Every year, the Norwegian Armed Forces carry out a broad citizen survey with a number of questions about the relationship with the Norwegian Armed Forces. In recent years, the number of those who would advise young girls to take the test for the first time has been stable and increasing. When news conducted an opinion poll at the end of February, the same question was asked. But, with a different outcome. In 2022, 70 per cent answered in the Norwegian Armed Forces’ survey that they would very much or quite a lot recommend first time service to a girl. The positive attitude towards first-time service and the Armed Forces has suffered a setback. This is what is revealed in the opinion poll carried out by Norstat for news: The positive responses have decreased from 70 per cent to 45 per cent. The number of those who answer negatively has increased. 41 per cent now say that they would to a small extent, or not at all, recommend a year in the Armed Forces for young girls. In 2022, 21 percent were negative. Defence: – It’s a shame – I think it’s a shame. It is a high number, which should be lower, says Colonel Frank Sølvsberg to news. Colonel Frank Sølvsberg is spokesperson for the Norwegian Armed Forces. Photo: Ministry of Defence. He is a spokesperson for the Defense Forces, and looks at the speech from news’s opinion poll about how many people do not want to advise young girls to take their first test. The armed forces now have to realize that less than half of the respondents would advise young women to join the armed forces. The spokesperson will nevertheless point out that the young women who have actually been to the first service are satisfied. – From our own conscription survey, we find that eight out of ten young women, who have been in the service, would recommend other women to do the same, says Sølvsberg and points to his own figures from 2021. Where the impression has changed – it is becoming more negative in news In the opinion poll, the respondents were also asked the following question: “Has your impression of the Armed Forces changed recently?” 30 per cent answered that they had received a more negative impression. Of those who had received a more negative impression, 82 per cent answered that it was because of the treatment of women, sexual harassment and whistle-blowing cases. Or that it was because whistleblowing cases are not taken seriously and that no one is held accountable. This is something they have also discovered in the Norwegian Armed Forces, their spokesperson says. – It is not entirely unexpected. Our own investigations show that whistle-blowing cases lower the impression of the Armed Forces. How the Norwegian Armed Forces solves its tasks draws attention. Negative comments about the Armed Forces naturally make people more negative, says Sølvsberg. Once a year, the armed forces conduct a large opinion poll in which they ask a selection of over 4,000 people a series of questions. Otherwise, they also carry out more frequent surveys with fewer questions. The media report, with news’s cases about whistle-blowing, harassment and abuse in the Armed Forces, can also be seen in these opinion polls, says Sølvsberg. Women in the majority Of the 30 per cent who had received a more negative impression of the armed forces, 58 per cent were women. Sølvsberg says the cases have also affected those who work in the Armed Forces, and that the numbers in the opinion polls are not surprising. – I would say that the Armed Forces had a wake-up call last summer. It then became clear that the Norwegian Armed Forces did not prevent unwanted incidents well enough, or handle alerts and notifications in a good enough way, says Sølvsberg. – The armed forces are working hard on this now, but it is probably the notification cases that people remember best from the last time, he says. – What will the Armed Forces do so that women will have a more positive impression of the Armed Forces in the future? – The most important thing the Armed Forces can do now is to create a safe and good working environment for everyone. The work the Norwegian Armed Forces have done since this summer, and going forward, to prevent unwanted incidents and the handling of notifications will probably affect the impression of the Norwegian Armed Forces in a positive direction, says Sølvsberg. Positive reasons strengthen defense Of the total of 1,009 people who were asked in news’s opinion poll, 14 percent answered that the impression of the defense had become more positive. 50 percent said the impression had not changed to any extent. Of those who had a more positive impression, there were some specific issues that had given this impression, and many mentioned several issues. 17 percent mentioned that because the Armed Forces were important in the current situation in terms of the threat picture, it had given them a more positive impression. 16 percent thought Norwegian support to Ukraine was the cause. 15 per cent had a more positive impression because they thought the Armed Forces were more offensive or that the Armed Forces were strengthened or rebuilt. 12 percent had a more positive impression because the Armed Forces were more visible in the media. Opinion poll on the Armed Forces and the first-time service The opinion poll was carried out for news by Norstat at the end of February 2023. Norstat asked 1,009 people. One of the questions was: “Has your impression of the defense changed recently?” The answer was as follows: 50% No difference 30% Has become more negative 14% Has become more positive 5% Don’t know Those who answered that their impression had changed was asked this question: “What is the reason that your impression of the defense has become more positive/negative?” Open answers to the question were then categorized by Norstat. Furthermore, this question was asked: “To what extent would you recommend a girl who is young today to complete her first service?” The question and the answer options were exactly the same as those used in the Swedish Armed Forces’ population survey in the period 2015-2022. The answers that Norstat collected were as follows : 12% To a very large extent 33% To a fairly large extent 29% To a small extent 12% Not at all 14% Don’t know
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Fewer will advise girls to enter the first-time service – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
