MONTREAL -- Four in 10 Canadians felt more prosperous than a decade ago, but many were more concerned about security at home and abroad, suggests a public opinion survey. Forty-one per cent of respondents to the Leger Marketing poll said their personal and household economic prosperity was better than it was 10 years ago, while 27 per cent said they were less prosperous. Another 29 per cent said their situation hadn't changed. Three per cent didn't know.

The level of optimism expressed in the Nov. 20-25 survey should result in a short-term boost to the economy as consumers feel comfortable enough to spend, said Christian Bourque, vice-president of Leger Marketing.

"It's also an indication that we may be in for a period of relative stability politically, internally at least," he said, noting the benefit to incumbents such as Prime Minister Paul Martin.

"In other words, it's good for Paul," Bourque added.

The poll suggested young, employed and wealthier Canadians were the most optimistic, while women, retirees, the unemployed and the less affluent said their situations had deteriorated.

The attitudes were relatively consistent across the country, with 40 per cent to 47 per cent of respondents in most regions claiming to be more prosperous.

Albertans (47 per cent) were the most optimistic about their prosperity.

The exception was in Quebec, where only one-third of respondents expressed such optimism.

Other regional breakdowns were: Atlantic provinces, 40 per cent; Ontario, 43 per cent; Manitoba and Saskatchewan, 44 per cent; and British Columbia, 44 per cent.

The Leger poll of 1,503 Canadians is considered accurate within 2.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The margin of error is higher for the regional breakdowns.

The survey, called Voice of the People, polled 43,000 people simultaneously in 51 countries for the World Economic Forum in Davos. The surveys were conducted by members of the Gallup International Association.

Despite the expression of economic satisfaction, 42 per cent of respondents said Canada was less safe than it was 10 years ago.

Seventeen per cent felt safer and 38 per cent felt the same.

Concerns about safety were strongest in Western Canada and Ontario, where between 48 per cent and 53 per cent of respondents said they felt Canada was less safe.

Only 21 per cent of Quebecers and 38 per cent of Atlantic Canadians felt the same way, the poll suggested.

International and environmental security topped national security, the economy and retirement security as areas of concern for Canadians, the survey indicated.

Watching continuing news coverage of the war in Iraq, terrorist alerts and other world events have had a deep impact on our collective psyche, said Stephane Roussel, a professor of political science at the University of Quebec at Montreal and director of the Canada Research Chair in Canadian Foreign and Defence Policy.

"It's the Sept. 11 effect," he said. "What Sept. 11 shows is that North America is no longer a sanctuary, that civilians and public places can be targets."

Distance from hot spots no longer provides security guarantees, Roussel added.

Francophone Quebecers may feel differently than other Canadians because they haven't been exposed to the same amount of information coming from the U.S., he said.

Regardless of where they come from, however, a majority of Canadians said the next generation will live in a world that's less safe. According to the survey, 57 per cent of respondents said the next generation will be a little or a lot less safe. Twenty-four per cent were the most pessimistic, saying the next generation will live in a world that's a lot less safe than it is now.

Another 16 per cent of respondents said the safety of the world would increase in the future, while 22 per cent said it would remain the same.