|
BUSINESS
& POLITICS IN THE WORLD GLOBAL
OPINION REPORT NO. 845-847 Week: April 29 – May 19,
2024 Presentation: May 24, 2024 Japan
Proposes Expanding Commercial Whaling To Fin Whales, A Larger Species Than
The 3 Allowed Now New
Volcano Research H.Q. Puts Japan In A Stronger Position In
Rapidly Ageing China, Millions Can’t Afford To Retire 6
In 10 Nigerians Say Authorities Not Doing Enough To Curb Kidnapping The
Pivotal Role Of Voter Turnout In Shaping The 2024 Election Outcome British
Attitudes To The Israel-Gaza Conflict: May 2024 Update One
In Eight Britons Saw The Northern Lights Last Week Most
Britons Back Immediate Ceasefire In Gaza, Israeli Arms Embargo: Poll Immigration
Named Top U.S. Problem For Third Straight Month Americans
Perceive Gaps In Mental, Physical Healthcare Americans
Expect Home Prices To Rise, See Market As Poor A
Majority Of Latinas Feel Pressure To Support Their Families Or To Succeed At
Work A
Quarter Of U.S. Teachers Say AI Tools Do More Harm Than Good In K-12
Education Half
Of Latinas Say Hispanic Women’s Situation Has Improved In The Past Decade And
Expect More Gains Canadians'
Skin Cancer Concerns Sees Significant Shift Roy
Morgan Update May 14, 2024: ALP Support Unchanged, Consumer Confidence &
Unemployment Cost
Of Living Impacts The Ability To Live Comfortably, Survey In 39 Nations INTRODUCTORY NOTE 845-847-43-30/Commentary: Voters' Views Of
Trump And Biden Differ Sharply By Religion :Trump Draws Support From 81% Of
White Evangelical Protestant Voters, 61% Of White Catholics, 57% Of White
Protestants Who Are Not Evangelical
The U.S. electorate
continues to be sharply divided along religious lines. The latest Pew Research Center survey finds that most registered voters who
are White Christians would vote for Republican Donald Trump over Democrat Joe
Biden if the 2024 presidential election were held today. More than half of
White Christians think Trump was a “great” or “good” president and don’t think he broke the law in an
effort to change the outcome of the 2020 election. In stark contrast, most
registered voters who are Black Protestants or religious “nones” – those who
self-identify as atheists, agnostics or “nothing in particular” – would vote
for Biden over Trump. Large numbers in these groups also say Trump was a “terrible”
president and that he broke the law trying to overturn the 2020 election
results. Religion
and the 2024 presidential election
While most White Christian
voters say they would vote for Trump over Biden if the election were held
today, there are some differences by religious tradition. Trump draws support
from:
By contrast, 77% of Black
Protestant voters say they would vote for Biden over Trump. Most religious
“nones” also say this, including:
These presidential
preferences reflect the partisan leanings of U.S. religious groups. White Christians have been trending in a
Republican direction for quite some time, while Black Protestants and
religious “nones” have long been strongly Democratic. The Center’s new survey
includes responses from Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and people from many
other religious backgrounds, as well as adherents of smaller Christian groups
like Hispanic Protestants and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints (widely known as Mormons). However, the survey does not include enough respondents from these smaller religious
categories to be able to report on them separately. Church
attendance and voting preferences in 2024
Among Christians, support
for Trump is somewhat higher among regular church attenders than non-churchgoers.
Overall, 62% of Christian voters who say they go to church at least once or
twice a month support Trump over Biden. Among Christians who go to church
less often, 55% would vote for Trump if the election were today. Among White evangelical
Protestant voters, 84% of regular churchgoers say they would vote for Trump,
compared with 77% of White evangelicals who don’t go to church regularly. White nonevangelical
Protestants are the only Christian group in which support for Trump is
significantly stronger among nonattenders than among regular churchgoers. Voters’
views of Biden and Trump as presidents About three-quarters of
White evangelical Protestant voters say Trump was a “great” (37%) or “good”
(37%) president. Roughly half of White Catholics and White nonevangelical
Protestants share this view. When it comes to Biden,
atheists and Black Protestants rate the current president’s performance most
favorably. Roughly half of voters in each of these groups say Biden is a
great or good president. Overall, Trump gets higher
marks on these questions than Biden. This is because Trump supporters
are more inclined to say he was a great or good
president than
Biden supporters are to say the same about him.
Views
of whether Trump broke the law in effort to change 2020 election outcome
People in the religious
groups that are most supportive of Biden tend to think Trump broke the law in
an effort to change the outcome of the 2020 election. Most atheists (83%) say
this, as do 70% of Black Protestants and 63% of agnostics. By contrast, just 16% of
White evangelical Protestants say Trump broke the law trying to change the
2020 election outcome. Another 15% of White evangelicals say they think Trump
did something wrong but did not break the law, while the largest share by far
(47%) say Trump did nothing wrong. (PEW) 30 April 2024 SUMMARY OF POLLS ASIA (Japan) Japan Proposes Expanding
Commercial Whaling To Fin Whales, A Larger Species Than The 3 Allowed Now Japan’s Fisheries Agency
has proposed expanding commercial whaling along the country’s coast to fin
whales, a larger species than the three currently permitted. The proposal
comes five years after Japan resumed commercial whaling within its
exclusive economic zone after withdrawing from the International Whaling
Commission in 2019. It ended 30 years of what Japan called “research whaling”
that had been criticized by conservationists as a cover for commercial hunts
banned by the commission in 1988. (Asahi Shimbun) 10 May 2024 New Volcano Research H.Q. Puts
Japan In A Stronger Position The government’s newly
established headquarters for promoting volcanic observation and
research should be viewed as a crucial opportunity to enhance essential
volcano disaster preparedness through surveys, observations and research
aimed at nurturing human resources in this field. The JMA monitors only
50 active volcanoes around the clock, less than half of the total. The new
volcano headquarters was established in April under the science and
technology ministry through a revision of the law for special measures
concerning active volcanos. (Asahi Shimbun) 11 May 2024 (China) In
Rapidly Ageing China, Millions Can’t Afford To Retire After three decades
selling homemade buns on the streets of the Chinese city of Xian, 67-year-old
Hu Dexi would have liked to slow down. Instead, Hu and his older wife have
moved to the edge of Beijing, where they wake at 4 a.m. every day to cook
their packed lunch, then commute for more than an hour to a downtown shopping
mall, where they each earn 4,000 yuan ($552) monthly, working 13-hour shifts
as cleaners. The alternative for them and many of the 100 million rural
migrants reaching retirement age in China over the next 10 years is to return
to their village and live off a small farm and monthly pensions of 123 yuan
($17). (Asahi Shimbun) 08 May 2024 (Pakistan) Nearly Half Of Pakistanis (48%)
Feel That The Younger Generation Is Wiser Than Their Elders When It Comes To
Politics According to a survey
conducted by Gallup & Gilani Pakistan, nearly half of Pakistanis (48%)
feel that the younger generation is wiser than their elders when it comes to
politics, while 29% consider them not wise at all. A nationally
representative sample of adult men and women from across the country was
asked the question, “According to some people, the younger generation in
Pakistan is more intelligent than the older people about politics. In
response, 48% said ‘the younger generation is wiser than the older ones’, 29%
said ‘Young generation is not wise at all’, 17% said ‘Young generation and
older people are equally wise’, and 6% said that they did not know or gave no
response. (Gallup Pakistan) 14 May 2024 AFRICA (Nigeria) 6 In 10 Nigerians Say
Authorities Not Doing Enough To Curb Kidnapping A new public opinion poll
conducted by NOIPolls has revealed a higher proportion of adult Nigerians
nationwide (56 percent) lament authorities are not doing enough to curb the
menace of kidnapping in the country. Findings revealed that 38 percent of
adult Nigerians interviewed affirmed knowing someone who has been kidnapped
within their community in the past year, while 62 percent stated otherwise.
When asked if the most recent victim has been released, findings revealed a
majority (78 percent) answered in the affirmative. (NOI Polls) 13 May 2024 (South Africa) The Pivotal Role Of Voter Turnout In Shaping The
2024 Election Outcome As 29 May approaches, with
widespread speculation surrounding the potential performance of political
parties in the upcoming national and provincial elections, the pivotal
determinant of success rests on getting voters to the polling stations. In a
medium turnout scenario, the model indicates that the voter turnout rate may
be between 57% and 59%. On the high end, Ipsos’ projections suggest that as
many as 74% to 76% of registered voters could cast their ballots if voter
enthusiasm reaches its peak. (Ipsos South Africa) 03 May 2024 WEST EUROPE (UK) British Attitudes To The
Israel-Gaza Conflict: May 2024 Update In our February update on public attitudes to the Gaza
conflict, Israel was on the cusp of a new offensive into the city of Rafah. While
Hamas has in recent days made a ceasefire offer, Israel has rejected
it, saying the terms fell short of their key
demands.
Desire for a ceasefire remains high here in Britain: 69% say they think
Israel should stop and call a ceasefire at the current time, about the same
as the 66% who said so in February. By contrast, only 13% think Israel should
continue to take military action – a figure unchanged from three months ago. (YouGov UK) 10 May 2024 One In Eight Britons Saw The
Northern Lights Last Week A new YouGov poll shows
that one in eight Britons (12%) caught the spectacular solar storm show over
the weekend. A further 33% say they looked for the lights, but in the end
could not see them. Unsurprisingly those who live in the northernmost reaches
of the country were the most likely to see the lights – 18% of Scots did so,
as did 15% in the North of England. Londoners were the least likely to, at
7%, having had to contend not only with the capital’s southerly location but
also the intense light pollution surrounding the city. (YouGov UK) 15 May 2024 Britons Believe Rishi Sunak
More Likely Than Keir Starmer To Be Booed Or Get No Points Were He To
Represent The UK At Eurovision Ahead of the 2024
Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final this weekend in Malmö, Sweden, a third of
Britons think it is likely that the United Kingdom will receive ‘nul points’.
A majority of Britons (55%) believe that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak would be
more likely to get booed than Keir Starmer if he were representing the UK at
Eurovision. 44% think Sunak would be more likely to get no points. A third
(35%) of Britons believe that the UK will receive ‘nul points’ at this year’s
final. (Ipsos MORI) 10 May 2024 Four In Ten Support Plans To
Increase Defence Spending, But Majority Do Not Trust Conservatives To Have
Right Policies On Defence New polling from Ipsos,
conducted after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged to increase defence spending
to 2.5% of GDP by 2030. The poll found that 42% of people overall support
increasing defence spending to 2.5% of GDP, while 22% oppose it. 65% of those
who voted Conservative at the last election support the increase. Among those
who voted Labour in 2019 views are divided, with 28% in support and 34%
opposed. However, the poll also reveals a lack of trust that the Conservative
party has the right policies on the issue. (Ipsos MORI) 15 May 2024 Most Britons Back Immediate
Ceasefire In Gaza, Israeli Arms Embargo: Poll More than 70 percent of
British people support an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, a new survey indicates
as pressure rises on the government to adopt a firmer stance against Israel. Among
those who voted for the governing Conservative Party in 2019, 67 percent
backed an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, according to the poll released on
Friday and commissioned by Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) and the Council
for Arab-British Understanding. Eighty-six percent of Labour voters backed
the call, while only 8 percent of respondents said there should not be a
ceasefire. (Al Jazeera) 17 May 2024 NORTH AMERICA (USA) Immigration Named Top U.S.
Problem For Third Straight Month Immigration tied with the
government as the top issue in December 2023, when the number of migrant
encounters at the southern border set a record for a single month. In February, as a bipartisan measure to address the
issue failed in the U.S. Senate, immigration overtook the government as the
nation’s most important problem and has remained there since. A steady 27% of
Americans say the most important problem facing the U.S. is immigration,
topping Gallup’s open-ended trend for the third consecutive month, the
longest stretch for this particular issue in the past 24 years. (Gallup) 30 April 2024 Americans Perceive Gaps In
Mental, Physical Healthcare Three-quarters of
Americans think mental health issues are identified and treated worse than
physical health issues in the U.S., according to a new survey from West Health and Gallup. This belief is even
stronger among U.S. adults aged 65 and older and those who report they have
experienced a mental health problem in the past year. Overall, 38% of U.S.
adults think mental health issues are handled “much worse” and 37% “somewhat
worse” than physical health issues, while 15% say they are dealt with “about
the same.” Just 4% think mental health issues are treated “somewhat better,”
with 1% saying “much better.” (Gallup) 01 May 2024 Americans Expect Home Prices To
Rise, See Market As Poor More Americans than a year
ago expect home prices to rise in their local area. At the same time,
Americans remain highly pessimistic about the market for homebuyers -- 21%
say it is a good time, and 76% say it is a bad time, to buy a house,
essentially tying last year’s measures as the worst in Gallup’s trend. Sixty-eight
percent of U.S. adults expect home prices in their local area to increase in
the coming year, up from 56% a year ago and among the highest readings Gallup
has measured to date. The only higher readings were 71% in 2021 and 70% in
2005 and 2022. (Gallup) 09 May 2024 Voters'
Views Of Trump And Biden Differ Sharply By Religion :Trump Draws Support From
81% Of White Evangelical Protestant Voters, 61% Of White Catholics, 57% Of
White Protestants Who Are Not Evangelical The latest Pew Research Center survey finds that most registered voters who
are White Christians would vote for Republican Donald Trump over Democrat Joe
Biden if the 2024 presidential election were held today. More than half of
White Christians think Trump was a “great” or “good” president and don’t think he broke the law in an
effort to change the outcome of the 2020 election. While most White Christian
voters say they would vote for Trump over Biden if the election were held
today, there are some differences by religious tradition. Trump draws support
from: 81% of White evangelical Protestant voters, 61% of White
Catholics, 57% of White Protestants who are not evangelical. (PEW) 30 April 2024 Teens And Video Games Today Video games as a part of
daily teen life: 85% of U.S. teens report playing video games, and 41%
say they play them at least once a day. Four-in-ten identify as a gamer.
Gaming as a social experience: 72% of teens who play video games say
that a reason why they play them is to spend time with others. And some have
even made a friend online from playing them – 47% of teen video game players
say they’ve done this. Helpful with problem-solving, less so for
sleep: Over half of teens who play video games say it has helped their
problem-solving skills, but 41% also say it has hurt their sleep. (PEW) 09 May 2024 A Majority Of Latinas Feel
Pressure To Support Their Families Or To Succeed At Work More than half of Latinas
say they often feel pressure to provide for their loved ones at home or
succeed in their jobs, mirroring the life stressors experienced by women across the
United States today. Despite these life pressures, 88% of Latinas are either
extremely or very satisfied (56%) or somewhat satisfied (32%) with their
family life. And 86% say they are extremely or very happy (43%) or somewhat
happy (43%) with how things are going in their lives these days. (PEW) 14 May 2024 A Quarter Of U.S. Teachers Say
AI Tools Do More Harm Than Good In K-12 Education About a third of high
school teachers (35%) say these tools do more harm than good. Roughly a
quarter of middle school teachers (24%) and 19% of elementary school teachers
say the same. Fewer than one-in-ten teachers at all levels say these tools do
more good than harm. Some 47% of elementary school teachers say they aren’t
sure about the impact of AI tools in K-12 education. That is much larger than
the shares of middle and high school teachers who say this. (PEW) 15 May 2024 Half
Of Latinas Say Hispanic Women’s Situation Has Improved In The Past Decade And
Expect More Gains 39% of Latinas say that
the situation has stayed the same, and 34% say it will not change in the next
10 years. Two-thirds (66%) say the gender pay gap – the fact that women earn less
money, on average, than men – is a big problem for Hispanic women today,
according to new analysis of Pew Research Center’s National Survey of
Latinos. At 22.2 million, Latinas account for 17% of all adult women in the
U.S. today. Their population grew by 5.6 million from 2010 to 2022, the
largest numeric increase of any major female racial or ethnic group. (PEW) 15 May 2024 More Americans Want The
Journalists They Get News From To Share Their Politics Than Any Other
Personal Trait A 2023 Pew Research Center
survey asked Americans how important it is for the journalists they get news
from to have six personal characteristics that are similar to their own. About
four-in-ten Americans say it is at least somewhat important that they get
news from journalists who share their political
views (39%). That is nearly double the share who say the same
about getting news from journalists who share their religious views (22%) or who talk or sound like them (20%). (PEW) 16 May 2024 (Canada) Most (72%) Of Canada’s Aspiring
Homeowners Anticipate Delaying New Home Purchase Until Mortgage Rates Drop A new Ipsos poll conducted
on behalf of BMO finds that almost three-quarters (72%), and increasingly
higher proportions (+4 pts), of Canada’s aspiring homeowners, relative to a
year ago, plan to wait until mortgage rates drop before pulling the trigger on
a new home purchase. This group – aspiring homeowners – represent just
two-fifths (39%) of non-homeowners overall. In fact, a majority (56%) of
non-homeowners perceive the dream of home ownership as being unattainable in
their lifetime. (Ipsos Canada) 01 May 2024 Canadians' Skin Cancer Concerns
Sees Significant Shift Most Canadians continue to
believe too much sun ages your skin (90%, -3 pts), damages your eyes (86%, -5
pts) and causes irreparable damage to your skin (81%, -4 pts), but the
proportion who agree with each statement declined significantly this wave.
