Populist movements are suddenly all the rage, at least that may be the perception based on the political parties sweeping to power across the world — in the U.S., Italy, Spain, the Philippines and many other countries.

But contrary to popular belief, Canadians may not be trending towards populism, a new report from the Samara Centre for Democracy suggests.

This is how the report defines populism:

Populist leaders describe politics as a conflict between two groups, with elites (people with economic and political power) ruling over The Real People. Populists say that elites must be swept away, leaving government to be led by someone who truly represents The People. Only The People have legitimacy, and little or nothing should stand in the way of a leader who represents them.

While populism is often viewed as including economic anxiety, or an anti-immigration sentiment, the report emphasizes that not all populists share those attitudes.

The problem with the term populism, according to the report, is that it's abused by political leaders to go after their rivals and people who stand in their way — including journalists, academics, and judges.

Higher in the '90s

While populist sentiments are fairly high in Canada, they're actually lower than in the 1990s, when the populist Reform Party was active. A Canadian Election Study (CES) then found that 75 per cent of Canadians agreed with the statement "I don't think the government cares much what people like me think." Samara's study found that only 59 per cent of Canadians agree now.

Over half of Canadians — 63 per cent — also agreed that "those elected to Parliament soon lose touch with the people." This sentiment has also gone down: 77 per cent agreed with the same statement in 2004, and 85 per cent agreed in 1993.

Populism is also often associated with the will of the many crushing the few, but those attitudes have also decreased.