Germans see Spain as a poor, corrupt, traditional country that can't be trusted

SPAIN The latest survey about Marca España (equivalent to UK plc) as a marketing tool, carried out by the Royal Elcano Institute in Germany, reflects the country's preoccupation with corruption, unemployment and the financial crisis. A majority of Germans believe Spain is corrupt, not trustworthy, poor, traditional (i.e. backward), containing lazy inhabitants. The Institute says that, since the last survey of 1996, the image of Spain has suffered an 'enormous' deterioration in Germany, one of this country's principal marketing targets for tourism, together with the UK, Russia and Italy. Some of the results:>>>

Spain is:

Traditional (backward) 77%

Social conflict-prone 71%

Poor 71%

Corrupt 48% (55% of interviewed with university education)

Can't be trusted 49%

Weak 43%

Self-serving 40%

Lazy, not hardworking 25%

The 'Spanish miracle' is at an end, is the conclusion of the leader of the survey, Javier Noya, who adds, "we are no longer the Prussians of the South" (were we ever?).

Aside from Germany, the Elcano Institute also carried out similar polls in the UK, USA, Mexico, Russia and China. The most negative responses after Germany, came from  the UK.

Britons only see Spain climbing out of its present financial crisis 'in the long term', compared to 44% of Germans. On the other hand, only 15% of the Chinese have this opinion.

The survey was carried out over the Internet, with questions going out to 3,306 people, between March 25 and April 4.

(We will be checking the UK and USA results for another article shortly - if we can afford it.)