science
“The powerful in the country listen too little to the people.” 74 percent of those surveyed agreed with this statement, 13 percent disagreed, and another 13 percent abstained from answering. Researchers from the University of Salzburg and the Linz Institute market have discovered a number of deficits in their current study of coping with the coronavirus pandemic.
26.02.2021 06.00
Online since today, 6 a.m.
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Since the beginning of the pandemic, many people in Austria have inevitably withdrawn and their distance from politics is growing, says political scientist Reinhard Heinisch. “And that in a country where politics is traditionally reserved for insiders anyway. This is intensified in the coronavirus pandemic because many decisions are made by medical and legal experts and the feeling that ‘you don’t listen to me’ has become even stronger, ”says Heinisch.
In this survey, 30 percent of all respondents stated that they were economically severely affected by the corona virus. Almost 25 percent were even convinced that Corona affects their health. Non-voters and FPÖ voters felt particularly affected by the pandemic, both in health and in economic terms.
“Basic attitude influences feeling of concern”
“We assumed that people felt very broadly affected, because not that many people were sick in terms of health. However, it was astonishing that such a high percentage – almost as many who feel economically affected – also felt that their health was affected. This also shows us how widespread the phenomenon is and how the subjective perception differs from the objective clinical picture, ”says Heinisch.
A populist attitude therefore also influences the subjective feeling of concern in connection with the coronavirus, the political scientist concludes. “The feeling of concern depends on many subjective political factors. We have given far too little thought to the extent to which the subjective feeling of whether I agree with the government’s policy has an effect on the feeling of being affected in a pandemic. We always assume medical or legal requirements, but we talk far too little about the political requirements and attitudes, ”says Heinisch.
Political scientists identify authoritarian tendencies
The political scientists at the University of Salzburg also identified authoritarian tendencies in their survey: four out of ten respondents were of the opinion that Austria would do better if young people were educated to obedience and discipline.
Corona survey: majority feels misunderstood
The Institute for Political Science, together with the Linz Market Institute, had a survey of the connections between the corona pandemic and the subject of populism, for example. Specifically, it was also asked whether the powerful in our country listen too little to the people – and 74 percent agreed.
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