What's Next for Diversity?
What Next for Diversity? was commissioned by the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) to continue their research interest in the diversity of the Australian population. The project provided up-to-date information and deeper understanding of key issues regarding Australian identity and culture, community and belonging, trust and anxiety, and contemporary social, economic and political changes. Central to these issues are ideas about what it means to be Australian. For example, is there a ‘typical’ Australian culture that is potentially being threatened? Is Australia becoming increasingly divided—socially, economically, and/or politically? How are we negotiating priorities of the environment versus economic prosperity at the individual, national and global level? What impacts are these issues having on social cohesion such as experiences of racism, gender inequality and homophobia? What Next for Diversity? alsoincluded examination of emerging issues like trust in institutions and in society, social partisanship and social leadership from corporates, challenges of neo-liberal/global/cosmopolitanism, and attitudes about extremism. Understanding the complexity and segmentation of Australians’ views towards these issues across age, culture, gender, sexuality, socio-economic position, geography, political orientation (among other social variables) was a particular focus of the 2019/2020 What Next for Diversity? project.
In collaboration with our research partner – the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) – project findings have been presented to 800+ stakeholders across government and industry.
Key Findings
1) Australians hold generally positive and optimistic views, with three-quarters agreeing that Australian is a lucky country, and the majority agreeing Australia is progressive and that Australians are hard-working. Almost half fear an expansion of selfishness, and competition. In the Focus Group interviews the participants agreed that Australia is a better place to be than most other places. But they felt that the benefits are uneven, that inequalities, social and ecological costs are hidden, and that there is selectivity in the charitableness of Australians. Optimists are generally older, they are ambivalent on cultural issues, and on trust.
2) Most Australians are positive about diversity and are positive about helping refugees, and would not support discriminatory immigration policy, or the opposing of a place of worship. Nonetheless, over a third are assimilationists, and they are concerned about immigration volumes. As found in other research, a substantial segment of Australians is both pro-diversity and pro-assimilation.
3) Most Australians did acknowledge racism. However, a majority did not acknowledge Anglo privilege, nor that Aboriginal Australians are most effected by racism. Islamophobia was high (with a degree of social distance felt by 67%). Over half felt the same regarding Middle Eastern and African Australians. This was especially strong among older Australians.
4) Australians’ levels of trust in family, close friends and neighbours are high. Trust is higher still for older Australians. A majority trust people of other faiths (67%) and ethnicities (69%), and this is also higher for older Australians.
5) There was, however, much less trust regarding Australian media (20%), political parties (20%) and government (29%). Trust in these institutions was less well held by older Australians, and by those born in Australia. There was more trust in institutions like the family court and criminal courts, but not a majority. Again, older Australians, and those born in Australia had lesser levels of trust.
6) Trust in the science of climate change was held by about half of the sample, and only quarter said they did not trust it. Younger Australians had more trust.
Publications
Project Team
- Dr Alanna Kamp (Western Sydney University)
- Professor Kevin Dunn (Western Sydney University)
- Dr Rachel Sharples (Western Sydney University)
- Associate Professor Nida Denson (Western Sydney University)
- Dr Thierno Diallo (Western Sydney University)
- Professor Linda Briskman (Western Sydney University)
- Dr Jennifer Cheng (Western Sydney University)
- Dr Sonia Tascón (Western Sydney University)
Project Partners and Funding
This project was funded by the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS).
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