The Harris Poll® #127, December 19, 2007

Immigration has become a major issue, not just in the United States but throughout Europe and in some other affluent countries. Many people are concerned that large numbers of immigrants, who speak different languages and have very different cultures, may fundamentally change the countries in which they settle. A new Financial Times/Harris Poll finds that very large majorities of the public in the United States (80%), Germany (86%) and Britain (83%) and majorities in France (61%) and Italy (61%) thinks that "new immigrants should be required to take a citizenship and language test in order to remain" in their countries. In Spain a 50 percent to 35 percent plurality feels this way.

This survey also found that very large majorities in all six countries believe that the "teaching of civics courses, lessons on citizenship – how the country/democracy works" should be "part of the standard school curriculum". This is supported by 89 percent of adults in the United States, 73 percent in Britain, 86 percent in France, 99 percent in Italy, 84 percent in Spain and 92 percent in Germany.

These are some of the results of a Financial Times/Harris Poll conducted online by Harris Interactive® among a total of 6,226 adults aged 16 to 64 within France, Germany, Great Britain, Spain, the United States, and adults aged 18 to 64 in Italy, between November 28 and December 4, 2007.

Another question in this survey asked people in the five European countries, whether they think of themselves more as nationals of their country of residence, or as Europeans or in terms of a regional identity. In general, Europeans are somewhat more likely to think of themselves primarily as nationals of their own countries – as British, French, Italian, etc. However, the picture is more complicated than that:

• In only one country, France, does even a slender majority think of them self first in national terms (52% as French). In three countries pluralities but not majorities think of themselves as primarily British (40%), Spanish (44%) or Italian (35%). In Germany only 22 percent identify themselves as primarily German;
• Substantial but generally smaller, minorities think of themselves as primarily European – 30 percent in Italy, 36 percent in Germany, 18 percent in Spain, 15 percent in France and 14 percent in Britain;
• Substantial minorities also think of their identities primarily in regional terms – 26 percent in Britain (which includes some people who probably use "regional" to include Scottish or Welsh), 24 percent in Germany, 22 percent in Spain, 19 percent in Italy and 13 percent in France.

Clearly identity – national, European or regional – is a complicated concept. Outsiders may think a sense of national identity is homogeneous. It is not.

"Now we would like to ask you some questions about national identity. A person’s identity could be described as regional, national, European, or international (not European). Which, if any, most strongly describes your own identity?"

Base: All EU adults in five countries

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding

"Should new immigrants be required to take a citizenship and language test in order to remain in [the UK/ France/ Italy/ Spain/ Germany/ the U.S.]?"

Base: All EU adults in five countries and US adults

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding

"Should the teachings of civics courses (i.e. lessons on citizenship – how the country/democracy works, etc…) be part of the standard school curriculum in [the UK/ France/ Italy/ Spain/ Germany/ the U.S.]?"

Base: All EU adults in five countries and US adults

Note: Percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding　

This FT/Harris Poll was conducted online by Harris Interactive among a total of 6,226 adults (aged 16-64) within France (997), Germany (1,057), Great Britain (1,071), Spain (1,012) and the United States (1,056) and adults (aged 18-64) in Italy (1,033) between 28 November and 4 December 2007. Figures for age, sex, education, region and Internet usage were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words "margin of error" as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the adult populations of the respective countries. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to participate in the Harris Interactive panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls and of the British Polling Council.
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Q1600, 1605, 1610, 1615, 1620