Demonstrations against the corona measures have become a permanent side effect of the pandemic, but the support for the protests in society remains manageable despite the most recent major demos: 17 percent of Austrians support the demos, according to current analyzes by the Austrian Corona Panel Project at the University of Vienna . The profile of the demo supporters according to the study: Tendentially right-wing, anti-science and esoteric.
According to the survey (around 1,500 participants) that has been carried out regularly since the beginning of the pandemic, approval for the demos hardly changed between February and November 2021 – despite further lockdowns, new access restrictions for people without a vaccination or recovery certificate in more and more areas of life and the announcement compulsory vaccination from February 2022. 38 percent of those surveyed are of the general opinion that the demos against the corona measures should be allowed. The protests are supported by only 17 percent.
15 percent would also take part in an anti-measures demonstration themselves. Twelve percent would be there even if this were not approved.
Politically, according to the evaluation by Jakob-Moritz Eberl and Noelle S. Lebernegg, there is a closeness to right-wing parties that have increasingly appeared as organizers in recent months: Most of the demo supporters are therefore among those who will be in the next election presumably want to vote for the new vaccination-critical party MFG and the FPÖ (82 and 50 percent, respectively). Among non-voters or those not entitled to vote, it is still 21 percent. Based on the behavior at the polls in the National Council election in 2019 (the MFG did not stand for election at the time, note), the FPÖ voters have most of the demo supporters (37 percent), and here too there are relatively many among those who did not vote and those who were not eligible to vote (24).
In addition to the political spectrum, the team of authors of the study also took a look at how skeptical demo supporters view science and the extent to which they tend to “conspirituality” – a mixture of the English “conspiracy” and “spirituality” common core is attributed.
The results: 54 percent of the demo supporters are in favor of “we should rely more on common sense and less on scientific studies” (non-supporters: 17 percent). In addition, 57 percent of the demo supporters are of the opinion that scientists are “in cahoots with politics and business” (non-supporters: 18 percent). At the same time, according to the survey, demo supporters believe more often (more) in life after death or in the pseudo-scientific treatment method homeopathy (60 percent in each case compared to 40 and 43 percent for non-supporters).
“Instead of science, this group believes in spirituality and homeopathy,” write Eberl and Lebernegg and see this as a problem for Austria’s politics, even apart from the demos. After all, their health and science communication must succeed in order to overcome the pandemic. The two see their study results as a mandate to examine what role spiritual leaders and practitioners from so-called alternative medicine should or should play in coronavirus and vaccination education.
Source: Nachrichten
