THERE’S A fascinating new poll that reveals which nationalities are the most clueless and ignorant about issues that concern them the most. The results of the ‘Ignorance Index’, a 14-country survey conducted by British research company, Ipsos Mori, ranked Italians (and not the usual suspect Americans) as the most clueless about what is happening on their own doorstep regarding issues such as immigration, unemployment and the rate of teen pregnancy. Incredibly, Italians think nearly half of their population is over 65 years old.
Italy does have a relatively old population, but the actual figure is only 21%. Even more bizarrely, Italians also think half their population is unemployed when the real figure is only 12%. One universal trend in the figures was a misconception among the population about the number of Muslims living in their country. As an average across the surveyed countries, respondents thought 16% of the population was Muslim, whereas the correct average is only 3%. The unemployment rate was also overestimated by a factor of three. The average guess was 30% in contrast to the actual rate of 9%. Italians were most misinformed on this point. Top of the class were Swedes who were most clued up about social issues and demographic trends.
The United States fared badly in the survey of 14 developed countries, being the second-most ignorant of reality. Researchers found that on average, the Americans surveyed think 24% of US girls aged 15-19 years give birth to babies every year, whereas the correct figure is 3%. Ipsos Mori surveyed almost 12,000 people aged between 16 and 64 years and said the survey highlighted the need for people to be informed about their society when making decisions like voting intention. In that sense, it is frightening to see Americans, as the sole superpower, being so ignorant about basic issues. Americans guessed that 15% of their population were Muslims when the actual figure is 1%. When asked what percentage of the population were immigrants, a majority said 32%. The reality is closer to 13%. Additionally, 70% of Americans said that the murder rate was rising in the country. It is actually falling.
Americans also believed the annual pregnancy rate was 23.9%, which means that the average American woman would have more than one child by the age of 20 years, and the US population would probably be closer to that of China’s.
Here’s the ranking of countries with the most ignorant on top
1. Italy
2. US
3. South Korea
4. Poland
5. Hungary
6. France
7. Canada
8. Belgium
9. Australia
10. Great Britain
11. Spain
12. Japan
13. Germany
14. Sweden