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In the Corona crisis, Germans' confidence in the economic system has grown.
And only a tiny minority believe that more state intervention in economic processes would be an advantage.
This is shown by a representative survey by the Allensbach Institute for Demoscopy (IfD) for the New Social Market Economy initiative.
"Problems in the public sector such as slow vaccination or the digitization backlog in schools and authorities make the population look sober at the state," said Allensbach boss Renate Köcher at the presentation of the study.
The economy, on the other hand, reacted surprisingly flexibly in the first lockdown, for example by switching to home office.
The survey results show how strongly the crisis still dominates the political agenda of the citizens even after a year.
Four out of five respondents consider the fight against the spread of the virus to be particularly urgent.
Source: WORLD infographic
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Strengthening the health system, sufficient nursing staff and reliable school instruction are also high priorities for the citizens.
61 percent believe that the government should now primarily focus on strengthening the economy, but also on social equality, so that the gap between rich and poor does not widen.
"Boosting the economy and social equilibrium are on par," the pollster notes.
Yet although nearly three-quarters of the population say the crisis is widening social disparities, a majority of 52 percent believe it is more urgent that policymakers give economic recovery top priority in the next few years.
Conversely, only 30 percent consider reducing social disparities more important than economic stabilization.
“The citizens are becoming more and more aware of the collateral damage caused by the crisis.
This applies to economic as well as social damage, ”the study says.
The lower income groups are more often affected by short-time work and unemployment and also have fewer financial reserves.
And the negative consequences of school closings are often more serious for children from the socially disadvantaged classes.
Source: WORLD infographic
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But the long-term economic consequences are also viewed with concern by the population.
While the economic research institutes as well as the economy itself and politicians predict that the economy will recover in autumn, the population is significantly more pessimistic.
Only a small minority expect a sustained economic recovery and a gradual normalization of everyday life this year, the study found.
"One in three even fears that the crisis will have lasting damage to the international competitiveness of the German economy."
The majority of the population considers the political efforts made so far to limit the economic damage to be inadequate.
And this despite the fact that the federal and state governments have already made gigantic sums of money available for a more generous short-time work scheme as well as several aid programs for companies and self-employed and other measures to support the economy and are taking on record debts.
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54 percent of those questioned call for efforts to increase government support for the economy in times of crisis.
This attitude is particularly pronounced among East Germans and among the socially disadvantaged.
Serious crises mean a test for the economic system.
This also applies to Corona.
But as Allensbach boss Köcher emphasizes, the overwhelming majority of citizens see no reason to ask the system question in view of the current economic problems.
Only 18 percent say the difficulties can be solved better in another economic system - compared to 64 percent who disagree here.
“The acceptance of the economic system depends to a large extent on economic success,” the study states.
The long upswing, which brought Germany record employment and rising wages and pensions before the pandemic, has strengthened citizens' confidence in the market economy.
54 percent consider the economic system to be good.
This means that approval is higher than in 2018, when it was 48 percent.
The proportion was significantly lower in 2005, when only one in four had found the system to be good.
Back then, in times of mass unemployment and economic stagnation, 47 percent of the population quarreled with the social market economy.
Today this only applies to a small minority of 17 percent.
Only eight percent of the population still believe that one would be better off personally if the state intervened more in economic processes.
This is the lowest value in over 15 years.
And while in 2005 only 24 percent feared that they would be worse off in another system, 39 percent are currently convinced of this.
And meanwhile a relative majority of 37 percent is convinced that the market economy leads to more social justice, only one in four is convinced of the opposite.
This is a “remarkable change of opinion”, as the study finds.
Source: WORLD infographic
Since the turn of the millennium, at least a relative majority has consistently doubted that a market economy would lead to more social justice.
These trends of opinion make it clear how crucial a rapid economic recovery and, above all, the stability of the labor market will be for the future acceptance of the social market economy.
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Despite the general approval of the economic system, many people have the impression that the problems of poverty are growing.
This concern has been great over the past two decades.
69 percent are currently complaining that there are more and more people in need in this country.
In 2008 this proportion was significantly higher at 82 percent.
But it is noteworthy that, despite the long upturn, a large majority of citizens are still worried.
However, the pollsters in the study point out that the citizens' concept of poverty has changed fundamentally over time.
Twenty years ago people were considered poor if they could not earn a living on their own, now citizens also include all those who have no financial leeway after paying all the necessary expenses.
However, a majority of the population thinks that those in need can rely on sufficient support from the state.
There are more doubts about this in the lower classes.
55 percent see a “justice gap” - a majority, which has, however, been declining over time.
Because in 2007 three quarters of the citizens complained about a lack of social justice.
A good half of the population perceive their own economic situation to be fair.
Unsurprisingly, approval with the social class to which one belongs increases.
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