MELBOURNE, Australia / MENA Newswire / – Australia’s social cohesion has held steady even as more people feel poorer, more pessimistic and less trusting of government, according to the annual Scanlon Foundation report. The Scanlon index of social cohesion remained at 78 out of 100, unchanged since 2023. The Mapping Social Cohesion study, now in its 20th year, surveyed more than 10,000 adults. The cost of living was by far the top concern, cited by 36% of respondents. Support for multiculturalism remained high.
Lead author Dr James O’Donnell of the Australian National University said people are clearly under economic pressure. O’Donnell said there is discontent and distrust, with some people blaming immigration, but the findings do not necessarily show a permanent shift. The index draws on measures of belonging, worth, social inclusion and justice, participation and acceptance. Even so, 62% of adults believe social cohesion has declined in recent years.
Nearly one-third of respondents expect their lives to get worse over the next few years, up from 29% last year. While 79% said they had been happy in the past year, 48% were pessimistic about Australia’s future, up from 43% in 2025. Happiness has declined most among millennials and generation X. Since 2014, the share of happy millennials has fallen from 84% to 75%. Scanlon Foundation chief executive Anthea Hancocks said many people feel they lack opportunities to achieve their goals.
Financial stress strains households
Housing ranked second among top issues on 11%, followed by other economic issues on 10% and immigration on 9%. Some 77% of Australians were concerned about a severe global economic downturn. About 20% of adults were unhappy with their financial situation, and 13% had gone without meals at least sometimes. About one in five had gone without medicine or healthcare or could not afford to heat or cool their homes. The findings follow a fresh Commonwealth Bank downgrade to the economy and housing.
Concern about artificial intelligence also ranked high, with 69% of respondents worried about AI. That placed it above climate change on 55% and a military conflict involving Australia on 51%. Yet only 1% named AI as their top issue, while climate change was the top issue for just 4%. Some 16% said they had sold possessions because they needed cash. Pressure on household budgets has also fuelled debate over early access to superannuation.
Multiculturalism support holds as attitudes shift
Support for multiculturalism remains strong, with 87% agreeing immigrants are just as likely to be good citizens as Australian-born people. Some 76% said multiculturalism has been good for the country, and 73% said immigrants are good for the economy. However, negative attitudes towards Muslim people rose to 43% from 33% in 2024. Negative views of Jewish people rose to 18% from 13%. Negative attitudes towards Indian immigrants climbed to 33% from 25%.
The report found financial hardship is reshaping voting intentions. Among 2025 Labor or Coalition voters facing hardship, an estimated 47% now prefer another party or candidate, compared with 36% of those without hardship. Most of that shift has gone to One Nation. Only 9% of One Nation voters trust the federal government to do the right thing, compared with 54% of Labor voters. People under financial stress also showed substantially weaker trust in institutions.