2 Exploring public attitudes, informing public policy Selected findings from the first five rounds Exploring public attitudes, informing public policy 1 Contents Attitudes and behaviours Europe’s economic and Addressing key social issues 2 ESS participating countries 4 in a changing Europe societal challenges demand better One Europe or many? 5 and more innovative policy-making. Work in the Great Recession 6 Over the past decade, the ESS • to introduce soundly-based indicators Social determinants of health 8 has become an authoritative of national progress, based on citizens’ source of reliable data about perceptions and judgements of key aspects We need reliable and accessible A woman's work is never done? 9 Europe’s evolving social, political of their societies data so that policymakers have Welfare under pressure? 10 and moral fabric • to undertake and facilitate the training of National accounts of well-being 12 European social researchers in comparative It was in the 1990s that the European quantitative measurement and analysis a real understanding of the problems Political aftermath of the 14 Science Foundation first identified the need • to improve the visibility and outreach of Great Recession to be tackled and to ensure that for a new regular and rigorous Europe-wide data on social change among academics, Experiencing ageism 15 survey to chart changes in social values policymakers and the wider public. the policies they create are targeted Marriage and partnerships 16 throughout Europe. By 2001, the European Commission had been joined by 21 national In 2005, the ESS became the first social Political participation post 18 and effective... [The ESS is] making communism research councils and ministries throughout science project to win the Descartes Prize Europe to jointly fund the first round of the for ‘excellence in scientific collaborative a major contribution to the Fear of crime 19 ambitious European Social Survey (ESS). research’. It was included in the European creation of effective social and The politics of immigration 20 Strategy Forum for Research Infrastructures Immigrants' civic participation 21 Since then the survey has been fielded every (ESFRI) European Roadmap for Research two years and over time a detailed research Infrastructures in 2006 and again in 2008 and economic policies in Europe Want to know more? 22 infrastructure has flourished. All EU Member 2010. In 2013 an application was submitted A successful European 24 States apart from Malta have participated to award the ESS the legal status European collaboration in the ESS, as have nine other countries Research Infrastructure Consortium – ERIC – Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, EU Commissioner outside the EU (Albania, Kosovo, Iceland, in order to secure the long-term sustainability for Research, Innovation and Science Israel, Norway, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey of the survey. and Ukraine). Remarks made as part of the opening address The ESS is widely used by academics, to the ESS International Conference – ‘Cross- The objectives of the ESS Research researchers, politicians, policymakers and National Evidence from European Social Survey: Infrastructure, updated in 2013, are: journalists interested in understanding Exploring Public Attitudes, Informing Public Policy • to chart stability and change in social more about patterns in public attitudes and in Europe’, Nicosia, Cyprus, 23 November 2012 structure, conditions and attitudes in behaviour over time and across countries. Europe and to interpret how Europe’s This booklet focuses on a selection of social, political and moral fabric is changing findings based on the first five rounds of • to achieve and spread higher standards ESS data. It draws on published research of rigour in cross-national research in the from leading international scholars social sciences including, for example, complemented by additional analysis from sampling, data collection, reduction of bias researchers in the Centre for Comparative and the reliability of questions Social Surveys, City University London. 2 European Social Survey Exploring public attitudes, informing public policy 3 Some core questions are asked in every Investigating public attitudes across round of the survey. Other topics change European countries every two years and Addressing from round to round, enabling the survey disseminating the results without delay to cover a wide range of topics and adapt enables governments, policy analysts and key social to changing demands. These round-by- scholars to keep up-to-date with social round ‘rotating modules’ are designed by trends that affect how democracy is working issues leading academic specialists in the field and how European citizens perceive their in association with questionnaire design lives, their nations and the world. The ESS questionnaires cover specialists within the ESS team. The a wide range of topics that subjects and authors of rotating modules are ROUND 4 tap into key issues facing selected following a Europe-wide competition 2008/09 contemporary Europe at each round. Some modules have been • Attitudes to age