A recent study has revealed that Germans have become more worried about the future during the coronavirus crisis. Researchers believe that isolation is the cause for this, particularly amongst young people.

Fears for the future

A study by the Bertelsmann Foundation has found that Germans have become increasingly worried about their futures, young people in particular. The “Social Cohesion in Times of the Pandemic Study,” which was undertaken in collaboration with the infas Institute, surveyed 611 people three times a year and asked respondents what they thought about society.

According to the survey, when asked in the spring of last year, only 38 percent of respondents agreed with the statement, “I am very worried about my future.” However, when asked again in December, 50 percent of respondents stated that they agreed with the statement. Young people, in particular, showed concern for their futures, with around two-thirds of respondents under the age of 30 expressing apprehension.

Isolation to blame for concerns

Researchers blamed coronavirus in Germany, and the subsequent lockdown restrictions, for the study’s findings. Amongst people under the age of 30, the percentage of respondents who admitted to feeling lonely rose from 46 to 71 percent, chiefly due to the social distancing measures that were implemented over the course of last year.

“I see it as a strong expression of social solidarity by the younger generation,” said the head of the Bertelsmann Foundation’s Living Values programme, Stephan Vopel.

Conversely, the study found that approval for the federal and state governments’ coronavirus measures was highest in people over the age of 75. Older people generally tended to feel better about the future than the under thirties, with only about 20 to 40 percent of people in the other age groups expressing concern for the future.