Nearly 25% of Spaniards suffer depression, anxiety from inflation: Poll

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) – Spaniards say they have suffered depression or anxiety due to the cost-of-living crisis, according to an opinion poll for Spanish daily El Pais published on Monday.

The poll suggests that the mental toll of rising living costs on nearly one-quarter of the Spanish population was similar to that of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly 52% of respondents said they barely scraped by at the end of each month, had to draw from their savings or went into debt to pay bills.

Although consumer prices relaxed to a 3.5% year-over-year increase in October, down from a peak of 10.8% in July 2022, the poll found that the main national concern is still inflation – ahead of wars and climate change.

But with the conflicts in Israel, Palestine and Ukraine dominating the headlines, war has moved up to become the country’s second-most pressing concern. The poll found that 85% of Spaniards say they are very or quite concerned about international conflicts.

It also showed that slightly more Spaniards sympathize with Palestine (20.5%) than Israel (19.5%), while the remaining 60% said they supported both parties.

While there was more consensus around supporting Ukraine after the Russian attack, the political divisions around the Israeli-Hamas conflict are strong.

Voters from Spain’s right-wing parties, Vox and the Popular Party, are much more likely to support Israel. However, even the majority of those voters back a two-state solution and say Israel should allow humanitarian aid into the blockaded Gaza Strip.

In contrast, 75% of left-wing voters believe that Israel does not respect the human rights of Palestinians in Gaza or the occupied West Bank, while the right wing was split in their views.

Further, the majority of left-wing voters said Israel does not have the right to attack the Palestinian group Hamas. The majority of right-wing voters believe Israel is within its rights.

According to all Spaniards, the institution that is dealing with the situation most efficiently is the UN.