Combined with these changes in attitudes there are also some worrying changes
in sun protection behaviours this wave. Fewer Canadians report wearing
sunglasses with UV protective lenses when outdoors year-round (66%, -6 pts)
and apply sunscreen when going outdoors (65%, -5 pts) at least occasionally. (Ipsos Canada) 07 May 2024 Religion And Vote: Liberals
Trail Among Jews, Muslims As Party Walks Tight Rope In Response To Gaza War New data from the
non-profit Angus Reid Institute finds the Liberals’ balancing act in
addressing the Israel-Gaza conflict costing it support among two key
constituencies. Trudeau’s party trails the NDP (41% to 31%) in vote intent
among Canadian Muslims and the CPC (42% to 33%) among Canadian Jews. However,
those are not the only religious groups where the Liberals find themselves
with a support deficit. Pierre Poilievre and the Conservative party are the
preferred choice of a majority (53%) of Christians, Hindus (53%) and Sikhs
(54%). (Angus Reid Institute) 16 May 2024 AUSTRALIA Australian Unemployment
Increases In April To 9.7% – Overall Labour Under-Utilisation At Highest
Since October 2020 In addition to the
increase in unemployment, there was also a slight increase in
under-employment, up 18,000 to 1,594,000. These combined increases mean a
massive 3.13 million Australians (19.8% of the workforce, up 1%) were
unemployed or under-employed in April – the highest level of total labour
under-utilisation for over three years since October 2020 (3.15 million)
during the early months of the pandemic. (Roy Morgan) 13 May 2024 Roy Morgan Update May 14, 2024:
ALP Support Unchanged, Consumer Confidence & Unemployment The Albanese Labor
Government retained the lead for the fourth week in a row - with support
unchanged on 52% ahead of the Coalition on 48% on a two-party preferred
basis. If an election were held now the ALP would be re-elected with a slim
majority - as they have now, the latest Roy Morgan Poll shows. Government
Confidence is 77.5 – up 4 points in a week – a positive movement, but the
Albanese Government must be concerned that a majority of Australians, 54%,
say the country is heading in the wrong direction – while less than a third,
only 31.5%, say the country is heading in the right direction. (Roy Morgan) 14 May 2024 MULTICOUNTRY STUDIES Most People Like Their Jobs, Satisfaction With
The Remuneration Is Still Lacking Behind A Survey Across 45 Countries Artificial intelligence
raises concerns, shows the poll. People worldwide are unsure about the new
technology – 31% see more opportunities in AI, but 38% expect it to bring
more problems to the world. A significant share of 24% worldwide does not
feel informed enough to evaluate AI effects on humanity. Rather happy with
the job Most of the working people around the world seem rather satisfied
with their job (65%), and minority of 17% say that they are not. Another 17%
say they are neither satisfied, nor dissatisfied. (Gallup Pakistan) 06 May 2024 Source:
https://gallup.com.pk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Job-satisfaction-GIA-PR-6.pdf Across All 24 Countries Surveyed Americans Are
Less Likely Than Others To Feel Close To People In Their Country Or Community Across all 24 countries
surveyed, a median of 83% of adults say they feel very or somewhat close to
other people in their country. A majority of U.S. adults (66%) also hold this
view, but Americans are the least likely among those in the countries surveyed
to do so. Even fewer Americans feel close to people in their local community: 54% feel a connection to
others near them, compared with a median of 78% of adults across all 24
countries. South Korea is the only country with a lower share of adults who
feel connected with others in their community (50%). (PEW) 08 May 2024 Support For Legal Abortion Is Widespread In Many
Places, Especially In Europe, A Study In 27 Countries WIN International, the
world’s leading association in market research and polling has published the
Annual WIN World Survey – WWS 2024 – exploring the views and beliefs. Despite
the escalating cost of living, there has been a 3% increase globally in the
percentage of individuals reporting that they are “living comfortably”
compared to last year. Sweden is first, with 56% of respondents affirming
their financial comfort. Education emerges as a significant determinant: 54%
of those with no education or only primary school education report struggling
financially, whereas individuals with a Master or PhD level of education cite
financial struggle at a significantly lower rate of 26%. (WIN) 17 May 2024 Source:
https://winmr.com/cost-of-living-impacts-the-ability-to-live-comfortably/ ASIA
845-847-43-01/Polls Japan Proposes Expanding Commercial Whaling To Fin Whales,
A Larger Species Than The 3 Allowed Now
Japan’s Fisheries Agency
has proposed expanding commercial whaling along the country’s coast to fin
whales, a larger species than the three currently permitted. The proposal comes five
years after Japan resumed commercial whaling within its exclusive
economic zone after withdrawing from the International Whaling Commission in
2019. It ended 30 years of what Japan called “research whaling” that had been
criticized by conservationists as a cover for commercial hunts banned by the
commission in 1988. Chief Cabinet Secretary
Yoshimasa Hayashi, whose electoral district is traditionally known for
whaling, said Thursday the government supports sustainable use of whales as
part of Japan’s traditional food culture and plans to promote the industry. “Whales are an important
food resource and we believe they should be sustainably utilized just like
any other marine resources, based on scientific evidence,” Hayashi told
reporters. “It is also important to carry on Japan’s traditional food
culture.” The Fisheries Agency said
it is seeking public comments until June 5 on the proposed plan and will seek
its approval at the next review meeting in mid-June. The agency decided to
propose adding fin whales to the allowable catch list after stock surveys
confirmed a sufficient recovery of the fin whale population in the North
Pacific. The plan is not meant to
increase whale meat supply and whalers who catch fin whales do not
necessarily have to meet a quota, an agency official said, speaking on
condition of anonymity to discuss the issue. For this year, the agency has
set a combined catch quota of 379 for the three other whale species. Last year, Japanese
whalers caught 294 minke, Bryde’s and sei whales — less than 80% of the quota
and fewer than the number once hunted in the Antarctic and the northwestern
Pacific under the research program. Japan’s whaling has long
been a source of controversy and attacks from conservationists, but
anti-whaling protests have largely subsided after Japan terminated its
much-criticized Antarctic research hunts in 2019 and returned to commercial
whaling limited to Japanese waters. Whale meat consumption in
Japan was an affordable source of protein during the malnourished years after
World War II, with annual consumption peaking at 233,000 tons in 1962.
However, whale was quickly replaced by other meats and supply has since
fallen to around 2,000 tons in recent years, according to Fisheries Agency
statistics. Japanese officials want to
increase that to about 5,000 tons, to keep the industry afloat. On a visit to the former
Tsukiji fish market area in downtown Tokyo, Yuka Fujikawa from Hokkaido, said
she has hardly seen whale meat sold at supermarkets. “I’ve actually never
tried it myself,” she said. “I want more people to
appreciate the taste of whale,” said Hideyuki Saito, from neighboring Saitama
prefecture. “I want it to be more popularized.” Carlos Sempere Santos, a
28-year-old tourist from Spain, said he couldn’t imagine eating whale as
whales are special and smart animals. Shirley Bosworth from
Australia said she opposes whaling because whales “should be protected.”
Whales often get beached in Australia, where people unite to try and “push
them back in the sea.” A whaling operator Kyodo
Senpaku Co. last year launched whale meat vending machines. The
company also completed construction of its new 7.5 billion yen ($48 million)
Kangei Maru — a 9,300-ton mother ship — and pledges to use it for sustainable
commercial whaling. (Asahi Shimbun) 10 May 2024 Source:
https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15262102
845-847-43-02/Polls New Volcano Research H.Q. Puts Japan In A Stronger Position
The government’s newly
established headquarters for promoting volcanic observation and
research should be viewed as a crucial opportunity to enhance essential
volcano disaster preparedness through surveys, observations and research
aimed at nurturing human resources in this field. Japan is crisscrossed with
111 active volcanoes. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) is responsible
for monitoring volcanic activity and providing related disaster preparedness
information. The Coordinating Committee
for Prediction of Volcanic Eruption, an advisory body to the agency’s
director-general, uses data and research findings provided by experts from
universities and national research institutions to upgrade disaster
preparedness efforts. Traditionally,
universities played a leading role in volcanic research and observation
activities. But maintaining volcanic observation facilities fell
into difficulties due to the paucity of volcanologists and scaled back basic
funding following the corporatization of national universities. The JMA monitors only
50 active volcanoes around the clock, less than half of the total. The Great Hanshin-Awaji
Earthquake that devastated Kobe and its vicinity in 1995 led to the
establishment of the Headquarters for Earthquake Research Promotion. It
served as the command center for building up a nationwide observation network
to monitor seismic activity and investigate active faults. However, volcano
monitoring and research, which fall outside this framework, continue to face
severe budgetary constraints. The new volcano
headquarters was established in April under the science and technology
ministry through a revision of the law for special measures concerning active
volcanos. It will consist of two panels of experts and policymakers: a policy
committee, which develops plans and allocates budgets for an observation
network, surveys and research, and a volcanic investigation committee to
assess volcano hazards. The teams aim to compile
an observation and research plan by this summer and work on assessment
methods. The headquarters should
share its expertise with related organizations to ensure efficient
operations, create a sustainable system and devise ways to provide accessible
information to the public. Deadly volcanic activity
in Japan in recent years includes the 1993 eruption of Mount Unzen’s
Fugendake and the 2014 eruption of Mount Ontakesan in central Japan. Both
incidents killed dozens of people. More than a century has
passed since a catastrophic eruption caused widespread damage in Japan.
But major volcanic disasters have occurred elsewhere: like the 2010
eruption in Iceland, which disrupted European air traffic for several weeks,
and the massive event in 2022 in Tonga that resulted in tsunami reaching
Japan. The 1914-1915 eruption of Mount Sakurajima in Japan’s southernmost
major island of Kyushu spread volcanic ash as far as eastern Japan. A massive and devastating
eruption is bound to hit Japan sooner or later. Today, electronic devices
vulnerable to volcanic ash support all kinds of social and economic systems,
including vital infrastructure. The immense and transformative technological difference
between contemporary society and that of 100 years ago touches almost every
aspect of human activity. All sorts of unknown and unpredictable
outcomes to social and economic systems, as well as health issues, from
volcanic ash could be in the offing. It is too late to seek to
buttress systems only after anomalies occur. Continuous, diligent surveys and
observations to accumulate data and insights in normal times are required to
better prepare the nation for volcanic disasters. It is possible to detect
signs of unusual volcanic activity and issue early warnings, as was the case
with the eruptions of Mount Usuzan and Miyakejima island in 2000, but
predicting the type of eruption, its progression and determining when it has
ceased is challenging. It is also vital to
continuously train experts who can assess volcanic activity and secure
related positions where young people can play key roles. (Asahi Shimbun) 11 May 2024 Source:
https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15263187
845-847-43-03/Polls In Rapidly Ageing China, Millions Can’t Afford To Retire
After three decades
selling homemade buns on the streets of the Chinese city of Xian, 67-year-old
Hu Dexi would have liked to slow down. Instead, Hu and his older
wife have moved to the edge of Beijing, where they wake at 4 a.m. every day
to cook their packed lunch, then commute for more than an hour to a downtown
shopping mall, where they each earn 4,000 yuan ($552) monthly, working 13-hour
shifts as cleaners. The alternative for them
and many of the 100 million rural migrants reaching retirement age in China
over the next 10 years is to return to their village and live off a small
farm and monthly pensions of 123 yuan ($17). “No one can look after
us,” said Hu, still mopping the floor. “I don’t want to be a burden on my two
children and our country isn’t giving us a penny.” The generation that
flocked to China’s cities at the end of last century, building the
infrastructure and manning the factories that made the country the world’s
biggest exporter, now risks a sharp late-life drop in living standards.
Reuters interviewed more than a dozen people, including rural migrant
workers, demographers, economists and a government adviser, who described a
social security system unfit for a worsening demographic crisis, which
Beijing is patching rather than overhauling as it pursues growth through
industrial modernization. At the same time, demand for social services is
growing rapidly as the population ages. “The elderly in China will
live a long and miserable life,” said Fuxian Yi, a demographer who is also a
senior scientist at University of Wisconsin-Madison. “More and more migrant
workers are returning to the countryside, and some are taking low-paid jobs,
which is a desperate way for them to save themselves.” If these migrants were to
rely solely on China’s basic rural pension, they would live on less than the
World Bank’s poverty threshold of $3.65 a day, though many supplement their
earnings by laboring in the cities or by selling some of their crop. China’s National
Development and Reform Commission, the human resources and civil affairs
ministries and the State Council did not respond to faxed requests for
comment. China’s latest statistics
showed some 94 million working people - around 12.8% of China’s 734 million
labor force - were older than 60 in 2022, up from 8.8% in 2020. That share, while lower
than in wealthier Japan and South Korea, is set to skyrocket as 300 million
more Chinese reach their 60s in the coming decade. A third of this cohort are
rural migrants, who typically lack the professional skills for an economy
aspiring to move up the value chain. The main reason China has not built a
stronger safety net for them is that policymakers, fearing the economy might
fall into the middle-income trap, prioritize growing the pie rather than
sharing it, the government adviser told Reuters. To achieve that, China is
directing economic resources and credit flows towards new productive forces,
a catch-all term for President Xi Jinping’s latest policy push for innovation
and development in advanced industries such as green energy, high-end chips
and quantum technology. U.S. and European officials say this policy is unfair
to Western firms competing with Chinese producers. They have warned Beijing
that it stokes trade tensions, and that it diverts resources away from
households, suppressing domestic demand and China’s future growth potential. China, which has rejected
those assessments, has instead focused on upgrading production, rather than
consumption, as its desired path toward prosperity. “It would be easier to
solve the equality problem if we could first solve the productivity growth
problem,” said the adviser, granted anonymity to speak freely about
pension-policy debates happening behind closed doors. “People have different
views” on whether China can make that leap in productivity, the adviser said.
“Mine is that it may be difficult if we do not reform further and remain at
odds with the international community.” ‘VESTED
INTERESTS’ Pensions in China are
based on an internal passport system known as hukou, which divides the
population along urban-rural lines, creating vast differences in incomes and
access to social services. Monthly urban pensions
range from roughly 3,000 yuan in less-developed provinces to about 6,000 yuan
in Beijing and Shanghai. Rural pensions, introduced nationwide in 2009, are
meagre. In March, China increased
the minimum pension by 20 yuan, to 123 yuan per month, benefitting 170
million people. Economists at Nomura say
transferring resources to the poorest Chinese households is the most
efficient way to boost domestic consumption. But the rural pension hike
amounts to an annual effort of less than 0.001% of China’s $18 trillion GDP. China’s Academy of Social
Sciences (CASS) estimates the pension system will run out of money by 2035.
