Is Democracy in Crisis? In any case, there is great concern in Germany. Even more: According to a study, every second person is susceptible to conspiracy theories.
In Germany, the vast majority of people are concerned about the state of democracy and the aggressive tone in public. This is the result of a cross-border study by the Robert Bosch Stiftung and the More in Common organization, which was presented in Stuttgart.
Currently, a majority (65 percent) of those surveyed are “often worried about the state of democracy” and think that the public debate in Germany is increasingly hateful (70 percent).
The Robert Bosch Stiftung and the More in Common organization have investigated the relationship between people and democracy in Germany, France, Great Britain, Poland and the USA. The polling institutes YouGov and Kantar surveyed more than 10,000 people in these countries at the beginning of 2021.
Between 24 and 51 percent of the people in these states do not have a stable relationship to their respective democracy – even if a large majority generally says “yes” to this form of government. According to the study, they lack the connection between their lives and the democratic state. This sometimes leads to satisfied apathy, but also to a feeling of disorientation and even sympathy for authoritarian alternatives, writes the foundation.
According to Sandra Breka, managing director of the Robert Bosch Stiftung, many people believe that their concerns are not heard and that their voice makes no difference.
For around half of the respondents in Germany, democratic processes alone are not enough. From their perspective, the system must also deliver good results in order to find support. Almost three quarters of those surveyed (71 percent) want a “caring” policy that actively improves people’s lives.
For Germany it was also found that every second person is susceptible to conspiracy narratives. Every second politician sees politicians as “puppets of the powers behind them” or thinks that the media are pursuing their own intentions instead of reporting facts (53 percent). According to the study, 44 percent of those questioned therefore often research specifically “for topics that politicians are hiding”.
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