A detailed study of xenophobic attitudes in Germany shows encouraging trends. Fewer Germans overall think foreigners need to go. But in some German states racism has risen, and a measure of antisemitism remains.
Fewer Germans overall are likely to favor far-right parties, like the NPD, than they were in 2002. But Germany is not an island of happy tolerance.
That’s the conclusion of a new study presented on Thursday by researchers from Leipzig University, who have conducted a long-term study with support from the Friedrich-Ebert Stiftung. On the occasion of their fourth interim report since 2002, the researchers feel confident in saying that German “far-right tendencies have declined overall.”
They’ve conducted polls every two years to test “chauvinism,” “xenophobia,” “antisemitism” and general consent for authoritarian government in each of Germany’s states (except the city of Bremen, which was judged too small for useful results). “Chauvinism” includes German nationalism, but also pride in one federal state against the others.
The final report, called “Movement in the Middle,” found a decline in all categories overall — with some alarming exceptions.
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GRAPHICS GALLERY: RIGHT-EXTREMIST ATTITUDES IN GERMANY
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For example, in the antisemitism category, one statement — which respondents could affirm or reject — was, “Jews still have too much influence.” The chauvinism category included, “We should have the courage again to feel strong national pride,” and, “the highest goal of German politics should be to win the prestige and power that Germany deserves.”
Respondents could weigh their answers in five degrees, ranging from “I fully agree” to “I fully disagree.”
East vs. West
The study also broke its results into “East” and “West,” to measure attitudes in the former East and West Germany. These results registered a rise in the east in all three categories. The fraction of respondents tending toward anti-Semitism in the east, for example, rose from 4.8 percent in 2002 to 7.9 percent in 2008. The average for all of Germany declined slightly over the same period, from 9.3 percent to 9.0.
The results are mixed, but researchers say the overall decline suggests a weakening far right. They pointed to a clear slump in answers showing “support for a dictatorship.” The average for all of Germany agreeing with statements like, “we need a leader who will rule Germany with a strong hand for the good of all,” has declined steadily over six years, from 7.7 percent to 3.7 percent. In eastern states there was also a steady downward trend, from 8.9 percent to 5.6.
