Results of a public opinion poll conducted by the Razumkov Centre Sociological Service on May 23–31, 2023 within the frameworks of the MATRA Programme supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ukraine. 

The opinions expressed are those of the authors only and should not be considered as representative of the Embassy’s official position.

The face-to-face poll was conducted in Vinnytsia, Volyn, Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Transcarpathian, Zaporizhia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Kirovohrad, Lviv, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Sumy, Ternopil, Kharkiv, Kherson, Khmelnytskyi, Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi regions and the city of Kyiv (in Zaporizhia, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, Kherson regions — only in the territories controlled by the government of Ukraine, free of hostilities).

The poll was held using stratified multistage sampling with random selection at the first stages of sampling and quota selection of respondents at the final stage (when respondents were selected on the basis of sex and age quotas). The sample population structure reproduces the demographic structure of the adult population of the territories where the poll was held as of the beginning of 2022 (by age, sex, settlement type).

2020 respondents aged over 18 years were polled. The sample theoretical error does not exceed 2.3%. Meanwhile, additional systematic deviations of the sample might be caused by the consequences of the Russian aggression, in particular, forced evacuation of millions of citizens.

On January 1, 2023, the Law of Ukraine "On the Basic Principles of the State Policy in the Field of Ukrainian Nation- and Civil Identity-Building" entered into force. This law provides for monitoring of the achievement of key indicators of the efficiency of implementation of the state policy in the field of Ukrainian nation- and civil identity-building. These are basic indicators of the efficiency of such policies and are essential elements of civil society development.

Some of these indicators can be obtained from the state statistics, others — only from public opinion polls.

For many years, the Razumkov Centre Sociological Service has been surveying national and civil identity, civic activism. This press release presents the results of public opinion polls that can be used when monitoring the achievement of the key indicators of the efficiency of implementation of the state policy in the field of Ukrainian nation- and civil identity-building. In most cases, the results of the poll conducted in May 2023 can be compared with the results of the polls held in the previous years.

Share of citizens who are proud of Ukrainian citizenship

Answering the question "How proud are you of being a citizen of Ukraine?", 94% of the citizens of Ukraine polled in May 2023 answered that they are "very proud" or "quite proud" of their Ukrainian citizenship. In 2015, they made 68%, in 2010 — 62%, in 2000 — 62%. A particularly noticeable increase was observed in the share of those who are "very proud" of Ukrainian citizenship — from 23% in 2000 to 71% in 2023.

98% of respondents see Ukraine as their Motherland (in 2006, they made 93%). 97% of respondents answered that they do have the feelings of patriotism and love for Ukraine (76% said so in 2016).

Compared to the previous years, the share of those who are proud of the state symbols of Ukraine has increased: the Ukrainian flag (from 26% in 2011 to 75% in 2023), the Coat of Arms (from 25% to 74%), the Anthem (from 22.5% to 69%). The share of those who are proud of the state language of Ukraine also increased from 32% to 74%, and the share of those who are proud of its currency (hryvnia) increased from 19% to 57%.

Share of citizens who want to leave Ukraine for permanent residence abroad

While the statistical data allow tracking the number of people who left abroad for permanent residence, public opinion polls make it possible to track the share of those polled who want to emigrate. In addition, these surveys make it possible to see the motives of emigration.

Compared to 2001, the share of those who would like to emigrate from Ukraine for permanent residence decreased from 32% to 11%, but in this case a large part of those willing to emigrate do this because of the beginning of Russia’s full-scale aggression, with a refugee status (the most recent poll covered only those who now live in Ukraine).

Among those who want to emigrate, almost half (46%) referred to the war as the main reason for this, another 33% — the difficult economic situation. In 2001, 82% of representatives of this group of respondents referred to the difficult economic situation as the main reason for emigration.

Those who do not intend to emigrate most often reason that they hope, the life in Ukraine will soon change for the better (the share of such people increased from 17% in 2000 to 33% in 2023). The share of those who cannot leave Ukraine at a difficult time increased from 2% to 12%, the share of those who are satisfied with everything in Ukraine increased from 2.5% to 8.5%.

The number of those who explain their unwillingness to emigrate by "not being welcomed abroad" fell from 30% to 14%, of those who "cannot leave the land of their nation" — from 23% to 16%. The share of those who answered that they do not want to change their lifestyle slightly decreased (from 10% to 7%).

Few people (as well as in 2000) answer that they are "used to such a life" (5%), "poor command of foreign languages stops me" (1%), "in the current situation it is easier to do business in Ukraine than abroad" (0.3%).

Compared to 2011, there is a bit fewer (9% in 2011, 6% and in 2023) of those who would like to go to work abroad, even if it is illegal, and slightly more (23% and 26%, respectively) would like to work abroad legally.