Beijing has introduced private retirement schemes and is transferring funds
to provinces with pension budget deficits which they cannot replenish themselves
due to high debts. Other countries have tried
to increase pension funding by lifting the retirement age. In China, it is
among the lowest in the world at 60 for men and 50-55 for women depending on
their line of work. Beijing has said it plans
to raise the retirement age gradually, without giving a timeline. Government concerns that
the population would perceive raising the threshold as benefiting “vested
interests” at the expense of ordinary citizens are holding up the
implementation of those plans, the adviser said. Chinese think “officials
want to retire later to fatten up their own pensions,” he said. POVERTY
THREAT CASS surveys show the
level of healthcare funding for urban workers was in some cases about four
times higher than for those with a rural hukou. “There aren’t enough
social services to solve the problems of these people, who are prone to
falling back into poverty,” said Dan Wang, chief China economist at Hang Seng
Bank. More than 16% of rural
residents older than 60 were “unhealthy”, compared with 9.9% in the cities,
according to an October article by Cai Fang, a CASS economist and former
central bank adviser, published in the Chinese Cadres Tribune, a Communist
Party magazine. Sixty-year-old Yang
Chengrong and her 58-year-old husband Wu Yonghou spend their days collecting
piles of cardboard and plastic for a recycling station in Beijing, earning
less than one yuan per kilogram. Yang said she has heart
issues, while Wu has gout, but they can’t afford treatment. They fear their
4,000 yuan monthly income is unsustainable as “people consume and waste
less.” “Villagers like us work
ourselves to near-death, but we must keep working,” said Yang, her shoulders
covered in snow after a day of scavenging. Wu, next to her, said they
do not dare to retire. “I only feel secure if I
have work, even if it’s dirty work,” he said. Traditionally in China,
children had been expected to support the elderly. But most of those retiring
in the coming decade, a group almost as large as the entire U.S. population,
only had one child due to birth limits enforced from 1980 to 2015. High youth
unemployment compounds the problem. “Relying on families for
elderly care is no longer feasible,” Cai wrote in his article. The silver lining for some
of the elderly is that younger Chinese, despite struggling to find the
services jobs they went to university for, reject hard labor. “The mall can’t find
younger people,” said Hu, the cleaner. “As long as I can still move, I’ll
keep working.” (Asahi Shimbun) 08 May 2024 Source:
https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/15259047
845-847-43-04/Polls Nearly Half Of Pakistanis (48%) Feel That The Younger
Generation Is Wiser Than Their Elders When It Comes To Politics
According to a survey
conducted by Gallup & Gilani Pakistan, nearly half of Pakistanis (48%)
feel that the younger generation is wiser than their elders when it comes to
politics, while 29% consider them not wise at all. A nationally
representative sample of adult men and women from across the country was
asked the question, “According to some people, the younger generation in
Pakistan is more intelligent than the older people about politics. While some
people say that the younger generation is not at all smarter than the older
people. Please think about the young generation and tell if they are wise
about politics or not?” In response, 48% said ‘the younger generation is
wiser than the older ones’, 29% said ‘Young generation is not wise at all’,
17% said ‘Young generation and older people are equally wise’, and 6% said
that they did not know or gave no response.
Across age: 60% of
Pakistanis aged over 50 years are of the opinion that the younger generation
is wiser than the previous ones when it comes to politics, which is
significantly higher than those aged under 50 (45- 46%).
(Gallup Pakistan) 14 May 2024 Source:
https://gallup.com.pk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/14.05.24.Daily-poll-English.pdf AFRICA
845-847-43-05/Polls 6 In 10 Nigerians Say Authorities Not Doing Enough To Curb
Kidnapping
A new public opinion poll
conducted by NOIPolls has revealed a higher proportion of adult Nigerians
nationwide (56 percent) lament authorities are not doing enough to curb the
menace of kidnapping in the country. The poll further revealed that more
respondents (53 percent), about 74,201,877 of the country’s population
according to the population and housing census figures of 2006, consider
kidnapping to be prevalent in Nigeria. Interestingly, the North-Central Zone
accounted for the highest number of respondents who decried the prevalence of
the menace. These findings further corroborate the publication of the
International Centre for Investigative Report (ICIR), that in recent years,
Nigeria has seen a sharp increase in kidnapping incidence. Similarly, the
2023 Nigeria Security Report on kidnappings/abductions by an Abuja-based
security risk management and intelligence company, Beacon Consulting,
captured by Punch Newspaper on January 13, 2024, the country’s security
architecture at the moment is not accountable as it lacks operational,
financial, and democratic accountability, a development the report said, has
made it difficult to attain the desired success in security. In providing insights into
the outcomes of the various kidnap cases reported in the country, findings
revealed that 38 percent of adult Nigerians interviewed affirmed knowing
someone who has been kidnapped within their community in the past year, while
62 percent stated otherwise. When asked if the most recent victim has been
released, findings revealed a majority (78 percent) answered in the
affirmative. Contrarily, 13 percent revealed that victims are still in
captivity and 5 percent sadly disclosed victims were killed in captivity. Additionally, respondents
(78 percent) who admitted that victims were released were further asked how
long the victims were held hostage before regaining freedom. A higher
proportion (60 percent) of respondents revealed that they were held for less
than one month. Also, 24 percent stated victims were held for 1 to 2 months,
9 percent stated the victims were held for 3 to 5 months, and 4 percent
stated the victims were held for 6 months and above. When respondents were
asked if a ransom was paid for the victims’ release, 43 percent said ‘’Yes’
’while 57 percent stated otherwise. Unfortunately, a higher proportion of
respondents (21 percent) revealed that between 1 to 3 million was paid as
ransom. This is followed by 17 percent who disclosed that 10 million and
above was paid for victims’ release, 4 to 6 million at 11 percent. These
findings corroborate the SBM Intelligence’s report captured by a Premium
Times publication that Kidnappers collected N650 million as ransom in one
year. The security report also recorded that N6.531 billion ($9.9 million)
was demanded in ransom between July 2021 and June 2022 but N653.7 million
($1.2 million) was paid as ransom for releasing captives. In the same vein,
respondents (13 percent) who revealed that victims are still in captivity
were asked how long they have been held captive. A significant proportion (30
percent) disclosed victims have been held hostage for less than one month and
another significant proportion, (30 percent) revealed two months. In others,
23 percent revealed that victims have been in captivity for 6 months or
above. Major causes of kidnapping
in the country, 39 percent of respondents stated economic hardship and
unemployment (28 percent) as major causes of kidnapping in Nigeria. Other
cited causes include; Bad Governance (10 percent), Get Rich Quick syndrome (5
percent), and Poverty (4 percent). However, 9 percent of respondents stated
that they do not know the cause of kidnapping in the country. Finally, respondents were
asked what should be done to curb kidnapping in the country and the result
revealed that a higher proportion of respondents (37 percent) suggest Youth
Empowerment/Creation of job opportunities as a way of curbing the menace. Others
22 percent want security forces to be strengthened. These are some of the key
findings from the poll on kidnapping conducted in the week commencing
February 12, 2024. Background Kidnapping has become a
menace and one of the security challenges in Nigeria. The definition of
kidnapping is not specific as it varies from state to state and jurisdiction
to jurisdiction. Kidnapping as the name implies, is the forceful seizure,
taking away and unlawful detention of a person against his/her will. It is an
illicit practice in which human beings are forcefully abducted to an unknown
location for payment of ransom by relatives. Kidnapping is a common law
offence and the key part is that it is an unwanted act on the part of the
victim. It is a restriction of someone else’s liberty which violates the
provision of freedom of movement as enshrined in the constitution of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria, where every other law takes its cue from. The
predominance of this illicit practice in Nigeria was ranked in the global
index as one of the worst places to dwell. In Nigeria, kidnapping and
hostage-taking dates back to decades ago and has particularly become a major
security issue in the country since the early 2000s with the emergence of the
Niger Delta militants. The volatile oil-rich regions of the Niger Delta witnessed
this phenomenon on a large scale with the targets mostly expatriates and
Nigerians in the oil business. While the federal government found some ways
to manage the kidnapping situation in the Niger Delta region then, the menace
didn’t stop. It has spread throughout the country extending to places as far
as Kano and Kaduna in the far Northern part of Nigeria. South-Eastern and
South-South parts of Nigeria have also become the kidnappers’ playgrounds.
Recently, kidnapping has risen across all regions in the country, with an
average of 3,000 persons abducted almost every year in the last 3 years. The widening scale of
kidnapping in Nigeria is a cause for concern as all are affected by it.
Churches, mosques, markets, schools, homes and highways, all are susceptible
to this menace. The abductees and their families are traumatised by the
ordeal as victims are often assaulted, starved, molested, maimed or killed as
the case may be. Large-scale abductions have also targeted school children. A
study case is the abduction of the Chibok Girls. Ten years ago, 276
schoolgirls were abducted from a government secondary school in Chibok, a
town in Borno State, Nigeria. Some of the girls escaped captivity on their
own, while others were released following intense campaigning efforts from
organisations, including Amnesty International. However, 82 girls remain in
captivity, while more than 1,400 children have been abducted in subsequent
attacks. Thousands of students have
been kidnapped in Borno State’s Chibok, Niger State’s Kagara, Zamfara State’s
Jangebe, Kaduna State’s Afaka, Kebbi State’s Yauri, Ekiti State etc. In 2021,
Save the Children International, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO),
disclosed that over 1,000 students were abducted from Nigerian schools. Data
from the NST also showed how the wave of kidnapping has shifted from one
region to another. In July 2022, Daily Trust
reported that N800 million was paid to terrorists to secure the release of
seven captives seized from the AK9 train service attacked on the Abuja–Kaduna
route. The released victims were among the dozens of passengers abducted on
March 28, 2022, by gunmen who derailed the moving train. Similarly, an
Enugu-based politician, Tochukwu Okeke, who in 2019 narrated how he was
kidnapped by a late notorious kidnapper, Collins Ezenwa, popularly known as
‘E-money, said he paid $2 million, which had a naira value of N700 million at
the time, to secure his release. The Monarchs are not spared as there were
recent incidences of kidnap and gruesome killings of 2 monarchs in Kwara and
Ondo states respectively. No fewer than 15 persons
have been reportedly kidnapped in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) since
the beginning of 2024. The victims were kidnapped in two major incidents that
occurred in the first week of the new year thus depicting rising cases of abduction
in the nation’s capital. With the invasion of kidnappers, ‘One-chance’
vehicle robbers and sundry other criminal cartels, Abuja is becoming
increasingly unsafe for residents according to respected Security Analyst and
Lawyer, Bulama Bukarti Nigeria’s Kidnapping
crisis highlights the Country’s Problematic Intelligence Infrastructure.
Whether the problems are technical, political, or both, it is civilians who
pay the price. Unfortunately, there is a lack of will to effectively arrest
and prosecute kidnappers, politics of resource control and complicit on the
part of the political, religious and military leadership in the country
acting as limiting factors on state’s responses. Against this background,
NOIPolls surveyed to measure the opinions of Nigerians regarding kidnappings
in the country, and hereby presents its findings. (NOI Polls) 13 May 2024 Source:
https://www.noi-polls.com/post/6-in-10-nigerians-say-authorities-not-doing-enough-to-curb-kidnapping
845-847-43-06/Polls The Pivotal Role Of Voter Turnout In Shaping The 2024
Election Outcome
As 29 May approaches, with
widespread speculation surrounding the potential performance of political
parties in the upcoming national and provincial elections, the pivotal
determinant of success rests on getting voters to the polling stations. Those
parties with the ability to effectively mobilise their voter base and inspire
supporters to cast their ballots may hold an advantage over those that fail
to engage their supporters and neglect to prioritise voter turnout
initiatives. To develop realistic voter
turnout scenarios, Ipsos employs a multifaceted approach that considers key
indicators such as interest in politics, desire to vote, stated intention to
vote, and depth of party loyalty. By analysing responses to this series of
carefully crafted survey questions, Ipsos' proprietary algorithm generates
three distinct turnout scenarios. The latest data reveals an uptick in voter
engagement compared to the previous turnout projections, which were based on
fieldwork conducted in December 2023. (Findings available in the Ipsos Press
Release dated 6 February 2024, Support for Political Parties). The most recent voter
turnout models, based on the latest calculations and projections, outline
three potential scenarios, with projected turnout ranges edging slightly
higher across all three scenarios compared to the estimates published
earlier. Should the current trends
hold, a low voter turnout scenario – in which only the most committed voters
participate – could see between 41% and 43% of registered voters heading to
the polls. In a medium turnout scenario, the model indicates that the voter
turnout rate may be between 57% and 59%. On the high end, Ipsos’ projections
suggest that as many as 74% to 76% of registered voters could cast their
ballots if voter enthusiasm reaches its peak. It is probably unrealistic
to expect such a high voter turnout, due to the current sentiment among
voters, and the modelling shows that a low voter turnout will be to the
advantage of the ANC –
pushing the ruling party closer to achieving 50% of the vote and implying
that the ANC will need a smaller party as a coalition partner to form a
future government.
(Ipsos South Africa) 03 May 2024 Source:
https://www.ipsos.com/en-za/pivotal-role-voter-turnout-shaping-2024-election-outcome WEST EUROPE
845-847-43-07/Polls British Attitudes To The Israel-Gaza Conflict: May 2024
Update
Public
opinion is largely the same as it was in our last update three months ago In our February update on public attitudes to the Gaza
conflict, Israel was on the cusp of a new offensive into the city of Rafah.
Fast forward three months and that statement remains true, and public opinion likewise continues to
be much the same. While Hamas has in recent
days made a ceasefire offer, Israel has rejected it, saying the terms fell short of their key
demands. Desire for a
ceasefire remains high here in Britain: 69% say they think Israel should stop
and call a ceasefire at the current time, about the same as the 66% who said
so in February. By contrast, only 13%
think Israel should continue to take military action – a figure unchanged
from three months ago.
There has been no shift in
attitudes among those on either side of the conflict since February. Fully
98% of those who sympathise more with Palestinian side say that Israel should
stop and call a ceasefire, as do 80% of those who say they sympathise with
both sides equally. Only 27% of those who sympathise more with the Israeli
side say the same – most (63%) want Israel to continue taking military
action.
Nevertheless, there has
been some movement among pro-Israelis towards saying that Israel should be
prepared to enter peace negotiations with Hamas – 58% now say so, up from 50%
in February. A third (32%) continue to say that Israel should not be prepared
to negotiate with Hamas. The wider public are much
more likely to say that Israel should be prepared to enter into peace
negotiations with Hamas (70%, with only 8% opposed), and by a similar 76% to
4% Britons say Hamas should likewise be prepared to take part in peace talks. Public
sympathies in the Israel-Palestine conflict remain static Public sympathies in the
conflict also look largely as they did in February. Britons are most likely
to say they sympathise more with the Palestinian side, at 29%, while 16% say
they sympathise more with the Israelis. A further 23% say they sympathise with
both sides equally, and 31% are not sure.
While this ‘not sure’
figure is significantly lower than the 48% it was prior to the conflict, it
has never dropped below 29% over the course of the polling, demonstrating how
even on the most prominent and contentious of issues many Britons remain
disinterested or detached. Britons
support suspending UK arms sales to Israel Recent weeks have seen
impetus for an arms embargo on Israel, with parliamentarians and lawyers calling on the UK to withhold assistance from the country
until the end of hostilities in Gaza. Most Britons (56%) would
support the UK ending the sale of arms to Israel for the duration of the
conflict in Gaza. Only 20% would oppose this move – these figures are both
about the same as they were when we first asked at the beginning of April.
