Study title

Since 1996, the Center for Military History and Social Sciences of the Bundeswehr (ZMSBw) has conducted a representative survey of the German population on defense and security policy issues on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Defense. In 2015, this study was continued. For this purpose, N = 2653 persons were interviewed on various issues from September 08, 2015, until October 30, 2015. The present survey focused in particular on security and threat perception, security policy attitudes, perception of the Federal Armed Forces, attitudes toward the Federal Armed Forces, Day of the Federal Armed Forces, relationship between the Federal Armed Forces and society. Perceived attractiveness of the Federal Armed Forces as an employer, tasks of the Federal Armed Forces, level of defense expenditures and number of personnel, foreign deployments of the Federal Armed Forces, awareness and evaluation of the slogan ´Wir.Dienen.Deutschland.´ (´We.Serve.Germany.´) Political interest, media use, and political participation and preferences.1. Security and threat perception: most important political issues in Germany (open); assessment of the security situation worldwide and in the Federal Republic of Germany; personal sense of security; sense of threat from: Job loss or difficulty in finding a job, insufficient financial security in old age, worldwide climate change due to global warming, major natural disasters, war in Europe, terrorist attacks in Germany, worldwide spread of a dangerous disease or epidemic, xenophobia in Germany, religious fundamentalism in Germany, immigration to Germany, rising prices, crime in personal environment, malfunction in a nuclear power plant, tensions between the West and Russia. 2. Security policy attitudes: increase vs. decrease in Germany´s responsibility at the international level; preference for an active vs. Germany´s passive international policy (split); reasons for Germany´s active role in addressing problems in other countries and...