Corona and society: Only around twelve percent understand lateral thinkers
Representative online survey by the University of Hohenheim on lateral thinker sympathizers: pessimistic, critical of the system and disoriented
Only a minority of twelve percent of German internet users understand the so-called lateral thinkers, and around three quarters are rather negative about the protest movement. This is shown by a representative online survey conducted by the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart among just over 2,000 internet users.
Those who sympathize with the lateral thinkers are more aligned with the right-wing political spectrum and consider the German social and political system to be unfair. They also believe that they can exercise little political influence, have little trust in politics, journalism and science, and they see their economic future threatened. They get more information on social media than other internet users. The results of the study can be read here
Many people who criticize the Corona measures gather in so-called “lateral thinkers” groups. They feel their freedom is restricted and are protesting nationwide against the measures taken to contain the pandemic. They not only demand the immediate lifting of all measures, but also criticize the political system itself.
Who are the people who sympathize with these groups and what are their attitudes and beliefs?
Tilman Klawier and Dr. Fabian Prochazka works at the University of Hohenheim. The result is a study that records the political and social attitudes of sympathizers of the “lateral thinker” movement. In the representative online survey in spring 2021, just over 2,000 Internet users commented on their attitudes and understanding of the “lateral thinkers” protests.
Pessimistic view of the economic situation, critical of the system and lacking direction
Overall, those who sympathize with the lateral thinkers include a similar number of men as women. There are also hardly any differences compared to the average population in terms of age. “Among them, we find a disproportionate number of people who are rather pessimistic about both their own and Germany’s economic future,” says Tilman Klawier, summarizing one of the results of the study. “40 percent assume that their economic situation will worsen. Of all those surveyed, this is only 28 percent.”
The researchers were also interested in the extent to which people perceive German politics and society to be fair and how great the respondents' feeling of disorientation and incomprehensibility of social developments are. On average, all respondents view the political and social system rather critically, but this attitude is particularly pronounced among those who sympathize with lateral thinkers. In addition, they have a slightly stronger feeling of disorientation.
“So it didn’t surprise us that these people tend to have less trust in science, politics and journalism,” says Dr. Fabian Prochazka, who recently moved to a junior professorship at the University of Erfurt. “Confidence in politicians is particularly low. Lateral thinker sympathizers are more likely to believe that they understand political processes, but they see themselves as less able to exert influence.”
People who sympathize with lateral thinkers place themselves significantly more often on the right of the political center than the total number of internet users surveyed. In contrast, the left edge of the political spectrum is somewhat less pronounced among the lateral thinker sympathizers. This is also reflected in voting behavior: AfD voters are the most strongly represented, while voters of the Union parties, the SPD and the Greens are underrepresented. “It was also interesting for us that almost one in four people who sympathize with the lateral thinkers cannot or do not want to place themselves on the left-right spectrum,” says Tilman Klawier.
The view of the lateral thinker sympathizers on Corona
Lateral thinker sympathizers are significantly less willing to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Conversely, not all people who show understanding for the lateral thinkers reject vaccination . At least 15 percent of them were highly willing to be vaccinated at the beginning of 2021, while another 14 percent were undecided. Likewise, not all people who are unwilling to be vaccinated express understanding for the lateral thinkers.
The belief that Corona is no worse than the flu and that mouth and nose masks are harmful to people is particularly pronounced among those who sympathize with lateral thinkers compared to all Internet users. , statements such as “The corona vaccination is intended to implant microchips in people” and “5G masts spread the coronavirus” also find little approval among them. However, belief in supernatural powers and spiritual experiences is somewhat more pronounced among lateral thinker sympathizers than on average among all respondents.
The role of the media
Lateral thinker sympathizers use television, newspapers and news websites less often than all internet users surveyed. However, they often find out more about political events on social media. The instant messaging service Telegram in particular serves as a news channel here. Other media offerings that reported critically on the government's protective measures during the Corona pandemic are significantly better known among lateral thinker sympathizers compared to the general population, but the proportion of users is still relatively small. Likewise, only a minority of people on social media follow people who publicly express fundamental criticism of the federal government's Corona protection measures.
Further results and experts on the topic of the Corona crisis and its consequences can be found at www.uni-hohenheim.de/expertlist-corona-kritik
Additional Information:
Link to the study: Klawier, Tilman / Prochazka, Fabian (2021): Who understands the “lateral thinkers”? Results of a representative survey. Online at: https://www.db-thueringen.de/receive/dbt_mods_00049284
List of experts: Corona crisis and its consequences
The global corona pandemic is already having drastic consequences: the education sector, the economy, the world of work in general, but also that Human interactions will probably be different even after the crisis than before. In order to deal with this sensibly, scientific facts are more important than ever, both during the crisis itself and for the period afterwards. Experts from the University of Hohenheim provide information about the various aspects of the Corona crisis and its consequences.
Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )