Survey Inequality and Conflict

The survey Inequality and Conflict was conducted by infas on behalf of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. During the survey period from 30.05.2022 to 28.07.2022, the German-speaking population aged 16 and over was surveyed in telephone interviews (CATI) on the following topics: perception of problems, perception of conflict, attitudes towards material inequality, assessment of own economic situation, relative deprivation, lifestyle, attitudes towards migration, media use, attitudes towards minorities, attitudes towards climate change, assessment of the climate of opinion and sympathy towards certain social groups. Respondents were selected using a multi-stage random sample including landline and mobile phone numbers (dual-frame sample).<br>Perception of problems: importance of various issues for Germany (income and wealth inequality, influx of migrants, discrimination against sexual minorities, climate change, inequality between men and women); perception of conflict between different groups in Germany (between rich and poor, between migrants and Germans, between sexual minorities and the majority society, between those who pay attention to climate protection and those who do not care so much about the environment, between East Germans and West Germans);

Social inequality: Agreement with various statements on social inequality (differences between income and wealth in Germany are too great, not enough respect in society for ordinary people who work honestly and hard, what you achieve in life depends on your own efforts); agreement with statements on unemployment and poverty (Hartz 4 rates should be significantly increased, the long-term unemployed should be obliged to do community work, poverty is a question of motivation and willingness to perform and cannot be combated with money alone); agreement with various statements on the role of the state (the state should reduce income disparities more than it has done so far, increasing inheritance tax for large inheritances makes sense in order to reduce social inequalities in Germany, investment in the education system is more important than in supporting the unemployed);

Living situation: assessment of own economic situation; assessment of own share received (relative deprivation); lifestyle: lifestyle and interests (high standard of living, expensive menu in a restaurant, art and culture, sophisticated books, always something going on, new challenges, self-realization, house and home, security and stability, traditions and customs);

Attitudes towards migration (nowadays there are too many migrants in Germany, equal rights as natives only for migrants who make an effort and integrate, the claim that migrants are often criminals is often based on xenophobia); opinion on the effects of immigration on Germany (migration is good for the economy, enriching for cultural life, too little for locals because too much is spent on migrants, foreigners in their own country due to migrants); approval of upper limits on the admission of refugees from the Arab and African regions and from Ukraine;

Media use: Frequency of use of various media for information on current social issues (television or radio, printed newspapers or magazines, newspapers or magazines on the Internet, social networks or messenger services); regular use of social media (Facebook, Twitter, Telegram or WhatsApp, YouTube);

Attitudes towards minorities: Gays and lesbians (homosexuals are still discriminated against and disadvantaged in Germany, good that marriages between homosexuals are allowed, equal adoption rights for gay and lesbian couples as heterosexual couples, homosexual persons should appear in school materials to reduce prejudices), transgender persons (persons with changed gender should be recognized as normal, in Germany many exaggerate their tolerance towards lesbians, gays and transgender persons, gender-appropriate language important for equality); men and women (gender quotas for job appointments, sexism discussion is exaggerated); agreement with statements on racism (people with black skin are discriminated against in Germany, the topic of racism takes up too much space in the media, new street names because of racism is exaggerated); agreement with statements on East Germans and West Germans (East Germans and West Germans still differ in many ways, the life achievements of East Germans should be recognized more, more political measures for the promotion and equality of East Germans); party preference (Sunday question), parties that are not electable (negative voter potential);

Memberships and involvement: regular involvement in an association, a political party, a trade union or a church congregation;

Climate change: Attitude towards climate change (very concerned about climate change, demand to live environmentally conscious is an imposition); attitude towards measures against climate change (more wind turbines should be erected for climate protection, climate change can be overcome by technological progress, risk prosperity if we put everything to the test because of climate change, before we change our lives further because of climate protection, other countries should follow suit); opinion on the distribution of the burden in climate policy (It is fair if those who have a lot contribute the most to overcoming the climate crisis, environmentally friendly lifestyles are demanded above all by those who can afford organic products); assessment of the climate of opinion in Germany (A lot is changing in society: Difficult to keep up, you are no longer allowed to say anything critical about migrants and homosexuals, current political discussion often makes me angry); sympathy towards people from certain social groups (climate activists from Fridays for Future, migration opponents, feminists, lobbyists for large corporations, SUV drivers, trans people, Arab immigrants, long-term unemployed, supporters of the Greens, supporters of the AfD).

Demography: sex; age (open and grouped); region of residence in November 1989 (respondent and parents); federal state, parents´ country of birth (migration background); degree of urbanization of place of residence; highest general school-leaving qualification; other highest school-leaving qualification (open); highest vocational qualification; other highest vocational qualification (open); former major field of study (open); at least one parent has a degree from a university or university of applied sciences; employment status, current occupational activity and occupation stated, current occupational position and characteristics; number of employees of self-employed persons; land area of farmers; supervisory function; number of persons currently supervised, previous employment; previous professional activity and occupation mentioned; previous professional position and characteristics; previous number of employees of self-employed persons; previous land area of farmers; previous supervisory function; number of persons previously supervised; marital status; household size; number of children in the household; net household income (open and grouped); household assets (grouped).

Information on partner: employment status; current occupation and occupation stated; current occupational position and characteristics; number of employees of self-employed persons; land area of farmers; supervisory function; number of persons currently supervised; previous employment; employment of deceased partner; previous occupation and occupation stated; previous occupational position and characteristics; previous number of employees of self-employed persons; previous land area of farmers; previous supervisory function; number of persons previously supervised.

Additionally coded were: Interview number; interview date; interview termination; interview duration without intro in minutes; occupation coding according to ISCO (International Standard Classification of Occupations) 2008; class model according to Oesch; socio-economic classification according to European Socio-economic Classification (ESeC); weighting factor; household net income imputation; household wealth imputation; household net income indicator; household wealth indicator.