Study: Most common fears among Germans: higher prices and migration

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The most common fears among Germans: higher prices and migration

The Germans are worried about rising prices (symbolic image). Photo: Hendrik Schmidt/dpa

The Germans are worried about rising prices (symbolic image). photo

© Hendrik Schmidt/dpa

Some people fear for their jobs, others worry about crime or terrorism. However, two other topics remain at the top of a long-term study on fears.

Will prices continue to rise? Can I still afford my apartment? Becomes Germany overwhelmed by more refugees and immigrants? These questions are of great concern to many Germans, as revealed by the long-term study “The Fears of the Germans,” which was published on Wednesday. Concern about rising living costs is therefore number one among fears. 57 percent of the people surveyed said they were afraid that prices would continue to rise.

This fear was stated most frequently in the 33 surveys conducted so far. “A look at our long-term statistics shows that when it comes to their own wallets, Germans react sensitively,” says study leader Grischa Brower-Rabinowitsch. Many Germans (52 percent) continue to fear that rents will become too expensive. This financial concern ranks third in the study.

The mood brightens a bit

However, compared to 2023, the mood brightened. The spread of fears about rising costs and expensive housing fell by eight percentage points each. “People have more money in their wallets. That doesn’t go unnoticed.”

The survey “The Fears of Germans” has been commissioned by R+V Insurance for more than 30 years and deals with problems from politics, the economy, family and health. For this year’s study, around 2,400 people aged 14 and over were surveyed by pollsters between June and August.

Fear of being overwhelmed by migration

The issue of migration also continues to concern people in Germany and ranks second among their fears. More than half (56 percent) fear that society and authorities cannot cope with the number of refugees. 51 percent of those surveyed said that further immigration from abroad could lead to tensions in society. “Fundamental problems with immigration and integration have not been addressed for a long time. (…) There is an urgent need for politics here,” says Marburg political scientist Isabelle Borucki, who is accompanying the study as a consultant.

In East Germany (60 percent) the fear of the state being overwhelmed is somewhat more widespread than in West Germany (55 percent). “Especially in the East, there is a feeling in parts of society that they are being treated unequally and unfairly. The stranger, the refugees and their immigration are perceived as a threat,” explains Borucki.

Political extremism as a threat

According to the study, concerns about political extremism have particularly increased. 46 percent of those surveyed said they were afraid of political extremes – 8 percent more than last year. 48 percent of them fear Islamist terror, 38 percent fear right-wing extremism and 7 percent fear left-wing extremism.

Fear of terrorism has also increased by 5 percentage points (43 percent). Brower-Rabinowitsch points out: “Shortly before the first wave of surveys in the study there was a fatal knife attack on a police officer in Mannheim.”

Most Germans are relaxed about the dangers posed by accidents in nuclear power plants (29 percent) and criminal offenses (23 percent). Only a minority are also worried about the labor market: 30 percent of those surveyed are afraid of rising unemployment figures. Even fewer (22 percent) fear losing their own job – this is the last place in the ranking and the lowest value on this question in a long-term comparison.

dpa

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