(YouGov UK) 10 May 2024
845-847-43-08/Polls One In Eight Britons Saw The Northern Lights Last Week
For
the vast majority, it was their first time doing so Last week saw the most
powerful series of solar storms to affect the Earth for twenty years. While
the electromagnetic interference might have been a bother for Elon Musk’s Starlink
satellites, much of the
Northern hemisphere was treated to a captivating display of the aurora
borealis, with photographers across the world sharing
photos of the
northern lights in their rare purple form. Now a new YouGov poll
shows that one in eight Britons (12%) caught the spectacular solar storm show
over the weekend. A further 33% say they looked for the lights, but in the
end could not see them.
Unsurprisingly those who
live in the northernmost reaches of the country were the most likely to see
the lights – 18% of Scots did so, as did 15% in the North of England.
Londoners were the least likely to, at 7%, having had to contend not only
with the capital’s southerly location but also the intense light pollution
surrounding the city. For 80% of those who did
manage to see the aurora this weekend, it was the first time they had ever
seen the Northern Lights in real life. Most
Britons want to see the northern lights Much of the population
will be jealous of those who did manage to catch this weekend’s heavenly
performance. Overall, 66% of Britons say they have never seen the aurora, but
want to do so. This compares to only 9% who have not seen it but don’t feel
like they are missing out. Around one in four Britons
have ever seen the northern lights, including 20% who want to do so again and
3% who have seen them but aren’t interested in repeating the experience. Given their advantageous
position, Scots are notably more likely to have ever seen the aurora (37%)
than their English and Welsh counterparts (21-22%).
Normally a plane ticket is
required to reach a destination where the northern lights can be reliably
spotted – typically Iceland or Norway. Our survey shows that one in six
Britons (18%) have ever taken a holiday where the primary motivation for
going on the holiday was to see a natural phenomenon or natural wonder in
that location. For a more detailed look
across 30 markets at consumers’ reasons for choosing a holiday destination,
as well as a host of other insights on brand consideration, preferred
locations, booking methods, accommodation and transportation
preferences, contact us about YouGov Global Travel
Profiles. (YouGov UK) 15 May 2024 Source:
https://yougov.co.uk/travel/articles/49415-one-in-eight-britons-saw-the-northern-lights-last-week
845-847-43-09/Polls Britons Believe Rishi Sunak More Likely Than Keir Starmer
To Be Booed Or Get No Points Were He To Represent The UK At Eurovision
Ahead of the 2024
Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final this weekend in Malmö, Sweden, a third of
Britons think it is likely that the United Kingdom will receive ‘nul points’.
A majority also believe that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak would be more likely
than Keir Starmer to get booed were he to represent the country. ‘Nul
points’ for Olly Alexander?
Musical
Abilities of Rishi Sunak vs. Keir Starmer
Holly Day, Research
Manager at Ipsos, said: Ahead
of the Eurovision Song Contest final in Sweden this weekend, our
polling suggests that there is little optimism about the United Kingdom’s
chances of success, with a third of Britons believing that we will receive
the dreaded ‘nul points’. The public also has little faith in the Prime
Minister’s musical talent, with 55% believing that he would get booed were he
to represent the country in Malmö. Although Keir Starmer is perceived to be
the better singer of the two, it is seems to be pretty clear that the country
doesn’t think that either should quit their day jobs in politics for a career
on stage! (Ipsos MORI) 10 May 2024
845-847-43-10/Polls Four In Ten Support Plans To Increase Defence Spending, But
Majority Do Not Trust Conservatives To Have Right Policies On Defence
New polling from Ipsos,
conducted after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged to increase defence
spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2030, has found that twice as many Britons support
the policy as oppose it, by 42% to 22%. However, the poll also reveals a lack
of trust that the Conservative party has the right policies on the issue. Support
for increasing defence spending
Support
for spending by policy area
Although
the public doesn't necessarily trust the Conservative Party's defence
policies, they are open to the party's proposed increases in defence spending
- especially among their 2019 voter base. However, even at a time of
increasing global tensions, we are seeing that most Britons still believe
that domestic issues like the NHS, immigration control, and housing are
higher priorities for increases in public spending. (Ipsos MORI) 15 May 2024 Source:
https://www.ipsos.com/en-uk/four-in-ten-support-plans-to-increase-defence-spending
845-847-43-11/Polls Most Britons Back Immediate Ceasefire In Gaza, Israeli Arms
Embargo: Poll
More than 70 percent of
British people support an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, a new survey indicates
as pressure rises on the government to adopt a firmer stance against Israel. Among those who voted for
the governing Conservative Party in 2019, 67 percent backed an immediate
ceasefire in Gaza, according to the poll released on Friday and commissioned
by Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) and the Council for Arab-British
Understanding Eighty-six percent of
Labour voters backed the call, while only 8 percent of respondents said there
should not be a ceasefire. The United Kingdom has
refused to call for an immediate ceasefire. In December, UK Foreign
Secretary David Cameron and his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock wrote in
The Times, “We do not believe that calling right now for a general and
immediate ceasefire, hoping it somehow becomes permanent, is the way
forward.” Such a call “ignores why
Israel is forced to defend itself”, they wrote. “Hamas barbarically attacked
Israel and still fires rockets to kill Israeli citizens every day. Hamas must
lay down its arms.” But as the war rages on
and bodies pile up across Gaza, a large section of society finds the
government’s stance untenable. The survey has come more
than seven months into Israel’s latest and deadliest war on Gaza, which has
killed, to date, more than 35,000 people, mostly women and children. Israeli forces launched a
ground invasion of the Strip after Hamas, which governs the enclave, attacked
southern Israel on October 7. During that assault, which sharply escalated
the longstanding Israel-Palestine conflict, 1,139 people were killed and hundreds
were taken captive. “These polls clearly show
that both the government and Labour leadership are out of touch with British
public opinion. What’s particularly disappointing is the Labour Party’s
failure to challenge the government,” Heather, a pro-Palestine activist, told
Al Jazeera. “We’ve started to see Labour frontbenchers
back-pedalling on their position on Gaza, and while the term ‘lasting
ceasefire’ is now being used by the party, they still refuse to call for an
‘immediate’ ceasefire.” The poll reflects a sample
of 2,053 people, who were surveyed between May 1 and 2. “The government and the
Labour leadership continue to lag sluggishly behind British public opinion by
failing to take the decisive actions needed to help bring the horrors we see
in Gaza to a swift end – a trend also highlighted in polls across Europe,” said
Caabu director Chris Doyle. “There is little
confidence in the leadership of both the main parties in the handling of this
major international crisis.” With Israel expanding its
military incursion into Rafah, a densely populated area in southern Gaza,
calls for the UK to halt its military ties to Israel have grown louder.
The poll suggested that 55
percent of people support the UK ending the arms sales to Israel for the
duration of the war, while 13 percent said they wanted to see a continuation. Along political lines, 40
percent of Conservative voters believed the UK should stop selling weapons,
while just 24 percent were opposed. As for Labour Party voters, 74 percent
favour the UK halting deals, compared with only 7 percent who opposed the call. Cameron said on Sunday
that the UK does not directly sell weapons to Israel but grants licences to
weapons companies. “Just to simply announce
today that we will change our approach on arms exports, it would make Hamas
stronger and it would make a hostage deal less likely,” Cameron told the BBC. Since the war began, tens
of thousands of people have protested in London and other major cities
calling for an end to the war. “They [calls for halting weapons sales]
signify that people in this country are not content to sit idly by while
elected officials maintain a stance of inaction,” said Heather. “Our
government’s ongoing complicity – ranging from providing arms to those committing
violence to supporting and excusing genocidal policies – has forced many into
action.” (Al Jazeera) 17 May 2024 NORTH AMERICA
845-847-43-12/Polls Immigration Named Top U.S. Problem For Third Straight Month
A steady 27% of Americans
say the most important problem facing the U.S. is immigration, topping
Gallup’s open-ended trend for the third consecutive month, the longest
stretch for this particular issue in the past 24 years.
The latest results are
based on an April 1-22 Gallup survey, as elevated numbers of migrants
continued to seek entry at the U.S. southern border. Immigration tied with
the government as the top issue in December 2023, when the number of migrant
encounters at the southern border set a record for a single month. In February, as a bipartisan measure to address the issue failed in the
U.S. Senate, immigration overtook the government as the nation’s most
important problem and has remained there since. In addition to these
recent instances, immigration has topped Gallup’s most important problem list
four times since 2000 (either alone or tied with another issue), including at
several points in 2014, 2018 and 2019. However, 2024 is the first time that immigration has remained
the top issue for multiple successive months. Other issues -- including
the economy in general, the government, the Iraq War, inflation, COVID-19,
unemployment and terrorism -- have held the top spot more often than
immigration since Gallup began updating the most important problem question
monthly in March 2001. Except for inflation and unemployment, all of the
other issues have had longer consecutive runs as the top issue than
immigration currently has. The economy has been the
top problem far more often than any other issue (101 times over the past 24
years), while the government has held the top spot 85 times and the Iraq War
registered 50 top appearances.
Immigration
Is Most Politically Polarizing Issue on Most Important Problem List Republicans are far more
likely than Democrats and independents to name immigration as the most
important issue. In the latest poll, 48% of Republicans, compared with 8% of
Democrats, mention immigration. Independents fall roughly in the middle, at
25%. Republicans’ mention of
the issue has come down from February, when a record-high 57% named it. Fewer
Democrats now than in 2019 (when as many as 20% mentioned it) say immigration
is the top problem. Meanwhile, independents’ latest mention of immigration is
at a new high, although statistically similar readings were recorded in 2019
and in recent months. The most important problem
question is open-ended, allowing respondents to name up to three issues.
Variation in the percentage of total mentions each month, generally ranging
between 108% and 168% in the trend since 2000, creates additional possible
error in how historical percentages (overall and by subgroup) should be
interpreted.
Historically, Republicans
have been much more likely than Democrats and independents to mention
immigration as the biggest problem facing the U.S. The current
40-percentage-point gap in Republicans’ and Democrats’ mentions of
immigration is among the largest party differences on record for this
measure. It is identical to last month’s gap and second to February’s
47-point partisan difference on the same issue. Examining Gallup’s most
important problem trends by party shows that immigration is currently a
uniquely polarizing issue. The gaps between Republicans and Democrats
mentioning it this year are greater than for any other issue in the past 25
years. The next most polarizing
issue was the COVID-19 pandemic, which was named by far more Democrats (43%)
than Republicans (8%) in February 2021, resulting in a 35-point gap. The Iraq
War, the government and unemployment were also named by more Democrats than
Republicans in past surveys, showing 20- to 24-point gaps. Terrorism was an
especially Republican-centric concern, with a 20-point gap in September 2004.
Other problems have been
cited by more Americans overall, although there was more agreement among
partisans on their importance. For example, during the Great Recession,
Democrats’ and Republicans’ mentions of the economy were similarly elevated.
Likewise, after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, mentions of terrorism increased
among both parties. Bottom
Line For the third month in a
row, immigration is the problem Americans name more than any other as the
most important facing the U.S. While immigration has not ranked as the top
problem often in Gallup’s monthly trend, it stands alone as the most
politically polarizing issue in the past 25 years of Gallup’s measurement. The record surge of
migrants at the southern U.S. border in December brought even more focus on
the issue -- and while attempted crossings have eased slightly since then,
they are expected to increase as spring continues. President Joe Biden’s
approval rating for his handling of immigration has been persistently poor. With the
presidential election about six months away and immigration top of mind, the
issue remains a significant vulnerability for Biden as he seeks reelection. (Gallup) 30 April 2024 Source:
https://news.gallup.com/poll/644570/immigration-named-top-problem-third-straight-month.aspx
845-847-43-13/Polls Americans Perceive Gaps In Mental, Physical Healthcare
Three-quarters of
Americans think mental health issues are identified and treated worse than
physical health issues in the U.S., according to a new survey from West Health and
Gallup. This belief is even stronger among U.S. adults aged 65 and older and
those who report they have experienced a mental health problem in the past
year. Overall, 38% of U.S.
adults think mental health issues are handled “much worse” and 37% “somewhat
worse” than physical health issues, while 15% say they are dealt with “about
the same.” Just 4% think mental health issues are treated “somewhat better,”
with 1% saying “much better.”
Another measure in the
survey asking Americans to evaluate how well the nation’s healthcare system
deals with mental health conditions finds a similarly bleak assessment. Only
1% of U.S. adults grade its ability to address mental health issues as an A,
8% as a B, and 27% as a C. The remaining majority, 57%, grade it as a D (32%)
or F (25%).
The poll, which explores
Americans’ views of various aspects of mental healthcare in the U.S., was
conducted by web Feb. 2-14 via the nationally representative Gallup Panel. Cost
of Care for Mental Health Is Top Potential Barrier for Americans Affordability (52%) and
difficulty in finding a provider (42%) are the top two barriers to obtaining
treatment for a mental or emotional health condition that Americans select
among five choices. Fewer, though still significant shares, say believing
they can deal with their condition without treatment (28%), feeling shame or
embarrassment (27%), or thinking treatment would not help (24%) may keep them
from seeking treatment. Younger Americans are much
more likely than their older counterparts to say the cost of care might stop
them from seeking treatment. Roughly six in 10 adults younger than 50 say
cost could be a barrier, compared with 46% of those aged 50 to 64 and 35% of
those aged 65 and older.
Fifty-one percent of
survey respondents report that they have experienced depression, anxiety, or
some other mental or emotional condition in the past 12 months. This group
includes 22% who say their condition was so significant that it disrupted
their normal activities, such as going to work or caring for their household,
and 29% who say it did not rise to that level of disruption. Those who say they have
experienced a mental health condition in the past year are more likely than
those who have not to say the cost of treatment, difficulty finding a
provider, or shame or embarrassment might keep them from seeking treatment.
Many
See Mental Health Stigma, Especially Those Recently Affected Seven in 10 Americans
believe society views people with mental health conditions “very negatively”
(13%) or “somewhat negatively” (57%), while about one in four say they are
regarded “not very negatively” (18%) or “not at all negatively” (6%). The belief that society
stigmatizes people with mental health issues is particularly felt among those
who have experienced such an issue in the past year. Among this group, 74%
think people with mental health conditions are viewed negatively. Likewise, 75%
of adults aged 65 and older think mental health conditions have a negative
societal stigma -- the highest among age groups. However, they are the least
likely of all age groups to say shame or embarrassment might deter them from
seeking treatment.
Four
in Five Americans Say Mental Health Conditions Have Increased in U.S. In addition to believing
mental health conditions are inadequately addressed in the U.S., there is a
widespread perception among Americans that these conditions, including
depression and anxiety, have increased over the past five years. More than
80% of U.S. adults say the incidence of such mental health problems has
risen, including 42% who think they have increased “a lot” and 39%
“somewhat.” Fewer, 10%, say the incidence is steady, while only 2% each say
cases have decreased “somewhat” or “a lot.” Women and adults younger
than 50 are more likely than their counterparts to perceive an increase in
the number of Americans with mental health issues, with nearly half of each
group believing such conditions have increased “a lot” over the past five
years.
Psychological
Counseling Seen as Effective by Majority of Americans Americans’ concerns about
how mental healthcare is addressed in this country are not necessarily tied
to their belief about the efficacy of mental health treatments. More
than half of U.S. adults, 53%, think psychological counseling or therapy is a
“very effective” or “effective” treatment. Another 30% say it is “somewhat
effective,” and 5% say it is “not at all effective.” Fewer U.S. adults, 35%,
think prescription medication is “very effective” or “effective,” while 42%
say it is “somewhat” and 8% “not at all” effective.
