Youth Survey Reveals Worrying Results

NEARLY 20 per cent of young men in Mallorca aged 15 to 34 do not believe that controlling their partner’s friends is a form of violence.

This is the most worrying result of the Balearic Youth Survey published last week by the regional government, which also revealed that the percentage drops to less than 10 per cent in the case of young women in the same age range.

Other surprising figures, obtained by questioning 3,000 young people throughout the Balearic Islands, show that 12 per cent of men do not believe that emotional blackmail is serious, compared to 5 per cent of women.

The survey consisted of 192 questions aimed at ascertaining the views, concerns and demands of the islands’ youth in order to develop better public policies to improve their quality of life.

Topics included housing, violence, health, culture, language, leisure, immigration and sexuality.

Regarding housing, the study revealed that around 40 per cent of young men and women who still live with their parents on the islands explained that this was due to the lack of available housing for them.

Only 34 per cent of youngsters between 15 and 34 in the region are able to live away from home, although one third admits to having problems paying the rent or mortgage and 70 per cent are forced to spend more than half their income on housing.

On the topic of immigration, the vast majority of those questioned do not believe that immigrant people have more privileges that those born in Spain, with less than 3.2 per cent believing that they have more facilities to find work or housing.

Regarding education and employment, the average age at which young people in the Balearics start working for a wage is 18.5 years old and mainly in the hospitality and commerce sectors.

On the issue of health, one in every three admit to drinking alcohol every week but 65 per cent says they do not smoke cigarettes.