The world of social media is flashy and fast-paced: those who stand out rise to the top with their ballrooms, space rockets, and chainsaws, dominating the headlines.

The researchers for Germany’s “Mitte Studie” (“Center Study”), however, turn their attention away from the dazzling personalities and the fringes, to examine those who form the backbone of a democratic and open society, looking at their attitudes toward right-wing extremism, xenophobia and antisemitism. The study, conducted annually since 2006 by the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, which is associated with the center-left Social Democrats, aims to serve as an early warning system for anti-democratic developments.

A large team of researchers conducted extensive interviews with 2,000 people in Germany. The sample represents a cross-section of German society in terms of voting behavior, education, income, and origin.

The results presented this week were contradictory, yet revealing.

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Far-right ideology loses support

Almost 80% of respondents said they are staunchly committed to democracy, up 6% from four years ago.

Contrary to all expectations and despite of the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, support for overt right-wing extremism in Germany is on the decline: only 3% of respondents have a firmly right-wing extremist worldview — significantly less than in the past.

“The center has become more stable. It has slowed down support for right-wing extremism,” Andreas Zick, director of the Institute for Conflict and Violence Research at Bielefeld University, told DW.

A large part of society views democracy and diversity positively: 70% of those surveyed say they see the rise of right-wing extremism as a threat, although the number of individuals with a solidly extremist worldview has actually declined. Over 50% of respondents said they’d be willing to take action against right-wing extremism.

Contrary to the general perception that more people in eastern Germany hold right-wing extremist views than in the west of the country, slightly more respondents in the west of the republic have what the researchers termed a closed right-wing extremist worldview. Such a worldview is defined by misanthropic or anti-democratic views not just on individual issues, but has an entire worldview that is shaped by them.

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Xenophobia, however, is more widespread in the east than in the west. And while 88% of respondents nationwide said that dignity and equality for all should be a top priority in any democracy, 25% said that too much consideration is given to minorities. About 11% of all respondents outright rejected the notion that minorities deserve fundamental rights.

About 30% of people admitted to having negative attitudes towards asylum seekers, and 36% said the same about the long-term unemployed.

Right-wing extremism more prevalent among youth

Some 70% said they perceive the rise of right-wing extremism as a threat to Germany. At the same time, 22% said they believe the problem was being “hyped up” by the media.

Many people do not clearly distance themselves from right-wing extremist views. A good 20% of those surveyed neither agree nor clearly reject right-wing extremist views. Only 6.6% of those surveyed clearly rejected all 18 questions on right-wing extremism — fewer people than ever before.

Right-wing extremism is significantly more prevalent among young people than among older people. The younger the person, the more pronounced it is, according to the study.

“We see that clear right-wing extremist ideas are being adopted from Nazi ideology, such as support for dictatorship, antisemitism, or the desire for a strong sense of national identity,” researcher Nico Mokros told DW. He is co-editor of the Mitte Study and specializes in researching extremist attitudes among young people.

What Mokros finds particularly noteworthy is that the younger age group appears to have a strong tendency toward authoritarianism.

At the same time, young people say they are dissatisfied with others making decisions for them. “This often leads to pent-up aggression, which manifests itself in young people disparaging minorities.” The frustrated young people then seek out a group within the population that is already marginalized and target them with their aggression.

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More people are openly embracing nationalism and chauvinism, which calls for German interests to be aggressively asserted. For example, 23% said they agree with the statement: “The primary goal of German politics should be to secure Germany the power and prestige it deserves.” Almost one in six people (15%) support a dictatorship: “We should have a leader who rules Germany with a strong hand for the benefit of all.”

Researcher Andreas Zick warns of a worrying erosion in the trust of institutions.

“When people perceive that right-wing extremism is a threat and not enough is being done about it, the proportion of those who do not believe in the functioning of democracy increases. This opens the door to mistrust, and that is the point at which extremists and populists say: we have the solution,” Zick warned.

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This article was originally written in German.

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