Americans who report
recent experience with a mental health condition are among the most likely to
believe in the efficacy of counseling.
Demographic differences
are less stark in views of prescription medication as a treatment for mental
health conditions; however, young adults are among the least likely to
consider it effective. Implications Most Americans do not
believe care for mental health conditions is on par with care for physical
conditions. Though many view treatments such as counseling or prescription
medication as effective, others deem them unaffordable or inaccessible or say
negative stigma or their ability to self-treat might keep them away. Overall, nearly six in 10
Americans think the way mental health conditions are addressed is either poor
or failing, while only 1% think it is excellent. Policymakers are working to
close the gaps between care for people with physical issues and those with
mental health conditions, but there is a lot of room for improvement in the
minds of Americans. Greater attention to reaching parity between mental and
physical health could help further ensure mental and emotional health are
given the appropriate attention within the U.S. healthcare system. (Gallup) 01 May 2024 Source:
https://news.gallup.com/poll/644144/americans-perceive-gaps-mental-physical-healthcare.aspx
845-847-43-14/Polls Americans Expect Home Prices To Rise, See Market As Poor
More Americans than a year
ago expect home prices to rise in their local area. At the same time,
Americans remain highly pessimistic about the market for homebuyers -- 21%
say it is a good time, and 76% say it is a bad time, to buy a house,
essentially tying last year’s measures as the worst in Gallup’s trend. Larger
Majority Believe Local Home Values Will Increase Sixty-eight percent of
U.S. adults expect home prices in their local area to increase in the coming
year, up from 56% a year ago and among the highest readings Gallup has
measured to date. The only higher readings were 71% in 2021 and 70% in 2005
and 2022.
Predictions for housing
prices have shifted greatly in the past five years after being relatively
steady between 2014 and 2019.
The latest results are
from Gallup’s annual Economy and Personal Finance survey, conducted April
1-22. Americans
in All Parts of the Country Expect Home Prices to Rise Between 66% and 70% of
Americans in the four major regions of the country predict that home prices
will increase in their local area during the next year. The current figures
represent substantial jumps from 2023 in the Midwest (up 22 points) and West
(up 15 points), which saw the largest declines between 2022 and 2023.
City (69%), suburban (70%)
and rural (63%) residents share similar beliefs about local home price
increases in their area over the next year, as do Americans from different
income levels and political party affiliations. Younger Americans, those
under 50, are more likely than older Americans to think home prices will
rise, 75% versus 60%. As is typical, renters
(73%) are somewhat more likely than homeowners (64%) to expect housing prices
to increase. Perceptions
of Homebuying Market Unchanged From Record Low Currently, 21% of
Americans say it is a good time and 76% believe it is a bad time to buy a
house. Those figures are essentially unchanged from last year -- 21% and 78%,
respectively -- the worst in Gallup’s trend. Before last year, the
prior low saying it was a good time to buy a house was 30% in 2022. All other
measures had been 50% or higher, including a record 81% in 2003. Gallup has
asked this question annually since 2005, and in 1978, 1991 and 2003.
The public’s pessimism
about the homebuying market likely reflects the combination of high home
values, high mortgage rates and limited housing supply. There are no meaningful
differences in perceptions of the home market by region, urbanicity,
homeownership, income, partisanship or age. Bottom
Line Americans would likely
advise prospective homebuyers to stay out of the market for now because, as
they did last year, more than three-quarters say it is a bad time to buy a
house. Furthermore, a higher percentage of U.S. adults than a year ago expect
prices to increase. The effect of high home
prices is evident in the record 14% who name the costs of owning and renting
a home as the most important financial problem facing their family, trailing only
inflation among economic matters. Younger Americans, who may lack the wealth
to buy homes at today’s higher prices, are significantly more likely than
older Americans to cite housing costs as the most pressing financial issue
for their family. The expense of
homeownership is especially challenging with today’s higher interest rates,
which make mortgages more expensive for prospective homebuyers. The Federal
Reserve decided against an interest-rate cut at its May meeting, as inflation
remains above the Fed’s target level. But if the Fed cuts rates later this
year, it would provide homebuyers with some relief. (Gallup) 09 May 2024 Source:
https://news.gallup.com/poll/644933/americans-expect-home-prices-rise-market-poor.aspx
845-847-43-15/Polls Voters' Views Of Trump And Biden Differ Sharply By Religion
:Trump Draws Support From 81% Of White Evangelical Protestant Voters, 61% Of
White Catholics, 57% Of White Protestants Who Are Not Evangelical
The U.S. electorate
continues to be sharply divided along religious lines. The latest Pew Research Center survey finds that most registered voters who
are White Christians would vote for Republican Donald Trump over Democrat Joe
Biden if the 2024 presidential election were held today. More than half of
White Christians think Trump was a “great” or “good” president and don’t think he broke the law in an
effort to change the outcome of the 2020 election. In stark contrast, most
registered voters who are Black Protestants or religious “nones” – those who
self-identify as atheists, agnostics or “nothing in particular” – would vote
for Biden over Trump. Large numbers in these groups also say Trump was a
“terrible” president and that he broke the law trying to overturn the 2020
election results. Religion
and the 2024 presidential election
While most White Christian
voters say they would vote for Trump over Biden if the election were held
today, there are some differences by religious tradition. Trump draws support
from:
By contrast, 77% of Black
Protestant voters say they would vote for Biden over Trump. Most religious
“nones” also say this, including:
These presidential
preferences reflect the partisan leanings of U.S. religious groups. White Christians have been trending in a
Republican direction for quite some time, while Black Protestants and
religious “nones” have long been strongly Democratic. The Center’s new survey
includes responses from Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and people from many
other religious backgrounds, as well as adherents of smaller Christian groups
like Hispanic Protestants and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints (widely known as Mormons). However, the survey does not include enough respondents from these smaller religious
categories to be able to report on them separately. Church
attendance and voting preferences in 2024
Among Christians, support
for Trump is somewhat higher among regular church attenders than
non-churchgoers. Overall, 62% of Christian voters who say they go to church
at least once or twice a month support Trump over Biden. Among Christians who
go to church less often, 55% would vote for Trump if the election were today. Among White evangelical
Protestant voters, 84% of regular churchgoers say they would vote for Trump,
compared with 77% of White evangelicals who don’t go to church regularly. White nonevangelical
Protestants are the only Christian group in which support for Trump is
significantly stronger among nonattenders than among regular churchgoers. Voters’
views of Biden and Trump as presidents About three-quarters of
White evangelical Protestant voters say Trump was a “great” (37%) or “good”
(37%) president. Roughly half of White Catholics and White nonevangelical
Protestants share this view. When it comes to Biden,
atheists and Black Protestants rate the current president’s performance most
favorably. Roughly half of voters in each of these groups say Biden is a
great or good president. Overall, Trump gets higher
marks on these questions than Biden. This is because Trump supporters
are more inclined to say he was a great or good
president than Biden
supporters are to say the same about him.
Views
of whether Trump broke the law in effort to change 2020 election outcome
People in the religious
groups that are most supportive of Biden tend to think Trump broke the law in
an effort to change the outcome of the 2020 election. Most atheists (83%) say
this, as do 70% of Black Protestants and 63% of agnostics. By contrast, just 16% of
White evangelical Protestants say Trump broke the law trying to change the
2020 election outcome. Another 15% of White evangelicals say they think Trump
did something wrong but did not break the law, while the largest share by far
(47%) say Trump did nothing wrong. (PEW) 30 April 2024
845-847-43-16/Polls Teens And Video Games Today
There are long-standing
debates about the impact of video games on youth. Some credit them for
helping young people form friendships and teaching them about teamwork and problem-solving. Others say video games expose teenagers to violent content, negatively impact
their sleep and can even lead to addiction. With this in mind, Pew
Research Center surveyed 1,423 U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 about their own video
game habits – from how often they play to the friends they’ve made and
whether it gets in the way of them doing well in school or getting a good
night’s sleep.1 Key
findings from the survey
Jump
to read about: Who plays video games | Socializing over video games | Views about video games’ impact | Harassment and violence in video games Who
plays video games?
Playing
video games is widespread among teens. The vast
majority of U.S. teens (85%) say they play them. Just 15% say they never do,
according to the survey conducted Sept. 26-Oct. 23, 2023. In addition to asking
whether teens play video games, we also wanted to learn whether they consider
themselves gamers. Overall, four-in-ten
U.S. teens think of themselves as gamers. Just under half of
teens (45%) play video games but do
not think of themselves as gamers.
By
gender Nearly all boys (97%) say
they play video games, compared with about three-quarters of teen girls.
There is a substantial gap by gender in whether teens identify as gamers: 62%
of teen boys do, compared with 17% of girls.2 By
gender and age Younger teen girls are
more likely than older girls to say they play video games: 81% of girls ages
13 to 14 compared with 67% of those ages 15 to 17. But among boys, nearly all
play video games regardless of age. Similar shares of teens
play video games across different racial and ethnic groups and among those
who live in households with different annual incomes. Go to Appendix A for more detail on which teens play
video games and which teens identify as gamers.
How
often do teens play video games? We also asked teens how often they play video
games. About four-in-ten U.S. teens
say they play video games daily, including 23% who do so
several times a day.
Another 22% say they play
several times a week, while 21% play them about once a week or less. By
gender Teen boys are far more
likely than girls to say they play video games daily (61% vs. 22%). They are
also much more likely to say they play them several times a day (36% vs.
11%). By
whether someone identifies as a gamer About seven-in-ten teens
who identify as gamers (71%) say they play video games daily. This drops to
30% among those who play them but aren’t gamers. By
household income Roughly half of teens
living in households with an annual income of less than $30,000 (53%) say
they play video games at least daily. This is higher than those in households
with an annual income of $30,000 to $74,999 (42%) and $75,000 or more (39%). Go to Appendix A to see more details about who plays
video games and identifies as a gamer by gender, age, race and ethnicity, and
household income. What
devices do teens play video games on?
Most
teens play video games on a gaming console or a smartphone. When
asked about five devices, most teens report playing video games on a gaming
console (73%), such as PlayStation, Switch or Xbox. And 70% do so on a
smartphone. Fewer – though still sizable shares – play them on each of the
following:
Many teens play video
games on multiple devices. About a quarter of teens (27%) do so on at least
four of the five devices asked about, and about half (49%) play on two or
three of them. Just 8% play video games on one device. By
gender
Teen boys are more likely
than girls to play video games on four of the five devices asked about – all
expect tablets. For instance, roughly nine-in-ten teen boys say they ever
play video games on a gaming console, compared with 57% of girls. Equal shares
of teen boys and girls play them on tablets. By
whether someone identifies as a gamer Teens who consider
themselves gamers are more likely than those who play video games but aren’t
gamers to play on a gaming console (95% vs. 78%), desktop or laptop computer
(72% vs. 45%) or a virtual reality (VR) headset (39% vs. 19%). Similar shares
of both groups play them on smartphones and tablets. Social
media use among gamers
One way that teens engage
with others about video games is through online platforms. And our survey
findings show that teen gamers stand out for their use of two online
platforms that are known for their gaming communities – Discord and Twitch:
Previous Center research
shows that U.S. teens use online platforms at high rates. Teen
views on how much they play video games and efforts to cut back
Teens
largely say they spend the right amount of time playing video games. When
asked about how much time they spend playing them, the largest share of teens
(58%) say they spend the right amount of time. Far fewer feel they spend too
much (14%) or too little (13%) time playing them. By
gender Teen boys are more likely
than girls to say they spend too much time playing video games (22% vs. 6%). By
race and ethnicity Black (17%) and Hispanic
(18%) teens are about twice as likely than White teens (8%) to say they spend
too little time playing video games.3 By
whether someone identifies as a gamer A quarter of teens who
consider themselves gamers say they spend too much time playing video games,
compared with 9% of those who play video games but don’t identify as gamers.
Teen gamers are also less likely to think they spend too little time playing them
(19% vs. 10%).
Fewer
than half of teens have reduced how much they play video games. About
four-in-ten (38%) say they have ever chosen to cut back on the amount of time
they spend playing them. A majority (61%) report that they have not cut back
at all. This share is on par with
findings about whether teenagers have cut back with their
screen time – on
social media or their smartphone. By
gender Although boys are more
likely to say they play video games too much, boys and girls are on par for
whether they have ever cut back. About four-in-ten teen boys (39%) and girls
(38%) say that they have ever cut back. By
whether someone identifies as a gamer And gamers are as likely
to say they have cut back as those who play video games but don’t identify as
gamers (39% and 41%). Are
teens social with others through video games?
A main goal of our survey
was to ask teens about their own experiences playing video games. For this
section of the report, we focus on teens who say they play video games. Socializing
with others is a key part of the video game experience. Most
teens who play video games do so with others, and some have developed
friendships through them. About nine-in-ten teen
video game players (89%) say they play them with other people, in person or
online. Far fewer (11%) play them only on their own. Additionally, about half
(47%) report that they have ever made a friend online because of a video game
they both play. This equals 40% of all U.S. teens who have made a friend
online because of a video game. These experiences vary by:
Do
teens think video games positively or negatively impact their lives?
Teens
who play video games are particularly likely to say video games help their
problem-solving skills. More than half of teens
who play video games (56%) say this. Additionally, more think
that video games help, rather than hurt, three other parts of their lives
that the survey asked about. Among teens who play video games:
No more than 7% say
playing video games has hurt any of these. More
teens who play video games say it hurts, rather than helps, their sleep. Among
these teens, 41% say it has hurt how much sleep they get, while just 5% say
it helps. And small shares say playing video games has impacted how well they
do in school in either a positive or a negative way. Still,
many teens who play video games think playing them doesn’t have much an
impact in any of these areas. For instance, at
least six-in-ten teens who play video games say it has neither a positive nor
a negative impact on their mental health (60%) or their school performance
(72%). Fewer (41%) say this of their problem-solving skills. By
gender
Teen boys who play video
games are more likely than girls to think playing them has helped their
problem-solving skills, friendships and ability to work with others. For
instance, 55% of teen boys who play video games say this has helped their
friendships, compared with 35% of teen girls. As for ways that it
may hurt their lives,
boys who play them are more likely than girls to say that it has hurt the
amount of sleep they get (45% vs. 37%) and how well they do in school (21%
vs. 11%). By
whether someone identifies as a gamer Teens who consider
themselves gamers are more likely than those who aren’t gamers but play video
games to say video games have helped their friendships (60% vs. 35%), ability
to work with others (52% vs. 32%), problem-solving skills (66% vs. 47%) and
mental health (41% vs. 24%). Gamers, though, are
somewhat more likely to say playing them hurt their sleep (48% vs. 36%) and
how well they do in school (20% vs. 14%). By
whether teens play too much, too little or the right amount Teens who report playing
video games too much stand out for thinking video games have hurt their sleep
and school performance. Two-thirds of these teens say it has hurt the amount
of sleep they get, and 39% say it hurt their schoolwork. Far fewer of those
who say they play the right amount (38%) or too little (32%) say it has hurt
their sleep, or say it hurt their schoolwork (12% and 16%). Why
do teens play video games?
