The final Community Barometer report launched at Almedalen

The Community Barometer is a large-scale survey conducted in 50 Swedish municipalities during 2024 with the aim of examining trust and feelings of safety at the local community level. It is a development of the Trust Barometer (Tillitsbarometern), created by Lars Trägårdh at Marie Cederschiöld University in collaboration with LF Forskningsstiftelse.

“The idea is to enable a better understanding of the relationships between trust and factors such as diversity and inequality, while also providing deeper insight into how trust and feelings of safety vary between different municipalities and urban districts across Sweden,” says Lars Trägårdh, historian and Visiting Professor at IBF.

The expanded survey includes a larger number of residential areas and additional questions on safety and security, willingness to defend the country, and local community belonging. The findings are presented in three thematic reports.

Following Swedish laws and rules

The third report, launched at Almedalen, analyses responses to survey questions concerning the politically charged issues of nationalism and national identity, and how these relate to trust and willingness to defend Sweden.

The researchers conclude that Swedish national identity is primarily associated with being a responsible member of society. Respondents considered following Swedish laws and rules to be particularly important for being regarded as Swedish. The report suggests that ethnicity plays a relatively minor role in perceptions of Swedish identity, whereas speaking the Swedish language is viewed as an important marker of belonging.

According to Lars Trägårdh, the strong emphasis on laws and rules has historical roots:

“Our institutions, and not least the tradition embodied in the phrase ‘the land shall be built upon law’, are deeply rooted in Swedish history. This tradition stretches back some 700 years, taking Magnus Eriksson’s national law code from the mid-fourteenth century as a starting point. This outlook remains an important part of the Swedish social contract today,” says Lars Trägårdh.

Major geographical differences

All three reports are available for download below. The first and most comprehensive report focuses on trust and feelings of safety. It confirms the image of Sweden as a country characterised by high levels of social trust, while also revealing substantial geographical differences.

The second report examines survey questions related to the moral values of the Swedish population. The findings suggest that moral values are reflected in party-political preferences and may therefore play an important role in future parliamentary elections.

Ulrika Wahlberg

Download the reports (in Swedish)