June 16, 2009: Eurobarometer reports produced in recent weeks
The last two months has seen a number of Flash surveys published. Ahead of the European elections, one survey (Flash 230) assessed French citizens' attitudes towards the EU and issues such as future enlargement. That was also the subject of another survey (Flash 257) which looked at the impact of the integration into the EU of 10 Central and East European countries (CEE) on the 27 member states. One of those countries - Slovakia - was the subject of Flash 259: the euro’s introduction in that country.
Looking more at society in general, Flash 250 asked home-Internet users about their confidence in the Information Society while Flash 260 focused on post-graduate students and their thoughts about higher education reform. Flash 269 – intergenerational solidarity - looked primarily at relations between the younger and older generations.
For full details of all of these Flash reports and more, click here.
January 21, 2009: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 246 - Parents' views on the mental health of children and young people
The survey measured parents' views on the health-related quality of life of their children, i.e. physical well-being, moods and emotions, autonomy, peers and social support and the school environment, and the general condition of their child's health (6 to 17 years-of-age). As a sample of the results, we can see that (in a 7-day period):
- Eight out of 10 parents said their child had felt extremely or very fit and well.
- Forty-two percent of parents answered that their child always felt full of energy.
- Three-quarters of the parents said their child got on well at school.
- The country rankings were consistent across "physical well-being", "autonomy", "peers and social support" and "school environment". The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria, Finland and Sweden were the countries that consistently scored the highest levels of quality of life. The three Baltic states and France were generally at the bottom of the country rankings.
- For "moods and emotions": France, Romania, Poland and the Baltic countries were at the top of the distribution - parents in these countries were the most likely to say their child never or seldom felt sad or lonely in the past week. Spain, Sweden, Finland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands scored the lowest.
- Two-thirds of parents described their child's health, in general, as excellent (26%) or very good (38%).
See Report for details.
January 21, 2009: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 252 - Awareness of key 'Freedom, Security & Justice' policies
The survey looked at eight of the Directorate General for Justice, Freedom and Security's (JLS?) key policy areas: immigration, asylum, the exchange of police and judicial information, the fight against organised crime and terrorism, the fight against drugs abuse, the control of the EU's external borders, fundamental rights, and the improvement of access to justice. For each one, the survey examined the level of concern felt by EU citizens, the amount of support for EU-level actions and the citizens' opinions as to whether the EU should be communicating those policies more efficiently.".
The survey results showed that a majority of respondents felt concerned about each of the policy areas. Primarily, the interviewees felt concern about the fights against: a) organised crime and terrorism and b) drugs abuse (both 80%). The promotion and protection of fundamental rights, including children's rights was a matter of concern for approximately three-quarters of EU citizens (78%). Immigration was the policy area showing the most variation in Member States' responses: 61 percentage points between Malta (87%) and Romania and Poland (both 26%); the control of the EU's external borders had the least variation: from 35% in Sweden to 69% in Portugal.
For each of the policy areas under review, the majority of citizens felt that EU-level actions would have an added value compared to those taken solely at a national level. EU citizens felt that EU-level actions would have the most added value in the fight against organised crime and terrorism (72%); just 18% considered that EU-level actions would have had no extra benefit. Overall, two-thirds or more of EU citizens felt that the EU should communicate more efficiently in all of the eight policy areas.
See Report for details.
December 19, 2008: Flash Eurobarometer 248 - Towards a safer Internet for children
The survey studied parents' views about their children's use of the Internet, looked at parents' strategies to supervise such usage and examined parents' awareness of safety measures. The number of children using it varied considerably across Europe. The proportion of parents who thought that their child used the Internet was the lowest in Italy (45%), Greece and Cyprus (both 50%). In all other Member States, at least two-thirds of the parents answered that, as far as they knew, their child used the Internet: from 68% in Portugal to 94% in Finland.
The biggest risk in parents' eyes (65%) was that their child might see sexually or violently explicit images on the Internet: 45% were very worried. In terms of inappropriate contact, parents were most worried that their child could become a victim of online grooming (60%).
