An immense majority of young people live in Germany I don’t believe that political commitment can change anything, reveals a survey published Thursday.
The foundation that commissioned the report said politicians were not doing enough to reach young people.
These findings come as Germany appears to be heading towards a new general elections in February after the collapse of coalition government.
What the numbers show
According to the survey by the Verian research institute, less than one in five young people questioned believe that they can make a difference for a particular cause thanks to their personal commitment.
In the survey of 2,500 representative young people aged 16 to 30 on behalf of the Bertelsmann Foundation in Germany, around 38% expressed distrust of politics, with a third partly expressing the same feeling.
Around 40% believe that social conditions cannot be changed, and almost one in two people often feel overwhelmed by the world’s problems.
About half of those surveyed said there were insufficient opportunities for young people to participate in politics beyond voting in elections. Many felt there were too many obstacles in the way preventing them from getting involved.
Less than one in ten respondents believe that political parties are open to the ideas of young people. Only 8% believe that the political establishment takes young people’s concerns seriously.
What could improve the situation?
Despite the scale of disenchantment with political parties, the foundation – which seeks to promote social change by encouraging civic involvement – said the lack of youth engagement did not stem from a rejection of democracy.
Among those surveyed, 61% believe that democracy is the best possible form of government, despite its weaknesses.
However, almost half say they are dissatisfied with the functioning of democracy in Germany – a higher proportion in the East than in the West.
“Young people would be more politically active if they knew that their efforts had a real impact and that their arguments were heard,” said Regina von Görtz, the foundation’s expert on youth and democracy.
“This would be their greatest motivation. This is why politicians must do a better job than before of reaching young people, valuing their opinions and involving them in decisions.”
Issues of particular interest to young people included peace, mental health, education and inflation.
rc/rm (dpa, KNA)