“For you, is innovation something positive or negative?” is the first of 40 questions that the Cotec Foundation for Innovation has asked 2,404 Spaniards between the ages of 18 and 65. Although the response obtained is positive —73% of the population—, confidence in the digital transition falls 16 points in just two years. At the presentation in Madrid of the III Social Perception Survey of Innovation in Spain, held this Thursday, the speakers reiterated that vulnerable groups are the ones that are most concerned about technological change. In the segment of people without studies, distrust in the technological revolution has increased by 32%, while in that of businessmen, doctorates and other professionals, it has only increased by 8%. Jorge Barrero, CEO of Cotec, believes that this increase is due to lack of information. “In other moments of history, utopia has dominated the vision of the future. Today, dystopias dominate and it has to do with the complex moment of transformation that we are experiencing”, he adds.
55% of Spaniards think that technology increases social inequality
Rosa Díaz, director of the market research institution Sigma Dos, which collaborates with the foundation in this study, explains that it is “very important to see how society has changed depending on the sectors and understand the impact of digital transformation in each collective”. Up to 34% of Spaniards, workers or unemployed, do not see themselves trained to face the new digital market that is drawing. The study segments the responses based on the participant’s profile: their age, gender, income, where they live and their studies.
Gender gap and social inequality
For starters, there is a noticeable difference between women and men. They distrust innovation and their ability to face change more than men. However, half of the citizens (with a majority of men) think that technology will reduce the current gender labor gap and that it will also favor reconciliation with personal life.
Hup to 34% of Spaniards, workers or unemployed, do not see themselves trained to face the new digital market that is drawing
Along the same lines, but with a more pessimistic touch and which has also remained stable since 2017, 55% of Spaniards maintain the idea that technology increases social inequality. Those who feel the most insecure about it are the “most vulnerable” groups, that is, unemployed citizens, with low-skilled jobs, with few studies, low incomes or inhabitants of small municipalities. To solve this problem, 61% of the population is in favor of establishing a universal basic income.
César González, a researcher at Sigma Dos, points out that this survey has enough samples to draw conclusions and that taking into account the size of the habitat of the participants was a key. “It has been crucial to take into account the size of the municipality and the opinion of the inhabitants about whether technology facilitates development in rural populations or not. In my town of San Bartolomé in the Canary Islands they don’t think the same as in Madrid”, he assures. In cities such as the capital and Barcelona, the inhabitants have a much more positive view of the rural environment than the residents of the same up to nine points of difference.
Educational system and employment
Citizens between 18 and 29 years of age are more critical of the education system, which does not adequately respond to the jobs in demand, and of the scant culture of innovation in Spain. However, they feel more confident to compete in the new market than those over 45. Another striking fact in the Cotec report is that 77% of this group, which was born away from social networks and without a smartphone in the hand, considers that innovation is positive, while in young people the figure does not exceed 70%.
61% of the population is in favor of establishing universal basic income as a solution to inequality
80% of citizens believe that society is not preparing for the transition, nine points more than last year. In addition, the automation of employment in the next 15 years is a fear that remains in the minds of workers. Half of the population considers that technology destroys more jobs than it creates, while another part (48%) trusts that this gap will be compensated by new jobs. In addition, in two years, the number of citizens who are aware of the concept of circular economy has tripled to 32%.
Despite the improvements, what is clear after the presentation, although there are many variables, is that the Spanish population fears the transition, is more pessimistic than in 2017 and asks the Government for greater leadership and a greater commitment to innovation and growth.