and ageism selected to be repeated. • Welfare ROUND 3 2006/07 • Personal and social well-being • The timing of life ROUND 5 2010/11 • Work, family and well-being in recession • Trust in justice CORE TOPICS IN ALL ROUNDS ROUND 2 ROUND 6 • Moral and social values 2004/05 2012/13 • Health and well-being • Work, family and • Personal and social well-being • Trust in institutions well-being • Understanding and evaluations • Education and occupation • Health care seeking of democracy • Social capital and social trust • Economic morality • Household circumstances • Citizen involvement and democracy ROUND 1 • Social exclusion 2002/03 • Political values and engagement • Citizenship ROUND 7 • Socio-demographic characteristics • Immigration 2014/15 • Immigration • Health inequalities • Crime • Immigration 4 European Social Survey Exploring public attitudes, informing public policy 5 The last ten years have seen significant Significant differences in 34 progress towards European integration – ESS 4 One Europe EU membership has expanded to include political engagement and social many of the countries in central and attitudes persist between participating or many? eastern Europe and there has been greater eastern and western Europe harmonization of policy in some areas. countries Despite closer European Has this led to a convergence in attitudes integration significant and behaviour between the different regions More than 30 countries 10 15 differences between of Europe? Can Europe and its citizens across Europe took part in countries remain increasingly be considered as sharing • Southern Europe (particularly Greece) at least one of the first five a common experience or do important has seen a steep decline in political rounds of the ESS 19 national and regional differences persist legitimacy following the Great Recession. and continue to emerge? The impact of economic decline on political 29 legitimacy has been felt more strongly in 3 30 26 ESS data collected in more than 30 Eurozone countries compared with the 17 countries at multiple points in time can rest of Europe. 8 be used to shed light on this issue. The 17 9 11 research presented in this booklet points to • The Nordic countries are most trusting of 6 2 important differences between European their police and courts and believe that 31 18 22 countries in many areas. their institutions are legitimate holders of 21 power and authority; while eastern, and 5 1 16 7 Significant differences in political sometimes southern, European countries 13 27 32 28 engagement and social attitudes persist tend to be less trusting. between eastern and western Europe, 23 underpinned by differences in history, culture, • Political engagement remains lower in institutional and legal frameworks. There is former communist countries compared 12 14 20 33 also evidence of a growing economic and with western Europe. This disengagement political divide emerging between north reflects dissatisfaction with the current and south, fuelled by countries’ differing political reality as much as the legacy 24 experiences of the Eurozone crisis. of communism. ESS Participation Rounds 1- 5 25 Key findings covered in more detail in the • While attitudes towards homosexuality booklet include: have become more permissive across 5 rounds 4 rounds 3 rounds 2 rounds 1 round many European countries, this is not the ESS IMPACT 1 Austria 10 Norway 18 Czech Republic 23 Bulgaria 27 Croatia 34 Iceland • Workers in the Nordic countries appear case across much of eastern Europe 2 Belgium 11 Poland 19 Estonia 24 Cyprus 28 Italy In 2008 an international review to have been affected less severely by where agreement that gay people should 3 Denmark 12 Portugal 20 Greece 25 Israel 29 Latvia panel chaired by Bob Groves the economic crisis than workers in be free to live their lives as they wish 4 Finland 13 Slovenia 21 Slovakia 26 Russia 30 Lithuania declared that “the importance of other areas of Europe. This may reflect remains low. 5 France 14 Spain 22 Ukraine 31 Luxembourg the ESS… and its clear signals differences in the levels of employment 6 Germany 15 Sweden 32 Romania protection available to them compared 7 Hungary 16 Switzerland 33 Turkey of impact justify continuous with other countries. 8 Ireland 17 UK funding to… maintain its quality” 9 Netherlands 6 European Social Survey Exploring public attitudes, informing public policy 7 What effect did the economic crisis their organisation had recently experienced Opportunities for training declined in precipitated by the bank failures of 2008 financial difficulties; there had been staff many countries. The odds of receiving Declining job quality may serve to undermine Work in have on people’s everyday experience of reductions in the workplace; or their own jobs training were 20 per cent lower in 2010/11 work and family life? In 2010/11 the ESS had become less secure. compared with 2004/05, even taking people's commitment to the Great repeated questions on this topic first asked account of other possible changes in the work and prospects for in 2004/05, allowing a direct comparison of Job insecurity rose sharply in the liberal workforce and workplaces.