Britain - A Compassionate Society?
A new MORI survey has found most British adults think we are less caring as a society than a decade ago, despite 92% describing themselves as compassionate.
The survey, conducted on behalf of the homelessness charity Crisis, shows most of us believe homeless people deserve our compassion but that people in public life should be more compassionate. Mother Teresa was most nominated as being the most compassionate famous person, being selected by nearly three in ten, followed by 20% choosing Jesus Christ.
Topline Results
- 2,094 respondents aged 15+ across Great Britain
- Interviews carried out face-to-face
- Fieldwork conducted between 4-11 December 2003
- Results based on all (2,094), unless otherwise stated
- Results are weighted to the known population profile
- An asterisk (*) denotes a finding of less than 0.5%, but greater than zero
- Where figures do not add up to 100, this is due to multiple coding or computer rounding
Q1 Looking at this card, how compassionate a person, if at all, do you think you are? Q2 And using the same card, how compassionate do you think society is as a whole?
| Q1 | Q2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| You | Society | Net "You" | |
| % | % | % | |
| Very compassionate | 30 | 2 | +28 |
| Fairly compassionate | 62 | 39 | +23 |
| Not very compassionate | 6 | 49 | -43 |
| Not at all compassionate | 1 | 6 | -5 |
| Don't know | 2 | 3 |
Q3 Looking at this card, which, if any, do you think are the most compassionate acts a person can perform?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Running errands to help a vulnerable neighbour | 52 |
| Giving money to a homeless person | 11 |
| Volunteering for a charity | 27 |
| Donating goods to a charity shop | 13 |
| Donating money to a charity | 24 |
| Helping a friend who is ill | 61 |
| Giving up your seat on public transport for someone who needs it | 14 |
| Buying a copy of the Big Issue | 5 |
| Taking in a stray animal | 16 |
| Visiting someone who is lonely | 56 |
| None of these | 1 |
| Don't know | 2 |
Q4 To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements?
| Strongly agree | Tend to agree | Neither agree nor disagree | Tend to disagree | Strongly disagree | No opinion | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| Homeless people deserve our compassion | 23 | 46 | 20 | 8 | 1 | 2 |
| People in public life should be more compassionate | 34 | 50 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Q5 Thinking about how life in Britain has changed over the past ten years, do you think that people are now ...
| 1989 [a] | 1999 [b] | 2003 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | |
| More caring | 16 | 11 | 10 | |
| Or less caring | 60 | 63 | 63 | |
| About the same | 24 | 26 | 23 | 27 |
| Don't know | 160 | 160 | 4 |
- MORI / Caring Society / Reader's Digest
- MORI / Britain Today / Reader's Digest
Q6 And how do you think life in Britain might change over the next ten years? Do you think that people will be ...
| % | |
|---|---|
| More caring | 12 |
| Or less caring | 56 |
| About the same | 25 |
| Don't know | 7 |
Q7 Looking at this list, who, if anyone, do you think is the most compassionate person from history or recent times?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Bill Gates | * |
| Bob Geldof | 5 |
| Bono | 1 |
| Dalai Lama | 1 |
| David Beckham | 1 |
| David Gilmour | * |
| Elton John | * |
| Florence Nightingale | 8 |
| Ghandi | 5 |
| Gordon Brown | * |
| Jesus Christ | 20 |
| John Lennon | 1 |
| Kofi Annan | * |
| Martin Luther King | 3 |
| Mother Theresa | 27 |
| Nelson Mandela | 5 |
| Prince Charles | * |
| Princess Diana | 13 |
| Pope John Paul II | 1 |
| Tony Blair | * |
| None of these | 2 |
| Don't know | 5 |
