research cycle; its aim is to encourage and facilitate the adoption of evidence-informed practices and public policies.
The CRDCN has a knowledge mobilization portal on its web site designed to help researchers in this area by providing background material about knowledge mobilization and by monitoring relevant public policy news.
The portal also features various outputs by CRDCN researchers that discuss recent social, economic and health issues, including:
- Recordings of webinars
- Research-Policy Snapshots
- Power Point presentations
- Op-eds and analyses by CRDCN researchers that discuss recent social, economic and health issues.
All publications by researchers from across the Network, including undergraduate and Master’s theses, Ph.D. dissertations, policy reports, scientific articles and book chapters are available on the CRDCN web site in a searchable bibliography, updated regularly.
In addition, the CRDCN publishes Research-Policy Snapshots (in English or French), which showcase the strength and value of research undertaken through the RDCs and analyze the implications of this research relative to key policy issues.
To know more about the Network's activities and publications, you can subscribe to The Data Matter, the newsletter released on a quarterly basis.
News
Funding
Closed competitions
| Funding Opportunity | Competition | Funding Decision |
|---|---|---|
| Canadian Research Data Centre Network – Phase 4 Renewal | 202111RDC | View |
| Operating Grant : Canadian Initiative on Soc Stats (CISS) Data Training Schools & Res Data Centres | 201512RDC | View |
| Funding Extension 2021-23 |
Contact information
support-soutien@cihr-irsc.gc.ca
Telephone: 613-954-1968
Toll Free: 1-888-603-4178
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