Do young people no longer believe in democracy? A 30-country survey raises questions – and highlights Turkey, Russia and the USA.
New York/Frankfurt – A current survey of people in 30 countries around the world comes to a “sobering and alarming” result: According to it, young people from Generation “Z” and “Millennials” have significantly less confidence in democracy than Older. According to the survey, only 57 percent of people between 18 and 35 believe democracy is the best form of government. 42 percent of them think military rule is a good way to govern a country.
This is according to data published on Tuesday (September 12th) by the Savanta Institute and (in the Ukraine) Gradus on behalf of the Open Society Foundations (OSF). Overall, it has representative survey Countries with a total population of 5.5 billion people are recorded. There are worrying results from Germany of all places. The survey also sheds light on the understanding of democracy and the climate crisis in countries like USA, ChinaTurkey and Russia.
Survey “alarmed”: Young people believe less in democracy – Germans are less likely to rely on human rights
The survey raises questions about the future of democracy around the world. Trust in debate and participation is apparently dwindling: 72 percent of all respondents over the age of 56 named democracy as the best form of government – among people under the age of 36 the figure was a full 15 percentage points less. The study authors see a possible reason for this in the diverse crises of the present.
“Our results are both sobering and alarming,” said OSF President Mark Malloch-Brown. “People all over the world want to continue to believe in democracy. But from generation to generation this belief is fading as doubts about democracy’s ability to concretely improve their lives grow. That needs to change.”
The survey shows astonishing data when it comes to human rights: only 51 percent of those surveyed in Germany believed that human rights were “a force for good in the world”. That’s far less than the 30-country average of 72 percent. In Bangladesh, for example, agreement with this thesis was 88 percent, and in war-torn Ukraine it was 66 percent.
Migration: Only in Turkey is the concern greater than in Germany – but still not a huge issue
The survey also provided a classification at the international level for controversial topics such as migration and Global warming. Immigration is only the most important issue for very few respondents in Germany: 18 percent of those surveyed classified this question as the most pressing problem. Nevertheless, this value is the second highest among all 30 countries. Only in Turkey was it even higher at 25 percent. Many people from the civil war-torn Syria arrive there – many of them are not allowed to travel on to the EU.
According to demoscope figures, a large number of people in Germany supported a leadership role for wealthy countries in curbing greenhouse gases – but still a small number compared to other countries: exactly 50 percent saw rich countries as having a duty. But that was also the lowest value of all 30 countries. Not surprisingly, the numbers were significantly higher, especially in poorer countries.
In countries like Bangladesh and Nigeria the value was well over 80 percent. But France (77 percent), Japan (70 percent, the USA (65 percent) and even Russia (64 percent) also had higher approval rates for this theory. At the same time, 69 percent of those surveyed in Germany expressed concern about the negative effects of the climate crisis their lives in the coming year.
Erdogan’s Türkiye believes in democracy – but it has little support in Putin’s Russia
Another interesting figure: the proportion of strict democracy advocates fell among the 30 countries examined in Turkey
highest. 79 percent of those surveyed considered democracy to be superior to all other forms of government – as recently as May Recep Tayyip Erdogan, partly also under Allegations of voter fraud, won the presidential election. The rate is lowest in Vladimir Putin’s Russia, with only 35 percent of survey participants viewing democracy there as superior.
Germany ranked in the middle with 60 percent – on a par with France and two percentage points behind the largely authoritarian China. After all, support for a possible military government in the Federal Republic was very low: 14 percent meant 29th place among the 30 countries. Only Japan beat this number.
Survey: Concern about unrest in the USA and Germany too – 45 percent hope for China’s influence
There are strong concerns around the world about political unrest and violence as early as next year. In Kenya and South Africa, 79 percent expressed similar fears. But in Germany too, the proportion of those concerned in this regard was 55 percent. In the USA it was 67 percent a good year before the presidential election. In Russia, on the other hand – an astonishing 30 percent given the war in Ukraine and military mobilization and subsequent upheavals in some heavily affected regions.
At least the survey brought a small positive message for the West – despite concerns about challenges from autocratic countries or Russia’s propaganda efforts: 29 percent of those surveyed in all 30 countries saw their values best embodied by the USA. Great Britain and France followed behind. The two allies China and Russia received 15 and 12 percent approval for their “values”.
However, respondents in Asia, Africa and South America in particular expected that China will have the greatest influence worldwide by 2030. 45 percent also believed that this influence would have a positive effect. In Ukraine, however, 64 percent of those surveyed expected the USA to play this role – possibly also a sign of hope and fear Ukraine war.
“Open Society Barometer”
The two institutes Savanta and Gradus Research surveyed 36,344 people in 30 countries from May 18 to July 21 – each in representative samples of at least 1,000 people. According to the Open Society Foundations, it was “one of the largest public opinion polls ever conducted on human rights and democracy in 30 countries.” The foundation was founded in 1993 by the American investor George Soros and later endowed it with billions in funding.
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