British Social Attitudes: Focusing on Diversity,The 17th Report edition (British Social Attitudes Survey series)

`I′ve always enjoyed reading the British Social Attitudes survey, which shows what the British people really think, as opposed to what journalists and politicians like to pretend they think′ - John Pilger Britain is a well-documented nation. We know a lot about the characteristics of our society - who we are and what we do. We know much less about what we think and feel about our world and ourselves. The indispensable annual British Social Attitudes survey fills this gap. It compiles, describes and comments on a range of current social attitudes. The information is derived from interviews carried out by the National Centre for Social Research′s own interviewers among a nationwide sample of around 3,500 people each year. The series seeks to chart changes in British social values over a period of time in relation to other changes in society, and is core-funded by the Gatsby Charitable Foundation. A full report is published each year. The 17th Report summarizes and interprets data from the most recent survey, as well as making comparisons with findings from previous years. The data are publicly available through the ESRC Data Archive at the University of Essex. Contents......Page 6 List of tables and figures......Page 12 Introduction......Page 18 1 - The generation game......Page 22 2 - Health care rationing: a cut too far?......Page 44 3 - The working class and New Labour: a parting of the ways?......Page 72 4 - Sex and the media: a shifting landscape......Page 92 5 - The gender gap......Page 122 6 - Losing faith: is Britain alone?......Page 140 7 - Images of council housing......Page 158 8 - Is the English lion about to roar? National identity after devolution......Page 176 9 - Town and country life......Page 196 10 - Begging as a challenge to the welfare state......Page 230 Appendix I - Technical details of the surveys......Page 260 Appendix II - Notes on the tabulations......Page 278 Appendix III - The questionnaires ......Page 280 Subject Index......Page 366 Britain is a well-documented nation. This survey compiles, describes and comments on a range of social attitudes. It derives the information from interviews carried out by the National Centre for Social Research's own interviewers among a nationwide sample of around 3,500 people each year.