Approval for the compulsory social year is also growing among young people

According to a survey, in times of crisis the number of Germans who want to oblige young people for a social year increases. Two-thirds (65 percent) of those surveyed by the Hamburg Opaschowski Institute for Future Research (OIZ) agreed with the sentence: “A compulsory social year should be introduced for young people at the end of school in order to promote social cohesion and prevent society from drifting apart .” In the pre-crisis year of 2019, approval was still 37 percent.

According to the information, the approval value almost doubled among 14 to 23 year olds from 22 percent to 41 percent. The greatest approval for a compulsory social year, at 72 percent, was among low earners with a household income of less than 1,500 euros and among those over 65 (76 percent). Respondents with a high school diploma and/or university degree showed the greatest reluctance (59 percent). In 2019 and 2023, 1,000 people aged 14 and over were surveyed by the OIZ.

"The ongoing crisis is changing the attitudes and behavior of the population in the long term," said institute director Horst Opaschowski. The idea of ​​duty is held in higher esteem because it is associated with personal challenges, social necessity and the fulfillment of meaning. "Taking on a social task and bearing responsibility for it is becoming increasingly positive and is losing its character as a chore."

The welfare state has demonstrably done a lot for people during the crisis. "In the ongoing crisis, the willingness to do more for the state and society is increasing," said Opaschowski. A double benefit is possible: "for the personal development of the school leavers and for the future of social cohesion". Care facilities, hospitals, emergency services, civil protection, the Red Cross and technical relief organizations could benefit from this.