Survey: Young People Have Increasingly Less Trust in Political Institutions
In 2018, this figure was still 69 percent. This is one of the key findings of the supplementary survey for the "Democracy Monitor 2024", conducted by the social research institute Foresight on behalf of the parliament, with a focus on youth.
According to the survey, only about one third of 16- to 26-year-olds feel well represented in parliament. Less than a quarter currently see their interests taken into account in political decisions. In 2018, both values were about twice as high, the parliamentary correspondence reported on Friday.
"Representation Gap" Perceived by Youth
According to the study, these figures show a "representation gap" perceived by young people that has emerged in recent years. This is associated with a gradual loss of trust in political institutions. The youth spokespersons of the parliamentary parties attribute this to the crisis-ridden developments of recent years and the associated uncertainty. However, the specific actions of politicians and the neglect of the needs of young people have also contributed to this mistrust.
For the supplementary study, 303 people aged 16 to 26 living in Austria were surveyed between October 25 and November 22, 2024. In addition to their attitude towards democracy and its institutions, the study also examined how young people come into contact with democracy and parliament and how they inform themselves about political issues.
FPÖ Blames Outgoing Government
In view of the political developments of recent years, FPÖ deputy Maximilian Weinzierl was not surprised at the loss of trust of young people in political institutions. He blamed the outgoing federal government and their actions in the areas of migration, pandemic control, or inflation. Heike Eder (ÖVP) attributed the declining trust to past and present crisis phenomena and the associated uncertainty among young people.
In addition to global crises, Paul Stich (SPÖ) identified a lack of credibility of politicians as a cause for the skepticism of young people. Broken promises, but also a lack of measures to secure affordable housing or promote mental health, reinforced the impression that the needs of young people were not being taken seriously. Yannick Shetty of the NEOS also saw the specific behavior of politicians as a decisive factor.
If they denied the existence of the "climate crisis" and thus robbed young people of "a piece of the future", one should not be surprised at the mistrust of young people, explained Barbara Neßler (Greens).
(APA/Red)
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