Health, Family and Quality of Society - The Cornerstones of Quality of Life in Europe

DUBLIN - Eurofound Publishes its Second European Quality of Life Survey (2EQLS)

More than two out of three people in the UK rate their
own health as very good or good, higher than average across the European
Union, according to the Second European Quality of Life Survey (2EQLS),
carried out by Eurofound, the Dublin-based EU Agency. People also rate the
quality of and access to their health care system relatively high similar to
Norway, Germany and Spain. According to the survey, the British have little
trust in their political institutions, rating it on a par with levels
recorded in the twelve new EU Member States. The survey, to be launched under
the Czech EU Presidency in Prague on 25 March, also reveals that Europeans
are generally satisfied with their quality of life despite big variations
between both levels of life satisfaction and happiness, especially among the
12 new EU Member States.

Four out of five people (81%) across the European Union say that health
is very important in determining their quality of life. On the state of their
health, more than two out of three people (67%) rate their health as very
good or good, one in four (24%) as fair, and one in ten (9%) as bad or very
bad. More people in the 12 new EU Member States and the three candidate
countries rate their health as ‘bad or very bad’, in particular the women in
these countries. Reporting poor health is, not surprisingly, associated with
increasing age: in the EU27, fewer than 2% of people aged between 18 and 34
years report bad health, as opposed to 18% of those aged 65 and over. The
survey also reveals that a substantial number of Europeans have difficulty in
accessing health care services. One in four (25%) report problems because
they are too far from their doctor or hospital, while more than two in five
(38%) experience delays in getting medical appointments and more than one in
four (27%) have difficulty meeting the expense involved in seeing a doctor.

Similarly, the survey reveals that family life is also key to quality of
life with seven out of ten people in Europe (68.7%) saying a good family life
is very important for quality of life. The survey shows that one in three
people across the EU27 (30%) report that they are involved in childcare on a
daily basis, with small differences between the NMS12 (33%) and the EU15
(29%). In terms of actual time spent, women report spending 33 hours per
week, and men over 18 hours, in caring for and educating children. Women also
report spending 18 hours per week cooking and doing housework, as against 10
hours per week for men. One in five (20%) in the EU15 feel that they do more
than their fair share of housework, and somewhat less (18%) in the NMS12 and
in the CC3 (17%).

The perceived quality of society is another fundamental element of the
multidimensional concept of quality of life. The dimensions of societal - and
not only individual - well-being are emphasised in the Lisbon Strategy and
are a focus of EU social policy. The political and economic impact of the two
recent rounds of enlargement can be seen in the income distribution, trust in
institutions and social relations. The level of trust in political
institutions is lowest in Poland, Hungary, Lithuania and the Czech Republic
among the 12 new EU Member States, and in Italy, Portugal and the UK among
the EU15 countries. When asked to rate their level of trust in other people
in their country on a scale from one to 10, people in the Nordic countries
and the Netherlands express the highest levels of trust. People living in
Cyprus express the lowest levels of trust, followed by the Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).

‘The challenges arising from social exclusion, unemployment, an ageing
population, changing family structures, new gender roles as well as EU
enlargement have pushed quality of life issues to the fore in the EU policy
debate,’ says Jorma Karppinen, Eurofound’s Director. ‘The European Quality of
Life Survey documents not only living conditions and the economic
circumstances of people in Europe, but also how they feel about them, and
about the society in which they live.’

In the EQLS, social relations are examined in terms of tension between
groups, as well as attitudes towards migrants. In the EU15, the survey shows
that the highest levels of tension between men and women and between the
young and the old are found in Luxembourg (23% and 25%), followed by Spain
(20% and 19%) and Greece (18% and 21%). At the other end of the scale is
Denmark (6% and 5%). Among the 12 new Member States, Hungary stands out in
this area (20% and 30%), followed by Bulgaria, Cyprus and Malta.

Enabling citizens to develop some balance between family life, personal
commitments and working life has become central to the social policy debate.
Still, almost half (48%) of citizens in paid employment in the EU27 say that,
at least several times a month, they are too tired as a result of their work
to do household jobs. The report shows that men and women in the EU27
struggle with work-life balance almost to the same extent. Some 22% of
working men state that they are too tired several times a week to do
household jobs, while 21% of women report the same problem. Meanwhile, 11% of
men find it difficult several times a week to fulfil family responsibilities
because of work, as do 10% of women.

The survey shows clearly that people’s material conditions, standard of
living and well-being strongly depend on income as well as the economic
wealth of the country in which they live. According to the EQLS, about one in
four households in the CC3 and one in five in the NMS12 were unable to pay
their utility bills on time. These figures are considerably higher than for
the EU15, where about one in 10 households were unable to pay their bills on
time.

‘In this survey, we have face-to-face interviews with 35,000 people in 31
countries across Europe, which were carried out between November 2007 and
February 2008,’ says Robert Anderson, Head of Unit, Living Conditions and
Quality of Life team at Eurofound. ‘The survey offers a unique and timely
insight into the multidimensional concept of quality of life in Europe and
provides information about the standard of living and quality of life of
Europeans which is essential for policymakers and interested groups whose
aims are to seek improvements in that quality of life.’

The full report is available at
www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/htmlfiles/ef0902.htm

The survey mapping tool, presenting the data from the report in an easily
accessible format, is available at
www.eurofound.europa.eu/areas/qualityoflife/eqls/eqls2007/results.htm

A resumé is available in all 22 official EU languages at
www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/htmlfiles/ef0852.htm

A press pack on the Quality of Life Survey is available from
www.eurofound.europa.eu/press/presspack/eqls2007/index.htm

Note to Editors

The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working
Conditions (Eurofound) is a tripartite EU body, whose role is to provide key
actors in social policymaking with findings, knowledge and advice drawn from
comparative research. Eurofound was established by Council Regulation EEC No
1365/75 of 26 May 1975 and is located in Dublin, Ireland.

You can register for regular news and information from Eurofound at:
www.eurofound.europa.eu

www.eurofound.europa.eu

For further information, contact Måns Mårtensson, Press Officer, on
email: mma@eurofound.europa.eu, or telephone: +353-1-204-3124 or mobile
+353-876-593 507. Teresa Renehan, Information Liaison Officer, on
email: ter@eurofound.europa.eu, or telephone: +353-1-204 2126.

Source: Eurofound

For further information, contact Måns Mårtensson, Press Officer, on email: mma at eurofound.europa.eu, or telephone: +353-1-204-3124 or mobile +353-876-593 507. Teresa Renehan, Information Liaison Officer, on email: ter at eurofound.europa.eu, or telephone: +353-1-204 2126.