Many young adults in the EU share the feeling of loneliness. Approximately 57% of young Europeans between the ages of 18 and 35 are moderately or even severely lonely, as our new study “A comparison of youth loneliness in Europe in 2024” shows. Across countries, the level of educational attainment is a particular risk factor. 

More than half of all EU citizens doubt the truthfulness of the information they find online. Recognizing false content and actively responding to it is easier for the young and the educated. Almost nine out of ten Europeans feel tech companies and policymakers both have a responsibility to combat disinformation.

Our new study "Under Construction: Citizen Participation in the EU" shows that the EU has numerous instruments for citizen participation in place. However, the general public is not well aware of these mechanisms, and their impact is often quite limited. The individual instruments do not add up to a visible, comprehensive and effective participation infrastructure in Europe. Citizen participation in European decision-making processes consequently takes place via a patchwork of participatory instruments. In the study, we offer five recommendations for constructing a better participation infrastructure.

A large majority of EU citizens expect innovation and technological progress to have a positive impact on their lives over the next 15 years. With the coronavirus crisis, the desire for more innovation has grown appreciably, particularly with regard to the healthcare and long-term care sectors, the fight against climate change, and education. At the same time, Europeans are keenly aware of the competition they face in key technologies coming from the United States and China. European citizens thus support greater cooperation within Europe.

According to a Bertelsmann Stiftung survey, Europeans are much more critical toward Israel than is true of the reverse. There is also a lack of agreement on the issue of Europe’s responsibility for Israel.

Many citizens across the European Union lack a basic understanding of algorithms. As part of a cross-national representative survey conducted in Europe, we have examined what Europeans know about algorithms, what they think of them, and what they hope algorithms can achieve.