Recently the Faculty for Social Wellbeing designed and conducted a national survey.  The data was collected and compiled by Dr Vincent Marmara.  With a sample size of 600 persons, the data was collated in October (of this year) with people who are 16 years and over.  The confidence level is of +-4% and stratified by age, gender and districts. 

In this piece I will lay out some of the main findings and by and large I will leave the numbers speak for themselves.  It is crucial that academia keeps tabs on what people are saying and how they are feeling about the ways their communities are panning out.  If we want our University to respond and provide policy direction we can only do this through evidence-based data.  It is fundamental that we know which aspects of our social life need to be addressed so that as a Faculty and as a University we can respond effectively.

The following are the areas and a sample of the findings;

Migration:

·         The higher the level of education of the respondents the more they think that migrants can contribute to strengthen our country.

·         Only 16.5% agree or strongly agree (against the 48.4%) who do not agree or strongly disagree that immigrants could contribute to strengthening our country.

·         When asked how acceptable it would be if an (African) immigrant married a member of their family, 48.1% felt it was unacceptable.

·         A quarter of the respondents strongly agree that the main reason for having low wages in Malta is because of immigration.

·         Respondents who reside in the Southern harbour are the ones who least believe that immigration is the main factor as to why salaries in Malta remain low.

·         For almost thirty per cent of the respondents it is absolutely okay that some immigrants are living close to their home (29.6%)

·         More than half of the respondents consider themselves as absolutely not racist (56.9%). Only 2.5% of the respondents consider themselves as very racist.

Crime:

·         The majority of respondents feel very safe walking alone at night in their neighborhood, 37.1%. Male respondents feel safer than their female counterparts.

·         Respondents aged 66+ are most likely the ones who do not feel safe walking alone at night in their neighborhood,

·         The Gozitans are the most who feel safe walking alone during the night in their neighborhood.

·         Around 60% of the respondents said that it is very easy to buy drugs in Malta.

·         Respondents residing in the South eastern district are the ones who think that the police are doing an effective job when dealing with the problem of domestic violence.

Gender Equality:

·         Respondents were asked if they agree with the following statement: ‘A woman’s main duty is to take care of the home and family’. Almost one-third of the respondents said that they strongly disagree, 32.4%.

·         Respondents were asked if they agree with the following statement: ‘Being a mother is an instinct for women’. The majority strongly/agree with this statement, 50.6% and 24% strongly/disagree.

·         Respondents were asked if they agree with the following statement: ‘Women and men have equal opportunities to advance in their careers’ – 58.5% strongly/agree.

·         Respondents were asked if they agree with the following statement: ‘I feel comfortable if the work manager is a woman’. 83.4% strongly/agree with this statement.

·         87.5% strongly/agree that they feel comfortable if the Prime Minister is a woman.

·         ‘How much do you agree with the legalization of prostitution in Malta’ – 45.7% strongly/disagree.

Good governance

·         Eight out of ten consider the fight against corruption as a very important matter (80.6%).

·         Male respondents feel that are paid more than their female counterparts.

·         Respondents who completed trade school with success are those who mostly feel that they are not well paid.

·         Respondents took a neutral position in saying whether the elected politician are corrupt or not.

·         Respondents with the lowest level of education are those who least think that the elected politicians are corrupt.

·         The Gozitans are those who mostly think that the elected politicians are corrupt.

§  46.9% strongly agree that the Unions still represent the interests of the workers.

·         55.1% do not feel comfortable talking to a politician to help them and to give them a preferential service.

·         For 73.9%, it is never justifiable to have corruption in the country. 3.1% of the respondents said it is always justifiable to have some corruption to live a better life.

Life Satisfaction:

·         40.9% of the respondents are very satisfied with their life. Only 2.5% of the respondents said that they are absolutely dissatisfied with their life.

§  Respondents with the lowest level of education are mostly satisfied with their life.

§  Respondents residing in the Southern Harbour and in Gozo are the ones who are mostly satisfied with their life.

§  The majority of the respondents (44.5%) are very satisfied with the neighborhood (area) where they live.

§  The elderly (66+) are the ones who are mostly satisfied with their neighborhood (area). On the other hand, the young respondents (16-25) are the ones who are mostly dissatisfied with their neighborhood (area).

§  Respondents were asked if they feel that their neighbors take care of each other. 37.2% strongly agree that their neighbors take care of each other. Only 8.2% of the respondents absolutely disagree.

§  The Gozitans are the ones who mostly think that their neighbors take care of each other.

§  30.7% do not consider waste management as a problem.

§  Respondents with the lowest level of education are the ones who mostly consider waste management as a problem.

§  Respondents who reside in the Northern harbour district and in the Western district are those who mostly consider waste management as a problem.

§  38.8% of the respondents consider traffic to be a serious problem. Only 12.3% of the respondents said that traffic is not a problem. 

§  Pensioners are the ones who mostly consider traffic as a problem.

§  Respondents were asked to state how necessary Local Councils are in the effective management of their locality. 40.6% stated that Local Councils are very necessary. Only 7.7% of the respondents said that Local Councils are not necessary in the management of their locality.

§  The Gozitans are the ones who mostly think that Local Councils are necessary in the effective management of their locality.

§  More than one-third of the respondents said that they did not have noise issues in their area in the past month (34.4%). However, 28.2% of the respondents gave a neutral answer.

§  Respondents aged between 46-55 are the ones who mostly feel that there is noise pollution in their area.

§  The Gozitans are the least who find noise as a problem in their area. On the other hand, respondents residing in the Southern harbour are the ones who mostly claimed that they have noise pollution.

Politics:

·         Respondents had to choose different factors which they consider the most important when deciding which political party they are going to vote for. The most important factor for the respondents is the economy (62.0%). This is followed by ‘the well-being of their family’ (61.4%).

·         Respondents were asked to continue the following sentence: ‘I trust a politician who …’ The most chosen phrase to continue this sentence was ‘Works hand in hand with the community’ (63.2%). This is followed by ‘Gives the most importance to the economy’, 58.9%.