Teens who play video games
say they largely do so to be entertained. And many also play them to be
social with and interact with others. Teens who play video games were asked
about four reasons why they play video games. Among those who play video
games:
While entertainment is by
far the most common reason given by teens who play video games, differences emerge across groups in why they play
video games. By
whether someone identifies as a gamer
Teens who identify as
gamers are particularly likely to say each is major reason, especially when
it comes to competing against others. About four-in-ten gamers (43%) say this
is a major reason, compared with 13% of those who play video games but aren’t
gamers. By
gender Teen boys who play video
games are more likely than girls to say competing (36% vs. 15%), spending
time with others (36% vs. 27%) and entertainment (90% vs. 83%) are major
reasons they play video games. By
race and ethnicity Black and Hispanic teens
who play video games are more likely than White teens to say that learning
new things and competing against others are major reasons they play them. For
instance, 29% of Black teen video game players say learning something new is
a major reason, higher than 17% of Hispanic teen video game players. Both are
higher than the 7% of White teen video game players who say the same. By
household income Teens who play video games
and live in lower-income households are especially likely to say competing
against others and learning new things are major reasons. For instance,
four-in-ten teen video game players who live in households with an annual
income of less than $30,000 say competing against others is a major reason
they play. This is higher than among those in households with annual incomes
of $30,000 to $74,999 (29%) and $75,000 or more (23%). Bullying
and violence in video games Cyberbullying can happen
in many online environments, but many teens encounter this in the video game
world. Our survey finds
that name-calling is a relatively
common feature of video game life – especially for boys. Roughly
four-in-ten teen video game players (43%) say they have been harassed or
bullied while playing a video game in one of three ways:
By
gender Teen boys are particularly
likely to say they have been called an offensive name. About half of teen
boys who play video games (48%) say this has happened while playing them,
compared with about a third of girls (32%). And they are somewhat more likely
than girls to have been physically threatened (15% vs. 9%). By
whether someone identifies as a gamer Teen gamers are more
likely than those who play video games but aren’t gamers to say they been
called and offensive name (53% vs. 30%), been physically threatened (17% vs.
8%) and sent unwanted sexually explicit things (10% vs. 6%).
Teens
– regardless of whether they’ve had these experiences – think bullying is a
problem in gaming. Eight-in-ten U.S. teens say
that when it comes to video games, harassment and bullying is a problem for
people their age. This includes 29% who say it is a major problem. It’s common for teens to
think harassment while playing video games is a problem, but girls are
somewhat more likely than boys to say it’s a major problem (33% vs. 25%). There have also been
decades-long debates about how violent video games can influence youth behavior, if at all – such as by encouraging or desensitizing them to
violence. We wanted to get a sense of how commonly violence shows up in the
video games teens are playing.
Just
over half of teens who play video games (56%) say at least some of the games
they play contain violence. This includes 16%
who say it’s in all or most of the games they play. By
gender Teen boys who play video
games are far more likely than girls to say that at least some of the games
they play contain violence (69% vs. 37%). By
whether someone identifies as a gamer About three-quarters of
teen gamers (73%) say that at least some of the games they play contain
violence, compared with 40% among video game players who aren’t gamers.
(PEW) 09 May 2024 Source:
https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2024/05/09/teens-and-video-games-today/
845-847-43-17/Polls A Majority Of Latinas Feel Pressure To Support Their
Families Or To Succeed At Work
More than half of Latinas
say they often feel pressure to provide for their loved ones at home or
succeed in their jobs, mirroring the life stressors experienced by women across the
United States today. Latinas feel
cross-pressured in other ways too, as they juggle cultural expectations around gender roles rooted in Latin
America and those rooted in the U.S. Majorities of Latinas say that U.S.
Hispanic women face pressure to do housework, be beautiful and start
families.
Despite these life
pressures, 88% of Latinas are either extremely or very satisfied (56%) or
somewhat satisfied (32%) with their family life. And 86% say they are
extremely or very happy (43%) or somewhat happy (43%) with how things are
going in their lives these days. At 22.2 million, Latinas
account for 17% of all adult women in the U.S. today. The population grew 5.6
million from 2010 to 2022, the largest increase of any major female racial or
ethnic group. Moreover, most Latina
adults have recent immigrant connections, with 77% being either immigrants
themselves (52%) or having at least one immigrant parent (25%).1 Some Latinas in the U.S.
grow up with traditional
cultural values carried
over from Latin America. This can produce pressure from family or a community
to place the needs of others ahead of their own, be passive or subordinate to
others, or be virtuous or chaste – characteristics related to marianismo. At the same time, some Latinas may also
feel pressure to achieve success in their own right in academics or a career. These findings emerge from
Pew Research Center’s bilingual National Survey of Latinos, conducted Nov.
6-19, 2023, among 5,078 Hispanic adults. The survey explores what it’s like
to be a Latina in the U.S. today. In addition to life
pressures (Chapter 2), the report explores Latinas’ views on sexism against women
in media, schools, family and the workplace, and their experiences with
harassment and discrimination (Chapter 1). Other topics include Latinas’ views of their general
happiness and life satisfaction and where they find joy in life (Chapter 3). Pressures
Latinas say they face at home and work
Hispanic
men also feel life pressures. About half (49%)
of Hispanic men say they often feel pressure to support their family in some
way, and 40% say they face pressure to be successful at work. Overall, 59% of
Hispanic men say they often feel pressure from family or work.
However, Latinas are more likely to say Hispanic women face
pressures such as cooking and cleaning at home, being
pleasant to others, and starting a family than to say this about Hispanic
men. Among Latinas:
Hispanic
men generally agree that Hispanic women face more pressure than Hispanic men
to do things associated with gender roles for women. For
example, 57% of Hispanic men say Hispanic women face pressure to cook and
clean at home, compared with 18% who say Hispanic men face this pressure. Among Latina adults, those
who are U.S. born are more likely than immigrants to say Hispanic women as a
group face pressure to do things tied to idealized gender roles.
About half of Hispanic women say sexism against women is a
problem in different settings, including at work and in
entertainment media. Hispanic men are less likely to say so.
Latinas’
views vary by age on pressures, sexism and harassment Younger Latinas are more
likely than older Latinas to say:
(PEW) 14 May 2024
845-847-43-18/Polls A Quarter Of U.S. Teachers Say AI Tools Do More Harm Than
Good In K-12 Education
As some teachers start to use artificial
intelligence (AI) tools in
their work, a majority are uncertain about or see downsides to the general
use of AI tools in K-12 education, according to a Pew Research Center survey
conducted in fall 2023. A quarter of public K-12
teachers say using AI tools in K-12 education does more harm than good. About
a third (32%) say there is about an equal mix of benefit and harm, while only
6% say it does more good than harm. Another 35% say they aren’t sure.
How
teachers’ views differ by school level High school teachers are
more likely than elementary and middle school teachers to hold negative views
about AI tools in education.
About a third of high
school teachers (35%) say these tools do more harm than good. Roughly a
quarter of middle school teachers (24%) and 19% of elementary school teachers
say the same. Fewer than one-in-ten
teachers at all levels say these tools do more good than harm. Some 47% of elementary
school teachers say they aren’t sure about the impact of AI tools in K-12
education. That is much larger than the shares of middle and high school
teachers who say this. Teens’
experiences with and views of ChatGPT In a separate survey, we
asked U.S.
teens about their experience with and views of ChatGPT, a generative AI tool, in their
schoolwork.
Among teens who have heard
of ChatGPT, 19% say they have used it to help them with schoolwork. This is
more common among teens in higher grades. About a quarter of 11th and 12th
graders who have heard of ChatGPT (24%) say they have used it in their schoolwork,
compared with 17% of 9th and 10th graders and 12% of 7th and 8th graders. Teens’ views on whether
using ChatGPT is acceptable depend on what it’s being used for. Among teens
who have heard of ChatGPT:
Shares ranging from 18% to
24% aren’t sure whether it is acceptable to use ChatGPT in each of these
situations. Overall, two-thirds of
U.S. teens say they have heard of ChatGPT. That includes 23% who have heard a
lot about it and 44% who have heard a little about it. Roughly a third (32%)
say they have heard nothing at all about ChatGPT. (PEW) 15 May 2024
845-847-43-19/Polls Half Of Latinas Say Hispanic Women’s Situation Has Improved
In The Past Decade And Expect More Gains
Half of Latinas say the
situation of Hispanic women in the United States is better now than it was 10
years ago, and a similar share say the situation will improve in the next 10
years.
Still, 39% of Latinas say
that the situation has stayed the same, and 34% say it will not change in the
next 10 years. Two-thirds (66%) say the gender pay gap – the fact that women earn less
money, on average, than men – is a big problem for Hispanic women today,
according to new analysis of Pew Research Center’s National Survey of
Latinos. At 22.2 million, Latinas
account for 17% of all adult women in the U.S. today. Their population grew
by 5.6 million from 2010 to 2022, the largest numeric increase of any major
female racial or ethnic group.1 Latinas’ mixed assessments
reflect their group’s gains in education and at work over the last two
decades, but also stalled progress in closing wage gaps with other groups.
Despite this
progress, Hispanic women’s pay gaps
with their peers haven’t significantly improved in recent
years:
In addition, Hispanic
women lag Hispanic men and non-Hispanic women in labor force participation,
and they lag non-Hispanic women in educational attainment. Read more in Chapter 2. Among Latinas who are
employed, about half (49%) say their current job is best described as “just a
job to get them by.” Fewer see their job as a career (30%) or a steppingstone
to a career (14%). Pew Research Center’s
bilingual 2023 National Survey of Latinos – conducted Nov. 6-19, 2023, among
5,078 Hispanic adults, including 2,600 Hispanic women – explores what it’s
like to be a Latina in the U.S. today. This report uses findings from our
2023 survey as well as demographic and economic data from the Current
Population Survey. The following chapters
take a closer look at:
(PEW) 15 May 2024
845-847-43-20/Polls More Americans Want The Journalists They Get News From To
Share Their Politics Than Any Other Personal Trait
Most Americans say it
is not important that
the news they get comes from journalists who share their political views,
age, gender or other traits. But people are more likely to say it is
important for journalists to share their politics than any other
characteristic we asked about. And certain demographic groups place more
value than others on the personal traits of their journalists. A 2023 Pew Research Center
survey asked Americans how important it is for the journalists they get news
from to have six personal characteristics that are similar to their own.
About four-in-ten
Americans say it is at least somewhat important that they get news from
journalists who share their political
views (39%). That is nearly double the share who say the same
about getting news from journalists who share their religious views (22%) or who talk or sound like them (20%). Smaller shares say they
want to get news from journalists who are similar to them in age (15%), share their race or ethnicity (14%), or share
their gender (10%). On several of these
questions, opinions vary based on respondents’ political views, age and other
personal traits. Political
views
Similar shares of
Republicans and Democrats say it is at least somewhat important for the news
they get to come from journalists who share their political views.
Four-in-ten Republicans and GOP-leaning independents say this, compared with
41% of Democrats and Democratic leaners. When combining party and
ideology, people who place themselves at either end of the political spectrum
are more likely than those toward the center to say journalists’ politics are
important.
Age
Younger adults are more
likely than older Americans to say they want news from journalists who are
around the same age as them. Among U.S. adults ages 18 to 29, 23% say this is
at least somewhat important, compared with one-in-ten of those ages 65 and older. Younger adults are also
more likely than older adults to say it’s important that the journalists they
get news from are the same gender as them; still, large majorities say this
is not important. Some 16% of those ages 18 to 29 say it is at least somewhat
important for journalists to share their gender, versus 6% of those 65 and
older. Race
or ethnicity Black Americans are more likely than other racial or ethnic
groups to say it is
important they get news from journalists who share several of their
characteristics – particularly their race or ethnicity. About four-in-ten Black
Americans (41%) say it is at least somewhat important that the news they get
comes from journalists who share their race or ethnicity. A quarter of
Hispanic Americans, 20% of Asian Americans and just 5% of White Americans say
the same. For more information on
how Black Americans answered these questions, read our report on Black Americans and news. Religion
Overall, Americans who
identify with a religion are more likely than those who are religiously
unaffiliated to find it at least somewhat important to get news from
journalists who share their religious views (26% vs. 15%). Among Christians,
Protestants are more likely than Catholics to say it is important for
journalists to share their religious views (30% vs. 21%). But there are also
differences among Protestants and among Catholics:
Among Jewish Americans,
just 10% say it’s at least somewhat important to get news from journalists
who share their religious views. (PEW) 16 May 2024
845-847-43-21/Polls Most (72%) Of Canada’s Aspiring Homeowners Anticipate
Delaying New Home Purchase Until Mortgage Rates Drop
A new Ipsos poll conducted
on behalf of BMO finds that almost three-quarters (72%), and increasingly
higher proportions (+4 pts), of Canada’s aspiring homeowners, relative to a
year ago, plan to wait until mortgage rates drop before pulling the trigger on
a new home purchase. This group – aspiring homeowners – represent just
two-fifths (39%) of non-homeowners overall. In fact, a majority (56%) of
non-homeowners perceive the dream of home ownership as being unattainable in
their lifetime. Optimism is tepid, even among the aspiring homeowners’ group,
as two-thirds (66%) concede they will have to wait until at least 2025 (or
later) before pulling the trigger on a new home purchase. Even many of those
who already own their home are feeling pinched by the rates, as most (74%)
within this group who intend to refinance their home plan to wait until
mortgage rates drop before refinancing. Rising home insurance costs are
another barrier as four in ten (41%) Canadians indicate that rising home
insurance costs may affect their ability to maintain or buy a home.
(Ipsos Canada) 01 May 2024
845-847-43-22/Polls Canadians' Skin Cancer Concerns Sees Significant Shift
The Canadian Dermatology
Association’s annual Sun Awareness survey show significant changes in
Canadians' attitudes towards sun exposure and the environmental impact of
sunscreen over the past year. This wave of the study showcases a shift in
understanding, misinformation, and behavioral practices related to sun
exposure and sunscreen usage. Firstly, the concern about
the increased risk of skin cancer has significantly declined by 9 points,
reaching a new all-time low of 54%, while just four in ten (40%, -10 pts)
consider it their greatest concern. This is a striking shift in Canadians’
attitude towards skin cancer. However, those aged 55+ (63%) continue to be
the most concerned about the risk of skin cancer. Meanwhile, women are still
more concerned than men about sun exposure increasing the risk of skin cancer
(59%) though the gap between men and women narrowed this wave. Important attitudes and
behaviors regarding sun and sun protection also shifted significantly. Most
Canadians continue to believe too much sun ages your skin (90%, -3 pts),
damages your eyes (86%, -5 pts) and causes irreparable damage to your skin
(81%, -4 pts), but the proportion who agree with each statement declined
significantly this wave. Combined with these changes in attitudes there are
also some worrying changes in sun protection behaviours this wave. Fewer
Canadians report wearing sunglasses with UV protective lenses when outdoors
year-round (66%, -6 pts) and apply sunscreen when going outdoors (65%, -5
pts) at least occasionally. All the while more Canadians say they are
partaking in indoor tanning compared to last wave (15% vs. 11% last wave). Secondly, the research
highlights an unfortunate increase in the agreement with misinformation about
sun exposure. More Canadians now believe that the dangers of sun exposure are
exaggerated (32%, +8 pts), there is no need to use sunscreen when it's cloudy
(32%, +7 pts), sun protection in the winter is unnecessary (28%, +4 pts), and
that getting a sunburn is the first step to a suntan (23%, +5 pts). These
figures represent a reversal of the decline in agreement with misinformation
seen in 2019. Thirdly, Canadians
continue to be confused by UVA and UVB rays as only about a quarter can
correctly identify the difference between UVA (27%) and UVB (24%) rays with
significantly fewer being able to correctly identify UVB rays this wave
(24% vs. 29% last wave). While the amount who misidentify one for the other
dropped to about a third (UVA: 35% vs. 43% last wave and UVB: 33% vs. 43%
last wave), the proportion who say they don’t know increased significantly to
four in ten (UVA: 41% vs. 28% last wave and UVB: 40% vs. 28% last wave). On a positive note, the
study shows a significant increase in the use of sunscreen, both daily and
all year round. Nearly three in ten Canadians now report using sunscreen all
year round (28%, +7 pts), and two in ten use it daily (19%, +4 pts), both
significant increases from 2019 and all-time highs. The research also reveals
a decrease in the number of Canadians who think that sunscreen may cause
environmental damage, with the figure standing at 52%, -8 pts. This shows
that Canadians' concerns about the environmental impact of sunscreen have
been partially alleviated. The research also revealed
that the most popular sources of information about sunscreen for Canadians
are their pharmacy or pharmacist (32%) and a general online search (30%).