Parents in the UK and some southern European countries - Portugal, Italy and Spain - were more likely to regularly supervise their child when using the Internet (e.g. stay nearby or sit next to their child) and to check what their child had done online (e.g. check the history file or e-mail account). Those in Lithuania and Estonia, on the other hand, were each time among the most likely to answer that they never supervised or checked their child's Internet-related activities.
Parents in all countries mentioned that they have various rules and restrictions. For example, approximately eight out of 10 parents listed online shopping, talking to people that their child did not know in real life and spending a lot of time online as activities that were not allowed for their child. Half of the participating parents said they had installed filtering software on the computer that their child used at home. Monitoring software was not as popular, but was still used by almost four out of 10 parents.
See Report for details.
December 19, 2008: Flash Eurobarometer 241 - The information society as seen by EU citizens
The survey was conducted in order to examine EU citizens' perceptions about the positive or negative impacts of ICT on their lives. Half of the interviewees were regular Internet users (surfing the Internet almost once per day (21%) or several times per day (31%); almost three-quarters of those users thought it had helped them to share views with other people and cultures. However, they were also less likely to think that the Internet had improved their relationships with family members and friends or their opportunities to make new relationships.
A large majority of online users thought it had helped them to be better informed about current issues (ranging from 79% in Sweden to 94% in Lithuania, Poland and Hungary) and that it had improved their opportunity to learn. Approximately two-thirds of internet users in the UK, Malta and Poland answered that the Internet had improved their shopping habits. In Lithuania and Bulgaria, on the other hand, only three out of 10 Internet users agreed that this was the case.
Nine out of 10 interviewees said they used a mobile phone, with the remaining 10% not having the use of such a device. Almost one in two respondents used their mobile phone several times a day and one-fifth used it at least on a daily basis. The proportion of respondents who used a mobile phone ranged from 79% in Romania to 99% in Finland.
See Report for details.
December 9, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 236 - Citizens' perceptions of fraud in the EU27
The objective was to study citizens' attitudes and perceptions about the issues of fraud and corruption in the EU. Seven out of 10 citizens thought that state budget fraud happened rather frequently in their own country, compared to just over half (54%) who had that opinion about EU budget fraud. Member States' citizens gave their support to cooperation with other anti-fraud services and to EU-level anti-fraud investigations. Focusing solely on respondents who formulated an opinion, it was noted that OLAF and other European-level bodies were trusted as often as national organisations.
See Report for details.
November 24, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 247 - Family life and the needs of an ageing population
The survey examined how families felt about their lives and their opinions about policies that could improve the situation. It also reviewed the needs of an ageing population: financial planning, housing, health, etc. Satisfaction with life was high across the EU, especially for those in the central and northern European countries, the under 40s and those in couple households. Finding the correct work-life balance, however, was difficult and the main problems in family life were seen to be cost-related, particularly for those households with children. The best arrangement for childcare was thought to be one where only one parent was working full-time, although women were more likely to favour a situation where both worked at least part-time. For both retirees and those approaching retirement, the most frequent choice for housing was to downsize but to stay in their current location.
See Report for details.
November 24, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 249 - Introduction of the euro in Slovakia
The objective was to identify and track citizens' perceptions in Slovakia regarding the introduction of the common currency, four months before the changeover on 1 January 2009. Over half of Slovak citizens believed that the euro's introduction would have very positive (or rather) consequences for their country (54%) or for themselves. Two-thirds of the citizens believed that the euro will increase prices as opposed to a quarter who think it will contribute to price stability. More than half of the Slovaks agree that the euro will make them feel more European while 40% did not feel that way.
See Report for details.
November 14, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 239 - Young people and science
The survey was conducted to determine young people's interest - and plans for future involvement - in science and technology. Some main findings showed that they agreed that their interest in science was essential for future prosperity; a large majority thought that scientific research should principally serve the development of knowledge; almost all young people agreed that there should be more coordination of research between EU member states and a majority of young EU citizens (57%) thought the most effective solution for global warming was a fundamental change in Europeans "way of life".
See Report for details.