Share of Ukrainian citizens who want their children to live in Ukraine

According to the poll conducted in May 2023, 76% of respondents answered that they would like their children to live in Ukraine. Compared with 2001, the number of those who are sure that their children, living in Ukraine, will be able to get education, including higher education, if they wish, has increased significantly (from 27% to 79%), as well as of those who are sure that they will be able to find a job to their liking (from 12% to 49%), to enjoy high-quality healthcare services (from 12% to 49%), will have their own housing (from 24% to 48%), will feel protected from encroachments on their rights and freedoms (from 6% to 53%), will be able to travel and see the world (from 9% to 60%), will have free time for leisure (from 24% to 67%), will be grateful to their parents for giving birth to them (from 49% to 82%).

Share of Ukrainian citizens involved in policy-making and managerial decision-making

12% of respondents answered that they are involved in the processes of policy-making and managerial decision-making (at the national or local level).

Share of Ukrainian citizens involved in environmental activities

6% of respondents answered that they are members or take part in the activities of environmental organisations (in 2009, they made only 2%).

Share of Ukrainian citizens who consider it unacceptable for them to use corrupt practices, including at the family level

61% of respondents believe that bribing an official to solve a problem for an ordinary citizen cannot be justified under any circumstances. 21.5% believe that it is justified in some cases, 4% — that it is justified in most cases, and for 3%, it is always justified.

Share of citizens with a command of the Ukrainian language

69% of citizens, assessing their command of the Ukrainian language, answered that they speak it fluently, 28% — that their command of the Ukrainian language is sufficient for everyday communication, but it is difficult for them to speak on specific subjects, 2% — that they poorly understand Ukrainian, and it is a problem for them to speak it, 0.6% do not understand the Ukrainian language at all.

78% of respondents called Ukrainian their mother language; in 2017, they made 68%, in 2015 — 60%, in 2006 — 52%. 16% of respondents answered that both Ukrainian and Russian are equally native to them (the same as in 2006, while in 2013 and 2015, their share was higher — 23% and 22%, respectively). The share of those who called Russian their native language is 5%, in 2017 they made 14%, in 2013 — 26%, in 2006 — 31%.

68% of respondents speak only or mostly Ukrainian at home, in 2015, they made 50%, in 2006 — 46%. 9% of respondents speak only or mainly Russian at home, in 2015, they made 24%, in 2006 — 38%. 22% speak Ukrainian and Russian approximately equally (25% in 2015, 15% in 2006).

65% of the respondents communicate out of home (for example, at work, study) only or mainly in Ukrainian, in 2015, they made 46%. Only or mainly Russian is used by 8% of respondents, in 2015 they made 24%. 26% equally speak Ukrainian and Russian out of home (29% in 2015).

74% of respondents, answering which language is more prestigious to speak among their friends and colleagues at work or study, named Ukrainian, 9% — Russian, for 13%, it doesn't matter. In 2015 these figures were 43%, 21.5% and 29%, respectively.

Share of Ukrainian citizens who are ready to defend the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine with arms

The share of citizens who answered that they are ready to defend the independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine with arms made 29% (among men — 44%, among women — 16%). In 2015, 17.5% of respondents gave this answer.

42% of respondents expressed their willingness to defend the country by participating in the volunteer movement (in 2015, they made 32%).

21% of respondents answered that they would like their children to become professional soldiers and devote their lives to service in the Armed Forces (in 2002, 18% of respondents gave this answer).

3% of respondents participate in the activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, territorial defence forces, the National Guard of Ukraine, Border Guards, volunteer units. 43% reported that their relatives or close friends participate in the activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, territorial defence forces, the National Guard of Ukraine, Border Guards and volunteer units. 14% of respondents are engaged in volunteer activities in support of the country's defence, 28.5% reported that their relatives or close friends are engaged in volunteer activities in support of the country's defence. 36% of respondents answered that they support the defence of the country financially.

THE POLL RESULTS, COMPARED TO THE PREVIOUS POLLS

(data in the tables are given as percentages)

How proud are you of being a citizen of Ukraine? % among respondents who have Ukrainian citizenship

Do you perceive Ukraine as your Motherland?

Do you cherish the feeling of patriotism, love for Ukraine?

What is your attitude to the following attributes of the independent Ukrainian state?

Do you want to leave Ukraine for permanent residence?

Choose one main reason from the list below, why you want to emigrate from Ukraine? % among those who want to emigrate

* This option of the answer was absent from the questionnaire

Why don’t you want to emigrate from Ukraine? Cite one main reason, % among those who do not want to emigrate

Would you like to go abroad to work there?

Do you want your children to live in Ukraine? May 2023

Are you sure that your children living in Ukraine:

Can you say that you are somehow involved in policy-making and managerial decision-making (at the national or local level)? May 2023

Are you a member (or do you participate in the work) of environmental organisations?

How justified do you consider it for an ordinary citizen to bribe an official to solve his problem? May 2023

How would you describe your command of the Ukrainian language?

What is your mother language?

What language do you mainly speak at home?

What language do you mainly speak out of home, family (at work, studies, etc.)?

Which language is more prestigious to speak among your friends and colleagues at work or study?

Are you ready to defend your country?

Do you want your children to become professional soldiers and serve in the Armed Forces?

Do you take an active part in the defence of the country? (the respondent might choose several answers)