Only about one in ten (16%) Canadians say they typically go to the Canadian
Dermatology Association website to get information about sunscreen. This research provides a
valuable snapshot of the changing attitudes and behaviors towards sun
exposure and the use of sunscreen. It highlights the need for continuous
education and awareness campaigns to dispel misinformation and promote safe
sun practices. (Ipsos Canada) 07 May 2024 Source:
https://www.ipsos.com/en-ca/canadians-skin-cancer-concerns-sees-significant-shift
845-847-43-23/Polls Religion And Vote: Liberals Trail Among Jews, Muslims As
Party Walks Tight Rope In Response To Gaza War
Canada’s shifting
demographics has meant a commensurate shift in the ways political parties
look for voters. Modern politicians have sought to appeal to support bases
across diverse linguistic, cultural, and religious diasporas. In 2015, the
Liberals’ appeal to Muslim voters helped power Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
to a majority government. But recent tensions brought on by the war between
Israel and Hamas in Gaza, and the resulting humanitarian crisis, have changed
the political landscape. New data from the
non-profit Angus Reid Institute finds the Liberals’ balancing act in
addressing the Israel-Gaza conflict costing it support among two key
constituencies. Trudeau’s party trails the NDP (41% to 31%) in vote intent
among Canadian Muslims and the CPC (42% to 33%) among Canadian Jews. However, those are not the
only religious groups where the Liberals find themselves with a support
deficit. Pierre Poilievre and the Conservative party are the preferred choice
of a majority (53%) of Christians, Hindus (53%) and Sikhs (54%). This comes as Canadians of
all religious stripes – or none at all – report deteriorating opinions of the
prime minister. As the federal government attempts to navigate its response
to the ongoing war in Gaza, it has earned plenty of criticism from Canadian
Muslims and Jews. Among both groups, at least half say their opinion of
Trudeau has worsened in recent weeks. However, the opposition
leaders have yet to capitalize on souring approval of Trudeau among these two
key groups. Canadian Muslims are about as likely to say their opinion of NDP
leader Jagmeet Singh have improved (22%) as worsened (20%); half (47%) say their
views of Poilievre have become more negative in recent weeks. Assessments of
both leaders by Canadian Jews trend negative (Singh -36 net improved;
Poilievre -6). INDEX
Introduction The
vote intention story for the governing Liberal party and Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau is one with few, if any, bright spots in recent months.
Overall, they trail the opposition Conservative party by 20 points. They are
the preferred party of no age or gender demographic and are in at most second place in any province in the country. This, after a budget they had hoped would
flip the momentum for them as they run out of time in power before an
election must be called. The Liberals’ dismal vote
intention numbers have coincided with a period of much international
instability which has caused domestic disruption on the political scene. In
the wake of Israel’s invasion of Gaza in October, the federal government and
Trudeau have navigated its response to the war along a fine line. This has
resulted in significant criticism from both Canadian Muslims and Jews, majorities of whom believe the Canadian
government has done a poor job standing
up for international laws and representing Canada internationally. At times in Canadian
political history, both Muslims and Jews have been sources of support for the
Liberal party. While Canadian Jews shifted to being more likely overall to
vote for the Conservatives under
Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his more pro-Israel policies, Liberals have traditionally performed
strongly in federal ridings with significant Jewish populations. Notably, the
federal electoral district with the largest Jewish population – Mount Royal, currently served by
Liberal MP Anthony Housefather – has voted Liberal in every federal election since the riding’s creation in 1940. Muslim support was courted
by the Liberals to help power the party to Trudeau’s majority government in
2015. Trudeau positioned himself and the Liberals as the antithesis to Harper
and the Conservatives’ “barbaric cultural practices” hotline and the controversial C-51 anti-terror legislation, both Conservative government policies
which were unpopular among Canadian Muslims. Perhaps due to these
political dynamics, Trudeau and his successive Liberal governments have taken
strides to address the priorities of both Muslims and Jews. Liberal
governments under Trudeau prioritized recognizing and combatting
Islamophobia, including with a controversial bill in 2017, and the
establishment of special representative on combatting Islamophobia in 2023. Meanwhile, the Liberals
supported a Conservative motion condemning the Boycott, Divestment and
Sanctions campaign against Israel in 2016 and Trudeau has continuously voiced support for Israel,
including when a previous Israel-Gaza conflict included the shooting of a
Canadian doctor by an Israeli sniper in 2018. However, conflict between Israel and Palestinians even prior
to Oct. 7 has been the source of tension for Trudeau. Canadian Jews
criticized the government after the Liberals restored funding in 2016 to the
Palestinian aid organization UNRWA previously cut by the Conservatives under
Harper. Vote
intention by religion Approaching two-thirds of Canadians identify as
religious. While more than
half of Canadians overall identify as Christian, there are growing
proportions of Canadians who identify as Muslim, Hindu and Sikh – double the number who did so 25 years ago. To analyze how shifting
population and global dynamics have affected Canadian politics, ARI conducted
a survey among an augmented sample of Muslim, Hindu, Jewish and Sikh Canadian
adults, who represent four of the largest religious groups after Christianity among the Canadian
population. For some of these groups,
there is a similar picture of vote intent as among the general population: a
strong Conservative lead. The opposition Conservatives lead in vote intention
among decided and leaning Canadian Christian, Hindu, Jewish and Sikh voters,
and those with no religious identity. Canadian Muslims are the only group to
choose the NDP at a plurality level. As criticism over the governing party’s
response to the crisis in Gaza swirls, the governing Liberals are at best the
second choice among all religious groups analyzed:
Leadership
approval/favourability Leadership likely has an
outsized effect on political party support. In this case, most religious
groups have a more positive view of Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre than
either Trudeau or NDP leader Jagmeet Singh. There are two exceptions: Muslims
and Atheists, who have a net positive view of Singh and high negative views
of Poilievre:
Momentum:
Trudeau lags, do Singh and Poilievre benefit? Canadians are more likely
than not to say their opinions of the leaders of the three largest political
parties in the country has worsened in recent weeks. However, Poilievre has
positive momentum among Evangelical Christians, and Hindus, and slight positive
momentum among Mainline Protestants. Opinions of Trudeau are more likely to
have worsened across the board, while Singh is treading slightly above water
among Muslims only. A majority (51%) of
Muslims say their opinion of Trudeau has worsened recently. In December, a
group of Muslim donors who had donated hundreds of thousands of dollars
annually to the Liberal party since 2014, said it was withdrawing support from the party after Trudeau had not
called for a ceasefire in December. Then, the National Council of Muslims
cancelled a meeting with the prime minister in January after the government had “failed to
move on substantive hate-crime legislation” and failed to support and protect
Palestinians in Gaza. Meanwhile, since the onset
of the war in Gaza, antisemitic incidents in Canada have risen, and Trudeau has faced criticism for not properly addressing the
increased violence and hate directed towards Jews in Canada. His government
has also faced accusations that it has backed off from its prior support of Israel. Half (49%) of Canadian Jews say their
opinion of the prime minister has worsened in recent weeks. The opposition leaders
have not seen a significant positive lift in views from either Canadian
Muslims or Jews as opinions of Trudeau have worsened. In fact, Poilievre has
also drawn the ire of Muslims after he was reluctant to
call for a ceasefire and opposed Canada funding UNRWA. Half (47%) of Muslims
say their view of the Conservative leader has worsened in recent weeks. Singh is narrowly a net
positive among Muslims while half (47%) say their opinion of the NDP leader
has stayed the same. Since the onset of the war, the NDP under Singh have
been more supportive of the Palestinian side of the conflict including in
March, when the NDP called on Canada to recognize the “State of Palestine” in
a controversial motion brought to the House of Commons. The Liberals
significantly changed the wording before the non-binding motion was eventually passed with softer language asking the
government to work towards a two-state solution instead of officially
recognizing a Palestinian state. NDP support of the
Palestinian side of the conflict is perhaps a factor as to why more Canadian
Jews say their opinion of Singh has worsened (38%) than improved (2%)
recently. Elsewhere, opinions of Poilievre have moved little among Canadian
Jews. The Conservative leader said that he is “a friend of the state of Israel” and has accused Trudeau of playing both
sides of the conflict in a recent speech at a Montreal synagogue in March.
One-quarter (25%) of Jews say their opinion has improved, but more (31%) say
it has worsened: (Angus Reid Institute) 16 May 2024 Source:
https://angusreid.org/religion-and-vote/ AUSTRALIA
845-847-43-24/Polls Australian Unemployment Increases In April To 9.7% –
Overall Labour Under-Utilisation At Highest Since October 2020
In
April 2024, Australian ‘real’ unemployment increased 177,000 to 1,535,000 (up
1% to 9.7% of the workforce) despite overall employment remaining near its
all-time high at over 14.2 million. In addition to the
increase in unemployment, there was also a slight increase in
under-employment, up 18,000 to 1,594,000. These combined increases mean a
massive 3.13 million Australians (19.8% of the workforce, up 1%) were
unemployed or under-employed in April – the highest level of total labour
under-utilisation for over three years since October 2020 (3.15 million)
during the early months of the pandemic. The April Roy Morgan
Unemployment estimates were obtained by surveying an Australia-wide cross
section of people aged 14+. A person is classified as unemployed if they are
looking for work, no matter when. The ‘real’ unemployment rate is presented
as a percentage of the workforce (employed & unemployed).
Australian employment was
down slightly by 35,000 to 14,232,000 in April. A significant fall in
part-time employment drove the decrease, down 261,000 to 4,903,000 while
full-time employment increased by almost enough to offset this decline, up
226,000 to 9,329,000.
In April 1,535,000
Australians were unemployed (9.7% of
the workforce, up 1%), an increase of 177,000 from March driven by
more people looking for both full-time and part-time work. There were 669,000
(up 74,000) looking for full-time work and 866,000 (up 103,000) looking for
part-time work.
In addition to the
unemployed, a further 1.59 million Australians (10.1% of the workforce) were under-employed,
i.e. working part-time but looking for more work, up 18,000 from March. In
total 3.13 million Australians (19.8% of the workforce) were either
unemployed or under-employed in April.
The workforce in April was
15,767,000 (up 142,000 from March and up a massive 717,000 from a year ago) –
comprised of 14,232,000 employed Australians (down 35,000 from a month ago)
and 1,535,000 unemployed Australians looking for work (up 177,000 from a month
ago). Although unemployment and
under-employment remain high at 3.13 million – the highest combined figure since October 2020
during the early months of the pandemic, there has been a
surge in employment over the last year – up by a large 418,000 to a near
record high of 14,232,000. ABS
Comparison Roy Morgan’s unemployment
figure of 9.7% is more than double the ABS estimate of 3.8% for March but is approaching the combined ABS unemployment and under-employment
figure of 10.3%. The latest monthly figures
from the ABS indicate that the people
working fewer hours in March 2024 due to illness, injury or
sick leave was 537,100. This is around 146,000 higher than the pre-pandemic
average of the five years to March 2019 (391,300) – a difference of 145,800. If this higher than
pre-pandemic average of workers (145,800) is added to the combined ABS unemployment and under-employment
figure of 1,541,200 we find a total of 1,687,000 people could be considered
unemployed or under-employed, equivalent to 11.4% of the workforce. Roy
Morgan Unemployment & Under-employment (2019-2024)
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source January 2019 – April
2024. Average monthly interviews 5,000. Michele
Levine, CEO Roy Morgan, says total Australian unemployment or
under-employment has increased to its highest in over three years at 3.13
million in April – 19.8% of the workforce – with over 1.5 million people both
unemployed and under-employed: “The
latest Roy Morgan employment estimates for April show total Australian
unemployment or under-employment has increased 195,000 to 3,129,000 (19.8% of
the workforce, up 1%). ’Real’ unemployment increased 177,000 to 1,535,000
(9.7% of the workforce) and under-employment increased by 18,000 to 1,594,000
(10.1%). “This
is the first time in over a year that both unemployment and under-employment
have increased in the same month with the two usually moving in opposite
directions. The increase means overall labour under-utilisation is now at its
highest for over three years since October 2020 (3.15 million) during the
early days of the pandemic. “The
labour force has experienced rapid change over the last year with a large
increase in population (+717,000) – a rate almost three times higher than the
average annual population growth over the last 25 years of 287,000. This
population increase has been the driver of a growing workforce, up by 667,000
to a record high of over 15.7 million in April 2024. “In
turn, the increasing workforce has led to large rises in both employment, up
418,000 to over 14.2 million, and unemployment, up 249,000 to 1,535,000. As
well as unemployment increasing 249,000, under-employment is up by 254,000 –
a combined figure of 503,000 more Australians either unemployed or
under-employed than a year ago in April 2023. “The
figures show that although new jobs are being created, there are not enough
jobs being created to soak up the nearly 700,000 people who joined the
workforce over the last year and increasing numbers of Australians are
becoming unemployed or under-employed.” “The
sustained increase in unemployment and under-employment over the last year
shows the labour market is struggling to provide the right jobs for all those
joining the workforce. Tackling this continuing high level of unemployment
and under-employment must be the
number one priority for the Federal Government which is due to hand down a
pre-election Federal Budget next week.” (Roy Morgan) 13 May 2024 Source:
https://www.roymorgan.com/findings/australian-unemployment-estimate-april-2024
845-847-43-25/Polls Roy Morgan Update May 14, 2024: ALP Support Unchanged,
Consumer Confidence & Unemployment
In this week's Update, we
present the latest data on Primary Voting Intention, Consumer Confidence and
Unemployment. Welcome to the Roy Morgan
Weekly Update. The Albanese Labor
Government retained the lead for the fourth week in a row - with support
unchanged on 52% ahead of the Coalition on 48% on a two-party preferred
basis. If an election were held
now the ALP would be re-elected with a slim majority - as they have now, the
latest Roy Morgan Poll shows. The key weekly indicators
had mixed results this week after the Reserve Bank left interest rates
unchanged last week and before today’s pre-election Federal Budget is handed
down. Government Confidence
improved this week, but is still low, and Consumer Confidence continued to
languish. Government Confidence is
77.5 – up 4 points in a week – a positive movement, but the Albanese
Government must be concerned that a majority of Australians, 54%, say the
country is heading in the wrong direction – while less than a third,
only 31.5%, say the country is heading in the right direction. As a result, Roy Morgan
Government Confidence remains well below the neutral level of 100. There was no improvement
in Consumer Confidence with ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence, virtually
unchanged at 80.2 this week. Longer-term, Consumer
Confidence has now spent a record 67 weeks below the level of 85. Looking
back over the last few months, Consumer Confidence has now moved in a narrow
band of 80-85 over the last 23 weeks (over five months) since early December. A major driver of the low
level of Consumer Confidence is the low level of buying intentions – when
consumers are confident they think it’s a good time to buy – if they are not
confident they think it is a bad time to buy. A majority of 52% of
Australians (up 3% in a week) say now is a ‘bad time to buy major household
items, only 19% (down 2%) say now is a ‘good time to buy major household
items’. This is a net rating of
-32.9% – the lowest so far this year – after the Reserve Bank left interest
rates unchanged at a 12-year high of 4.35% and before this week’s Federal
Budget. Many will be hoping there
is some relief from cost of living pressures in the Federal Budget which
could provide a boost to Consumer Confidence in the months ahead. In better news, Inflation
Expectations were down 0.2% to 4.8% this week. Australians now expect annual
Inflation to be 4.8% over the next two years. Like Consumer Confidence,
Inflation Expectations have stayed within a narrowband of 4.8% to 5.3% since
early December. For most Australians
petrol prices are the single most visible sign of inflation and cost of
living and this week there has been a second straight fall in average retail
petrol prices – now down 13 cents a litre in the last two weeks. Despite the fall, average
retail petrol prices have now spent a record 44 weeks (more than ten months
and since mid-July 2023) above $1.80 per litre. More recently, over the
last 15 weeks since late January, average retail petrol prices have averaged
$2 per litre. And finally this week to
the Australian employment markets. There is bad news with the
labour force at the moment, although over 14 million Australians are now
employed (418,000 more than a year ago), the latest Roy Morgan headline real
unemployment figure for April is up 1% to 9.7% - Roy Morgan estimates over 1.5
million Australians are now unemployed – the highest figure so far this year. There is also a continuing
high level of ‘under-employment’ (part time workers wanting more hours).
