Young, wary of state, look to family

Politicians, clerics rank lowest in poll

Most young Greeks view their family as the one stable thing they can count on as their trust in the state and in politics diminishes, according to a new survey which shows a significant number of youngsters reserving their deepest mistrust for judges and clerics.

The majority of young Greeks feel they can rely only on their family members to resolve any problems they may face, with many mistrusting even their neighbors, according to the results of a study by the University of the Aegean, made public in Sunday’s Kathimerini.

In addition, a large proportion of youngsters are preoccupied with becoming financially independent as the job market toughens.

Still, in spite of their fears and concerns, most young people appear to have a general sense of optimism, with two out of three claiming to be satisfied with life overall.

Of the 1,550 youngsters aged between 17 and 28 questioned in the survey, the overwhelming majority (89.8 percent) said they did not trust politicians. Many respondents (70.9 percent) also expressed their dissatisfaction with the state social security system.

More than a third (38 percent) said that they believed religion played an important role in their lives but nearly as many (35 percent) said they regarded priests as “the most dishonorable” of public servants. Judges came second, with 32 percent of respondents saying they were the most dishonorable, with the police taking third place (24 percent).

Meanwhile six out of 10 respondents (60 percent exactly) said their ultimate source of support was their family.

“I depend on myself, my family and my friends,” Paulina, 17, told Kathimerini. “No one else holds any sway, they have all discredited themselves,” she added.

According to the survey, the traditional values of trust and solidarity with fellow citizens are important to 73.2 percent of respondents who said that these values had been replaced by a general sense of cautiousness and mistrust.

Finding a good job remains the chief preoccupation of most youngsters, with 86 percent saying that financial independence was their priority goal.