Welfare state survey 2002

This survey, inquiring the attitudes of the Swedish population towards the public sector and the taxes, is a follow-up of three earlier surveys conducted in 1986, 1992 and 1997. A number of questions are also similar to those put in the 1996 ISSP-survey. In the survey respondents had to give their opinion on public expences and social services: if they wanted the amount of tax money spent on a number of different areas to increase, decrease or to be kept unchanged; how to finance education, medical service, child care and care of the elderly; and best suited to take care of education, medical service, child care, care of elderly, and social welfare. Furthermore, the respondents had to state how to distribute the responsibility for financing social insurances between the individual and the public sector; how common they believe it to be that social security benefits and social care services are misused; and how well the public sector manage to maintain different services. Respondents also had to report their own as well as their family´s and friends´ experiences of social services during the last three years. Other questions dealt with the probability of being unemployed; not getting the medical care you need; not managing a month of sick leave without serious economical consequences; not affording to pay a visit to the doctor; having to move because of high housing costs; having a state pension that would not give an acceptable living standard. Respondents also had to state if they felt a need for private insurances to supplement the public welfare system. A number of questions dealt with opinions on Swedish taxes: willingness to pay more tax if the money was spent on specific areas such as medical care, support for elderly, support for families with children, social allowance, schooling, and measures for generating employment; the pressure of taxation in general, and for various income brackets; and the respondents´ judgement on total taxation for recipients of high, middle and low incomes. For a number of statements occurring in the current Swedish debate the respondents had to state if they agreed or not. Socio-economic background information include occupation, trade union affiliation, education, income, marital status, spouse´s occupation, household income, number of children, and political preference.