“I have studied” vs. “I have been studying” [duplicate]
Both forms of the answer (perfect and perfect continuous) show that the man is still in Canada, but the continuous form puts greater stress on the continuous nature of the action. However, that said, I think the perfect continuous is what is required in the context here.
Compare:
- I read that book 3 years ago - preterite, or simple past - action well in the past.
- I have read that book - perfect - the reading was in the past, but has present relevance. I have read it and now the knowledge in that book is available to me in the present.
- I have been reading that book - I began a while ago, but the action is still not completed. I am still reading it.
or these:
- I have lived in London for three years.
- I have been living in London for three years. Both of these show the speaker is still living in London. The difference between these sentences is quite slight - with the second emphasising the continual aspect.
Sometimes, the choice of tenses, and whether to use a continuous tense, depends on what you are just about to say. "I have lived in London for three years, but now I want to go home": the decision hereby expressed to terminate your life in London in the near future dovetails more easily with the non-continuous tense. But in many of these cases, either/or would do.