October 9, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 238 - European's attitudes towards animal cloning
The survey examined EU citizens' opinions about animal cloning. Presented with several statements regarding the ethics of cloning, the vast majority of respondents agreed that the long-term effects of animal cloning on nature were unknown (84%) and that it might lead to human cloning (77%). Eighty-six percent of respondents said the food industry would benefit if cloning was allowed for food production purposes. While two-thirds of EU citizens said cloning to preserve endangered animals would be justifiable (in certain circumstances), there was less acceptance to use it for food production: 58% thought it could not be justified. See more for details.
September 30, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 224 - Business attitudes towards cross-border sales and consumer protection
In the survey, over 7,000 managers across the EU and Norway were interviewed by telephone. Results showed that one in five retailers (21%) are currently conducting cross-border transactions, down from 29% in 2006 (EU25). A key finding was that distance sales methods (especially e-commerce) were seen as the key driver for opening up the retail Internal Market. In addition, although most EU retailers sell to customers through shops (79%), a slim majority are also engaged in Internet-based sales (51%). Retailers identified potential fraud and non-payments as important main obstacle to cross-border trade (63%); other obstacles were the perceived costs of complying with different national fiscal regulations and laws regulating consumer transactions. See more for details.
July 31, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 240 - Slovak business attitudes ahead of the euro changeover
The survey looked ahead to 2009 and Slovakia's switch to the euro. It found that Slovak firms are extremely confident about the levels of information regarding the changeover and that almost half (47%) of companies foresee a positive outcome from the changeover. Compared to feelings at a similar time in Slovenia and Cyprus, optimism in Slovakia is high.
See Report for details.
July 31, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 237 - Introduction of the euro in the new Member States
This Eurobarometer survey examined the perceptions, expectations and fears of EU citizens in the new Member State yet to join the euro area (the NMS9). Half of the NMS9 citizens (50%) believe that the euro's adoption will have positive consequences for their countries. Forty-seven percent of citizens in the NMS9 are happy that the euro will replace their national currency, but over two-thirds (71%) believe that the euro will increase prices when it is introduced.
See Report for details.
July 4, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 227 - the Future Social Reality
The survey looked ahead to 2028 and asked what people's lives and the social conditions would be like. Almost half of EU citizens thought that life would be worse. Many interviewees thought that the gap between the rich and the poor would be wider (82%) and that people's working lives would be extended (80%). Relatively few (37%) reasoned that people would give more time to others and to social causes. Men, the young, the highly-educated and city dwellers had the most positive views about the future.
See Report for details.
June 26, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 233 - Young people and drugs
A survey of 15-24 year-olds showed that the high health risks linked to heroin, cocaine and ecstasy were accepted by almost all young people in the EU. Although the vast majority (+/- 95%) want a ban on those drugs to be continued, there were more differences of opinion relating to cannabis: two-thirds wanted to continue the ban and 31% wanted to regulate the substance. To deal with drug problems in society, young people would prefer tough measures to be taken against drug dealers and traffickers (63%).
See Report for details.
June 20, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 245 - Post-referendum survey in Ireland
Following the referendum on the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland (held on 12 June 2008), the European Commission requested a survey to understand the reasons for non-participation in the referendum, the respondents' views about the campaign, the reasons for the "yes" or "no" votes and the overall reactions to the result. The results of the survey are shown in this preliminary report.
See Report for details.
June 5, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 232 - Discrimination in the EU
This survey was commissioned to measure the awareness of the Union's citizens in regard to discrimination in a number of areas: housing, healthcare, education, etc. In addition, it gathered evidence on the personal experiences of such discrimination. The survey showed that EU citizens see less discrimination in healthcare and more in housing: 42% of respondents felt that there was discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief in the area of housing.
See Report for details.
May 28, 2008: publication of Flash Eurobarometer 235 - The Rights of the Child
This survey was conducted to determine how much young people (15-18 year-olds) in the EU knew about the Rights of the Child. Three-quarters of respondents considered their rights to be well protected, while a quarter thought that violence against children was the main problem to be tackled.
