Defense helps protect peace, justice and strong institutions, as recognized by UN Sustainable Development Goal #16. Despite its significance, misconceptions often arise, leading to the oversight of critical aspects such as combating cyber-attacks and facilitating humanitarian aid.
In the context of escalating geopolitical tensions and global threats, including those posed by climate change, these misconceptions pose a risk to the public perception of the defense landscape, particularly among younger generations. The absence of a new generation of talent could jeopardize both the current and future state of European security and defense.
This research program aims to address such challenges by conducting a thorough examination and analysis of young people's opinions and attitudes towards the defense industry. By implementing targeted actions to bridge knowledge gaps, the program seeks to underscore the pivotal role of defense in protecting liberal and democratic societies. Additionally, it endeavors to attract the young talent essential for addressing the security challenges of tomorrow.
The research program will be implemented through 2 phases:
Phase I: Diagnosis & Analysis
The identification of the causes behind defense misperceptions is a necessary preliminary exercise as there are still uncharted and grey areas. The degree of knowledge of defense issues among younger generations, especially since the start of the war in Ukraine, is yet unclear. There might be some indications that a public opinion shift is taking place after this turning point, but further research is necessary.
Public opinion among young people is not homogenous, thus overgeneralization is a recipe for failure. Geographical nuances are also important in this diagnosis, as threat perceptions and views on geopolitical issues drastically vary among countries
To address these challenges, we will conduct surveys and focus groups to measure opinions and perceptions among the youth in Spain, France, Germany and the United Kingdom. These will serve as social barometer and will help us identify positive/negative views as well as crucial areas where misonceptions exist.
In particular, we plan to conduct:
- An exploratory focus group to evaluate key themes to be included in the research (April 2024).
- A survey of 3,600 respondents between the ages of 16 and 34 living in Spain, France, Germany and the United Kingdom to assess what young people think of the sector (April 2024).
- 4 focus groups in Spain, France, Germany and the United Kingdom to better understand the results from the surveys (May 2024).
Our team of researchers will then analyze and integrate the findings from the surveys and focus groups into a final diagnostic report to be published in July 2024.
Phase II: Targeted actions
This diagnosis will serve as the intellectual basis for a series of targeted actions that the project will develop. Actions will be structured around the two key objectives of the proposal and will be developed in a parallel timeline.
These actions will include a series of events by students for students to discuss the key topics identified by the research, or a a talent fair featuring panel discussions with industry leaders and hands-on activities for participants.
The researchers involved will develop an applied research report that will bring to light the opportunities for international security and democracy that technology un the defense field can unlock.
RESEARCHERS
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