Unchanged at 10.1% in April – now 1.59 million people are under-employed. The overall figures show
total unemployment and under-employment – what we might call workforce
under-utilisation – was 19.8% of the workforce in April – over 3.1 million
people. This is the highest level
of labour under-utilisation we have seen in the Australian workforce for over
three years – since the early days of the pandemic in October 2020. (Roy Morgan) 14 May 2024 MULTICOUNTRY STUDIES
845-847-43-26/Polls Most People Like Their Jobs,
Satisfaction With The Remuneration Is Still Lacking Behind A Survey Across 45
Countries
Artificial intelligence is still rather a threat,
but not as much for the young and educated. Globally two thirds of the
working people are happy with their jobs and about a half are satisfied with
the payment they get. These are some of the results from a current poll by
Gallup International Association, which also shows that on a global average
level those attitudes stand rather stable over the recent years. Artificial
intelligence raises concerns, shows the poll. People worldwide are unsure
about the new technology – 31% see more opportunities in AI, but 38% expect
it to bring more problems to the world. A significant share of 24% worldwide
does not feel informed enough to evaluate AI effects on humanity. Rather
happy with the job Most of the working people around the world seem rather
satisfied with their job (65%), and minority of 17% say that they are not.
Another 17% say they are neither satisfied, nor dissatisfied. A minor share
does not know how to respond. A few years ago, in 2018, satisfied with their
job were 68% around the world, 15% were not, and other 17% were neutral on
this matter. It seems that recent years of uncertainty have not significantly
affected peoples’ perceptions. Current attitudes show that job satisfaction
is, as expected, mostly affected by one’s income and education – the better
educated or well-paid a person is, the more satisfaction the job brings.
Other demographic characteristics like gender or age seem to have little
impact on people’s attitudes towards their work. In some African counties for
instance people who say they are satisfied with their job are a minority
(31%), and those who are not are about a half of all respondents. In India
the share (49%) of those who are satisfied with their job is also relatively
low compared to the rest of the world. Most happy with their job on the other
hand are people in Europe (both EU and Non-EU countries), USA, West Asia, but
also Latin America, where shares of people happy with what they do reaches up
to 70%. Not so happy about the wage Remuneration satisfaction is not
necessarily related to job attitudes. One can be happy with a job, and still
not satisfied with what they get from it, and vice versa. Shares of
remuneration satisfaction are traditionally lower. The current wave of polling
shows that almost half (47%) of working people around the world is happy with
their payment, near a third (31%) is however not satisfied and 19% of the
respondents are “neither/nor”. At the end of 2018 half (49%) of world’s population
were happy with their salary, 29% were not and 21% were neutral. Thus,
attitudes remain stable despite the years of COVID, war outbreaks and
economic uncertainty around the world. Current results also show that male
respondents are slightly happier with their remuneration than female. Younger
people are also a bit happier with their wage than older generations. Age and
gender however play a small role in remuneration satisfaction compared to
income and education which again seem to be dominant predictor for people’s
attitudes. Worldwide societies in wealthier countries and regions show
notably higher shares of personal satisfaction with wage. Huge countrieslike
India and regions Africa again stand out with smallest shares of people happy
with their payment – between 20% and 30%. Western societies (Europe – both EU
and Non-EU countries), USA, and again Latin America rank highest in people’s
satisfaction with wage. AI – between threat and opportunity When asked about
their expectations of AI for the world, younger people are more optimistic
and see more opportunities in its development, older generations are more
worried. Most educated respondents are also a bit more optimistic than those
with lower education. Region-wise there is a prominent division between views
in countries from the North/West of the world and those in South/ East. In
USA, Canada, and Europe those who expect more problems to come with the new
technology are reaching up to a half of all respondents, and those who see
more opportunities are about 20-25%. In Russia only 19% see more
opportunities in the AI. The country also stands out with the biggest share
of people who admit that they do not know enough to form an opinion and
another 17% who do not know how to answer at all. In India, Africa, Asia, and
the Middle East, on the other hand, concerns about AI are still present but
more people are prone to expect opportunities with the development of AI.
Overall, it is evident that countries which are more economically developed
are somewhat more concerned about the effects of artificial intelligence for
the world. The rest of the world sees an opportunity, although fear of the
new technology is still relevant. All over the world shares of answers ‘I do
not feel informed enough’ are significant – between 20 and 30%, which comes
to show that threat or opportunity is yet to be defined. Kancho Stoychev,
president of GIA: “While the artificial intelligence is transforming the very
meaning of the word work and the experiments with the guaranteed minimum
income are spreading around, still the traditional remuneration remains the
key factor for the satisfaction of the working people. But the gap between
the so called golden billion and the remaining other seven billion most
probably will deepen with a more intense introduction of AI.”
(Gallup Pakistan) 06 May 2024 Source: https://gallup.com.pk/wp/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Job-satisfaction-GIA-PR-6.pdf 845-847-43-27/Polls Across All 24 Countries Surveyed Americans
Are Less Likely Than Others To Feel Close To People In Their Country Or
Community
Americans are less likely than people abroad to feel
close to others in their country and community, according to a 2023
Pew Research Center survey of 24 nations. This is especially the case
among certain groups of Americans, including younger adults, those with lower
incomes and less education, those who identify with or lean toward the
Democratic Party, and those who are religiously unaffiliated.
Across all 24 countries surveyed, a median of 83% of
adults say they feel very or somewhat close to other people in their country.
A majority of U.S. adults (66%) also hold this view, but Americans are the
least likely among those in the countries surveyed to do so. Even fewer Americans feel close to people in their
local community: 54% feel
a connection to others near them, compared with a median of 78% of adults
across all 24 countries. South Korea is the only country with a lower share
of adults who feel connected with others in their community (50%). Feeling close to other
Americans Some Americans are less likely than others to feel a
connection to people in their country. For example, only 46% of adults under
30 feel connected to other Americans, compared with 83% of those ages 65 and
older.
There are also differences by party and ideology.
Six-in-ten Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents – compared with
three-quarters of Republicans and Republican leaners – feel close to other
Americans. Liberal Democrats are the least likely to say they feel close to
other Americans, while conservative Republicans are the most likely to do so. A similar
ideological gap exists in several other countries, with people on the
political left less likely than those on the right to feel close to people in
their country. Religion also plays a role. Religiously unaffiliated
Americans are far less likely than their affiliated counterparts to feel
close to others in the U.S. (51% vs. 73%). This pattern is mirrored in other
measures of religiosity. For example, Americans who say religion is not too
or not at all important to them, or who never attend religious services, are
generally less likely to feel close to other Americans. Feeling close to others in
their local community When it comes to feeling close to other people in
the same community, there
are again large differences by age. Only 42% of U.S. adults under 30 feel
close to people in their community, compared with larger shares of older
Americans.
There are additional differences on this question by
education, income and community type:
Differences by religion also emerge.
Religiously unaffiliated Americans are much less likely than those who
are religiously affiliated to feel connected to others in their local
community (43% vs. 60%). This pattern aligns with previous research on
interpersonal connectedness and philanthropy among religious people.
Religious people tend to be more likely than nonreligious people to volunteer and
give to charity – though they prefer these activities benefit
others within
their own religious groups. (PEW) 08 May 2024 845-847-43-28/Polls Support For Legal Abortion Is
Widespread In Many Places, Especially In Europe, A Study In 27 Countries
Majorities in most of the 27 places around the world
that Pew Research Center surveyed in 2023 and 2024 say abortion should be
legal in all or most cases. But attitudes differ widely – even within places. Religiously
unaffiliated adults, people on the ideological left and women are more likely
to support legal abortion in many places.
A median of 66% of adults across the 27 places
surveyed believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while a
median of 30% believe it should be illegal in
all or most cases. In the United States, where a Supreme
Court decision ended the constitutional right to abortion in 2022,
63% of adults say abortion should be legal in all or most cases. U.S.
support for legal abortion has not changed in recent years. In Europe, there is widespread agreement that
abortion should be legal. In nearly every European country surveyed, at least
75% of adults hold this view, including roughly 25% or more who say it should
be legal in all cases. Swedes are especially supportive: 95% say it should
be legal, including 66% who say it should be legal in all cases. Poland stands out among the European countries
surveyed for its residents’ more restrictive views, at least compared with
other Europeans. Over half of Poles (56%) say abortion should be legal in all
or most cases, but 36% say it should be illegal in
all or most cases. Attitudes are more varied in the Asia-Pacific
region. Majorities say abortion should be legal in all or most cases in
Australia, Hong Kong, India, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. But in Vietnam, a
majority (59%) say it should be illegal in
all or most cases, and 82% in Indonesia share this view. In Israel, 51% of adults say abortion should be
legal in all or most cases, while 42% say it should be illegal in all or most
cases. In all three African countries surveyed – Kenya,
Nigeria and South Africa – majorities say abortion should be illegal in all
or most cases. That includes 88% of adults in Kenya and 91% in Nigeria. In South America, views about legal abortion are
divided in Argentina and Mexico. But in Brazil, seven-in-ten adults say
abortion should be illegal in all or most cases. Abortion legislation and
views of abortion Abortion rules tend to be more restrictive in places
where support for legal abortion is lower. Abortions in Brazil, Indonesia and
Nigeria are only permitted when a woman’s life is at risk, according to
the Center for Reproductive Rights. In Israel, Kenya and Poland, abortion
is permitted to preserve a woman’s health. Most other places surveyed have
more permissive regulations that allow abortions up to a specific point
during the pregnancy. Compared with Pew Research Center surveys over the
past decade in Europe, India and Latin
America, more people in many countries now say that abortion should be
legal in all or most cases. Importance of religion and
attitudes toward abortion Attitudes toward abortion are strongly tied to how
important people say religion is in their lives. In places where a greater
share of people say religion is at least somewhat important to them, much
smaller shares think abortion should be legal. For example, 99% of Nigerians say religion is
important in their lives and only 8% say abortion should be legal in all or
most cases. On the opposite end of the spectrum, 20% of Swedes see religion
as important and 95% support legal abortion. People in India are outliers: 94% view religion as
important, but 59% also favor legal abortion.
How religious affiliation,
GDP relate to abortion views Economic development plays a role in this
relationship, too. In places
with lower gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, people tend to be
more religious and have more restrictive attitudes about abortion. But the U.S. stands apart in this regard: Among the
advanced economies surveyed, Americans have the highest per capita GDP but
are among the most likely
to say religion is important to them. They are also among the least likely to say abortion should
be legal in all or most cases.
Religious affiliation is also an important factor
when considering views of abortion in particular places. On balance, adults who are religiously unaffiliated
– self-identifying as atheist, agnostic or “nothing in particular” – are more
likely to say abortion should be legal in all or most cases than are those
who identify with a religion. This difference is largest in the U.S., where 86% of
religiously unaffiliated adults say abortion should be legal in all or most
cases, compared with 53% of religiously affiliated Americans. Of course,
differences also exist among religiously
affiliated Americans. White evangelical Protestants are the least likely to
favor legal abortion. In countries where there are two dominant religions
and negligible shares of religiously unaffiliated adults, there are often
divides between the dominant religions. Take Israel, for example, where 99% of adults
affiliate with a religion. While 56% of Jewish adults say abortion should be
legal in all or most cases, 23% of Muslims agree. And 89% of Jews who
describe themselves as Hiloni (“secular”) favor legal abortion, compared with
only 12% of Haredi (“ultra-orthodox”) or Dati (“religious”) Jews. Masorti
(“traditional”) Jews fall in between, with 58% favoring legal abortion. Views differ by religion in Nigeria, too, even as
the vast majority of Nigerians oppose legal abortion. One-in-ten Nigerian
Christians support legal abortion in all or most cases, compared with just 3%
of Nigerian Muslims. Differences in views by
political ideology
In 15 of the 18 countries where the Center measures
political ideology on a left-right scale, those on the left are more likely
than those on the right to say abortion should be legal in all or most cases. Again, Americans are the most divided in their
views: 94% of liberals support legal abortion, compared with 30% of
conservatives. Opinions by gender Gender also plays a role in views of abortion,
though these differences are not as large or widespread as ideological and
religious differences. In seven countries surveyed – Australia, Israel,
Japan, South Korea, Sweden, the UK and the U.S. – women are significantly
more likely than men to say abortion should be legal in all or most cases. In an additional six countries in Europe and North
America, women are more likely than men to say abortion should be legal
in all cases. In Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Poland,
Taiwan, Vietnam and all the African and Latin American countries surveyed,
men and women have more similar views on abortion. (PEW) 15 May 2024
845-847-43-29/Polls Cost Of Living Impacts The Ability
To Live Comfortably, Survey In 39 Nations
WIN International, the world’s leading association
in market research and polling has published the Annual WIN World Survey –
WWS 2024 – exploring the views and beliefs expressed in 33,866 surveys
worldwide in 39 countries across the globe. WIN has released the latest
results of the survey to uncover the findings, any improvements, or
developments, made globally giving a nuanced picture of global financial
comfort amidst the backdrop of rising living costs. Living comfortably in the
current financial situation Despite the escalating cost of
living, there has been a 3% increase globally in the percentage of
individuals reporting that they are “living comfortably” compared to last
year. Sweden is first, with 56% of respondents affirming their financial
comfort. Education emerges as a significant determinant: 54%
of those with no education or only primary school education report struggling
financially, whereas individuals with a Master or PhD level of education cite
financial struggle at a significantly lower rate of 26%. Regional disparities are also evident, with
Europeans and individuals from the Asia-pacific region being more inclined to
report “living comfortably” at 32% and 29% compared to counterparts in the
Middle East (15%), the Americas (23%), and Africa (25%).
Reducing expenses to fight
the cost of living In an effort to improve their
financial circumstances, many individuals have recently implemented
cost-cutting measures, with a global average of 42% indicating they have
trimmed expenses in the past month. Additionally, 30% express intentions to
actively reduce expenses in the coming months in response to the escalating
cost of living. A positive correlation between age and expense
reduction emerges, with younger individuals aged 18-24 showing less
inclination to cut expenses (37%), while older generations aged 65 and above
are active in expense reduction (42%). Regarding gender dynamics, men exhibit
lower propensity to reduce expenses, with 26% indicating no plans for
financial changes and a smaller percentage already having implemented changes
(40%) compared to women (44%). Education and employment status also influence
individuals’ propensity for spending adjustments. Those with higher levels of
education, such as Masters or PhD holders, are most likely to perceive no
need for alterations in their spending habits (32%), as are retired or
disabled individuals (31%). Vilma Scarpino, President
of WIN International Association, says: “In the face of rising
costs, there’s a glimmer of financial comfort globally. Age, gender,
education, and employment status all shape spending behaviors, emphasizing
the need for tailored strategies to navigate financial challenges. At WIN
we’re monitoring the shifts of financial comfort around the world, hoping to
encourage change and support for those who need it the most.” (WIN) 17 May 2024 Source: https://winmr.com/cost-of-living-impacts-the-ability-to-live-comfortably/ |
