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1 June 2009
Unemployment looms as major concern
While a little fewer people are worrying about the economy, many more worry about jobs now than they did 7 months ago, according to our research. In October last year 25.2% worried about the economy, and that has dropped by four percentage points to 21.1%.
However, seven months ago only 2.5% mentioned jobs as an important issue. That is now 11.9%, almost a five-fold increase. Together Jobs and Economy account for around 30% of responses, two-and-a-half times the number that mention Climate Change (change in the table) or Warming.
Debt is also another term that has risen quickly. In fact, it was completely absent from the lists last year which were compiled before the various government stimulus packages.
This table shows our poll results and how the issues have moved over the last 7 months.
Another significant move is in the decrease in mentions of Financial and Crisis. It seems that more respondents are looking inwards at how we manage our economy (Management makes its first appearance on this list), rather than outwards. This implies that voters are starting to see Australia more as in command of its own destiny rather than a passive recipient of circumstances created abroad.
When you dissect these issues by voting intention it helps to explain the position of the government and opposition. While both Labor and Liberal voters are concerned about the Economy, for Labor voters the next most important issue is Jobs, followed by Global and then Change. For Liberal voters it is Economy, followed by Debt, then Jobs. Change, as in climate change is a concern for less than 2% of them.
So Labor voters are still very concerned about climate change and are more inclined to blame the crisis for our problems, while Liberal voters are fretting about debt, are less worried about their jobs and have climate change almost at the bottom of their list of concerns.
The Leximancer Map below gives an overview of how the issues work together.
Posted by Graham at June 1, 2009 06:20 AM
Comments
For me the graph depicts a society in stasis. Even supposing these salient concerns shift about in emphasis, equilibrium is maintained. Self-interest is surely the stable factor here; concerns such as the environment are luxuries to be indulged in when the staple anxiety, over the Economy, is at peace and prosperity perceived to be secure. The economy has been anything but secure recently and so environmental issues are drained of vital green support while nervous energy is diverted into ailing share portfolios. Vital as the issue of climate change might be around the coffee table, like the arts it is only patronised A, if the surrounding industry is predicted to realise an above trend profit, or B, when the champagne and honey are flowing and its safe to affect a conscience. This is not to deny the sincerity of the genuine green spectrum, but to accord them their actual political weight. The green-blooded greens are a tiny minority, while environmental concern broadly waxes and wanes with the tide of the economy. Popularly elected governments will never be driven by ethical, or even life preserving, mandates unless the majority enjoy stupefying glut.
Posted by: Bartleby Psmith at June 5, 2009 07:33 PM
Benedict Pope is spot-on.
Posted by: Colin Smith at June 5, 2009 05:10 PM
This just shows how incredibly thick people really are, believing that 'the economy' is a living 'thing' that has no impact on any other related aspect of life.
If the climate is changing, will that not impact on the economy?
Apparently not, if you 'think Liberal'.
As for the 'jobs, jobs, jobs' mantra they all subscribe to, can we not redesignate what a 'job' is?
This section. more than the other two, shows just how brainwashed we are... the education system, far from failing, has produced the finest nation of nitwits it possibly could.
Of course, if we want 'educated' people who can think and critique matters.... so the low grade actions of politicians reacting to low-order 'thinking' from the electorate are no longer tolerated... that is another story altogether.
Until then, it will be more of the same... blind support for constant growth-at-any-cost and to hell with the climate, environment, social equity...blah blah blah.
Posted by: Benedict Pope at June 5, 2009 10:02 AM