A psychological study that the Bertelsmann Foundation carried out at the end of 201077 showed that Germans are skeptical about the prospects for their future. After the financial crises of 2008 and 2009, 70 percent of those surveyed have lost all confidence in their institutions, decision makers, and other policy makers. Social safety systems are distrusted as well. Almost half of all those surveyed would like a system change in terms of our market economy and our democracy.
These results are alarming. Many of our citizens feel resigned and have little faith in the continued development of Germany or in their future quality of life.
The cause for this drop in confidence seems initially to be recent developments on the international financial markets, along with political developments in Germany. But seen from a historical standpoint, this loss of confidence is the result not only of the current economic crisis but of a long-standing, underestimated development. Those surveyed said that the most meaningful ways of social interaction occurred during the 1960s and 1970s, which can best be described as “wealth through growth.” Looking back, the respondents assigned the decision makers of the 1960s a much higher degree of competence and believability than those of today. They associated the 1990s with an increase in the growth of the power elite and a decrease in the representation of citizens’ interests. They felt that social inequality as a result of globalization has been quietly tolerated for much too long.
Those who were surveyed also connected present difficulties to false promises made by those in finance and politics. Our time now is considered to be marked by a profit-driven robbery of man and his environment; unchecked egotism is triumphing over shared values and goals.
All in all, the recent financial crisis marks a low point, and many citizens have a critical view of the future. Today’s policy makers in finance and politics are mostly accused of greed and of following the interests of lobbies, and of being out of touch with reality. The respondents also criticized the insufficient breakdown of bureaucratic hurdles and the strict adherence to tradition.
In the next years, those surveyed are hoping for the return to guaranteed basic security for all people. But these hopes are vague, and the mood in this country reflects the growing disparity in our society. This is quite alarming. Germany was once a nation of progress. One of the great postwar promises was that all people in this country, no matter what their social class, would have more education, more wealth, and greater acceptance available to them. The idea that social advancement was possible for all people was the driving force behind life in West Germany. The middle class of our society had become transparent. The view of West German society for decades had always been a view to the top. Things were supposed to get better and better, and they did—at least for a while.
The optimism that carried our society forward for so long is now gone. Attitudes have become abrasive. The shared hope that things would get better has been shattered. The economy of globalization has created winners and losers, and our society is starting to fall apart.
Studies show that people who grow up in socially and economically disadvantaged households have only a small chance of attaining a better standard of living.78 In numerous studies, the Bertelsmann Foundation has pointed out that Germany’s educational system does not adequately nurture children from socially and economically disadvantaged families. If Germany is to overcome its challenges, it must set goals that are sustainable over the long run and make decisive investments into its education and training systems. Our country has few commodities, and education is the only resource upon which we can build our future.79
For a number of years now, the Bertelsmann Foundation has pointed out the challenges of integrating foreign citizens into our community. The income discrepancy, too, can become a point of conflict. It has become much more difficult for people in this country to overcome social boundaries or to climb up the social or economic ladder. Many people believe that their own children will not be able to sustain the standard of living that they currently have. The fight for status is creating a new dog-eat-dog mentality that is causing the members of our society to drift further and further apart. Many more people are losing social status than are gaining it.80 Such a development is very dangerous. When the chances of moving up and the risks of moving down are no longer equally weighted, our performance-based society loses its balance. If there is nothing to be gained by working, there is no more motivation to work. The result will be a lowering of performance and, finally, a loss of prosperity.
For decades, the citizens of Germany believed that the building blocks of life consisted of going to school, perhaps attending university, getting a job, moving up, starting a family, and building a house. But the reality today is different. A contemporary labor market study that the Bertelsmann Foundation published in January 2010 in conjunction with the Institute for the Study of Labor indicates that since the year 2001 traditional working conditions in Germany have greatly declined in comparison with other nations.81 While in industry traditional labor models still dominate, the service industry has seen a decline. Today 53.2 percent of workers in Germany—that is, only about every second person—are working full-time and without a time limit on their employment. There’s no doubt about it: our labor market is reacting to an increasing demand for flexibility by cutting back on traditional employment models. The market is taking advantage of the alternative employment models created by our political system. The social consequences cannot yet be predicted.
The life stories of working Germans have become fractured. How can young people plan their lives, find a partner, and start a family if they are employed on only a fixed-term basis? In addition, the decline of traditional working conditions is in no way gender neutral. Between 2001 and 2008, the percentage of women who are employed in traditional work dropped from 48 to around 43 percent. Among the twenty-eight OECD countries that were evaluated, Germany had the lowest percentage after the Netherlands and Switzerland. Traditional work structures have decreased to a greater extent for women than for men.
The increased employment for women was largely due to temporary work. But unstable employment creates unstable lives. It creates a weaker society, it lessens the engagement by the individual in social issues, it prevents a whole generation from creating and holding together families, and it weakens the social contract that is still the basis of a free and democratic society. A democracy without shared values and social convictions cannot survive.82 This is a challenge for both government and the finance sector. The increase in unstable working conditions is not just an economic issue—it is also a political issue, and it creates political problems. I thus appeal to all businesses to acknowledge their responsibility to our society. The experiences at Bertelsmann gave us all hope that a corporate culture can indeed plant the seed for new values, like respect for others, partnerships, and mutual trust, which can be learned as early as in kindergarten.83
A society that is prepared for the future is everyone’s concern! Anyone who is in a position of responsibility, or who wants to be, has a challenge. The longer we remain silent, the more rigid our society will become. We all have to show our colors and articulate what is important to us. Only through an open dialogue and only by sharing our common values can our society regain its strength and optimism.
In November 2009 the Bertelsmann Foundation published a study that clearly indicated that the economic crisis had left indelible marks on the conscience of Germans. For many Germans, personal relationships, marriage, family, partnerships, and friends have become important since the financial crisis.84 The search for meaning and direction, too, has intensified for many. At the same time, people want material security. A lot of people hope that the current crisis will eventually lead to less discrepancy between rich and poor, to more solidarity between young and old, and to a more positive assimilation of immigrants. Nevertheless, many also doubt that the crisis will actually result in a more cohesive community, or will cause large businesses to rethink their policies. Only one-third of the respondents believe that the economy will realign itself with long-term material welfare more than with short-term profits. But despite all skepticism, a large majority in Germany wishes for the crisis to result in a more cohesive society. This wish should be our guide into the future!
Today’s economy and the way we live are threats to our natural resources. They are also threats to international cohesion and to the worldwide trust in politics and economics. The economic crisis has demonstrated that we need long-term strategies to improve and maintain the quality of life, for ourselves and for future generations. We all must work toward sustainability. Forty-nine percent of people in Germany believe that the economic crisis has brought about an ecological reevaluation. Government policy should take advantage of this potential toward solidarity in both ecological and social issues.
Each of us can become an example for others by following our personal convictions and principles. Every new dialogue can create a bridge across our current social inflexibility. We cannot lose ourselves. Everybody can make a personal contribution, so that things will soon go upward again. In the international dialogue, too, Germany must maintain its credibility.
Reliability creates trust. The path of Bertelsmann proves that this trust can also contribute to financial success.