“What Do Greeks Believe”
The diANEOsis research called “What do Greeks believe” is a unique endeavor to map the intellectual composition of Greek society, measure attitudes, value the impact of issues, and judge the influence of the current circumstances on the formation of Greek politics and culture. Its findings are not only relevant and intriguing as a consequence of its well-developed design and execution, but they also have a lot of value, since the main body of the research has been employed on a regular basis since 2016.
The study enables long-term comparisons and identifies which of Greek society’s value choices are stable long term, and which are more susceptible to change as time processes. The findings from this year are especially noteworthy when considering the overwhelming tide of change that Greece has experienced in recent years, on both a national and international scale (fires, urban crises caused by extreme weather, Ukraine’s current circumstances, significant disasters, and other technological crises).
Our team has analyzed the results presented in the article in detail to, in turn, write our insights on the topics discussed.
Individualism and a focus on human rights were common themes in the respondents’ overall ideology. However, there appears to be a limitation in that tendency that alludes to some sort of collectivism and a form of shared obligation. There seems to be a counterbalance to modern collectivity, a tightening of the conditions for compliance to shared laws, for each refinement of personal autonomy. This philosophy has affected the overall approach of religious beliefs and the church’s role in Greek society as well as its norms of marriage and gender identity.
The findings suggest that citizens have turned more to science, which has surpassed religion, as a result of increasing vaccination acceptance. Nowadays, 17.2% of people say they don’t believe in God, while the number of people who say they are religious is just over 53%, a significant drop from the previous year’s 57 percent. Such a short shift in consciousness hardly marks a significant change. The answer has to do with the inclusion of a new generation in the sample, one in which religious feelings are drastically reduced and societal uniformity on such subjects has waned.
In any case, this is a clear indication of the liberalization of the social field and the development of a new habitat that favors the autonomy of the person over the traditional institutions, which finds us in complete agreement. The same views are reflected in the answers regarding the frequency of church attendance, which show a doubling of those who state that they never attend church in relation to 2018. The very large percentage of those who answer that priests should not be paid by the state but from the church’s own resources (68%), in our opinion should be interpreted as a request for separation of church-state in its institutional and functional dimensions. There is apprehension about religion, which may have been fostered by the latter’s ambivalent position during the Great Health Crisis.
We find the same pattern of liberalism in individual human rights. It is impressive for Greek data, the high impact that the request in favor of same-sex marriage (51.7%) seems to have, while even more impressive is the acceptance of legal gender recognition which exceeds 60%. The notion of individual self-determination seems to be now fully entrenched, something we naturally support and wish that these percentages will keep rising through the next few years. Unfortunately, on the other hand, the basic social institution that is the concept of family sets limits on this newfound wave of liberalization. 57% of the sample disagree with same-sex couples having children. Thus, even though in the field of close individual choice, the right to self-determination and autonomy is widely accepted, when children are involved there is a strong hesitation, a fact with which we disagree because a family is not determined by two people of the opposite sex but by people who love and honor their partner and their child.
With the previously mentioned statements in mind, it is clear that individual autonomy emerges as a fundamental priority and it is evident again in the urgent issue of sexual harassment. From the answers, even though there was a significant increase in recognition of the phenomenon as well as the victims expressing their stories, opinions seem to differ on what may cause the density of the occurrence. About 50 % of the questioners think that the incidents have increased, and the other 50 % feel like there has been a steady increase in the complaints from the victims. These findings are a strong indicator of new worldwide female emancipation as well as a clear statement that individual autonomy surpasses all social obligations that the community has imposed upon us.
Moreover, the vast majority answered in favor of harsher punishments from the penal system, indicating that people want to strengthen their social bonds amid an increase in crime which is making people feel unsafe. A disappointment in the way the penal system currently works was obvious as well, a feeling that our team also shares.
Our team’s opinions meet those of the interviewees, and we feel like it was about time these new issues became the focus of our society. We have all come to the realization that sexual harassment is a more concerning than perceived problem, that everyone should be aware of and try to find a solution to. We are also in favor of stricter rules regarding criminal repression from the government in order to help the socialization of its own people.
From a political standpoint, harsher and more threatening crises that have recently risen, like the Russian war towards Ukraine, the refugee wave that is upcoming as a result, and the sudden weight added to the economy of the surrounding countries, seem to have had the biggest impact on the way Greeks think and behave in 2022.
We have numerous times been referred to as “narcissistic” or “positively naive” in the past, as we have shown a cold or indifferent attitude towards the financial and social issues plaguing our country. However, this seems to have started to change in 2022, as the fear of an actual war breaking out near us seems to have done the trick into breaking this facade. Greeks appear to lose their optimism, with the results of the interviews coming back heavy on pessimism, fear, and even lack of confidence and hope.
More specifically, insecurity is at 28,8% amongst the Greeks interviewed, disappointment at 28,5%, anger at 12,1%, while pride, confidence and certainty fall at 8,1%, 2,5% and 2% each. These results are drastic within themselves, but it is important to note that they became even more dramatic after the Russian invasion.
As young people and mostly women within our own group, we are not surprised with these results or the fact that these feelings are specifically more common amongst women and the younger interviewees, as well as people in the lowest economic groups. We are well aware that these are the main groups that are affected by the socioeconomic issues that Greece is currently facing, as well as the threats we’re expecting as the events of the Russian-Ukrainian war continue to unfold.
It is however interesting that we see them so heavily expressed in this year’s research, which is an indicator that these sort of minority groups are now expressing themselves strongly and openly, instead of keeping it down or being more hopeful about the situation, as is seen traditionally. This agrees with the general findings that the Greek society is becoming more and more progressive, less submissive and passive, and is looking to make an active change with its voice and actions.
Another important finding which we could relate to, in the study, was the general opinion that climate change is a real threat and should be taken more seriously, which has risen significantly in 2022. Having to handle a very difficult and long economic crisis in the past ten years, the majority of Greeks were not as alarmed by the constant bell-ringing of environmentalists warning us all about the dangers of a collapsing ecosystem. That’s changing now, as 43.8% of the population believes that climate change is going to directly and seriously affect us, while another 45,2% believes that it will, but in the future.
The above results make perfect sense if we bring into mind the numerous environmental crises that Greece has had to endure and face from 2020 to 2022; deadly wildfires, floods, and snowstorms that resulted in chaos. The modern Greek society seems to now understand that, if our country couldn’t deal sufficiently with such low-level environmental occurrences, we are doomed whenever the ecosystem collapses for real.
When asked about other ethnic groups which have in the past been the subject of heavy admiration, or criticism and xenophobia, respectfully, it seems like the general opinions are being brought to a more stable, middle-ground place, with percentages like 49,3% (liking towards the USA), 48,7% (towards Russia), 46,3 (towards the Jews) coming up at the same time. It seems like superstitions and xenophobia are being slowly cast aside, with the Greeks learning to differentiate between the people and their practices. That is understood from the 3% agreement with Russian politics as opposed to the country as a whole, while the general opinion admires Sweden’s political system as the standard by 49,9%, making it obvious in which way Greece hopes to be managed by its government.
It’s also important to note that this duality is again evident in the different approaches toward refugees (55,4% regard them positively and wish to provide some sort of asylum) versus immigrants (42.8% view them negatively), which makes it obvious that politics and ideologies matter in the way Greeks value ethnic groups and their relation to Greece. While there is still hesitation in the way “foreigners” should be dealt with by the Greek government, the fact that there’s a will for positive action by the majority of the population is a good mark of the more liberal, accepting, and anti-nationalistic ideation the younger generations are fighting to establish.
The study’s findings overall hint at a society that aspires to update public policies by turning to their optimal models. It seeks the protection of the state and yet no longer thinks of it as a significant employer, and it expects greater individual liberty and a stronger socio-ethnic tie. The findings also reflect a trend towards a weaker link between religion, the collective, and each individual. The above-mentioned new threats we’re experiencing, luckily do not lead to a conservative tilt, but rather feed the process of liberalizing Greek society.
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By team Aligned: Agelos Latsi, Elena Alid, Ιωάννα Ταμβάκη
