The Good Childhood Report 2024 has named German 15-year-olds among the European teenagers most dissatisfied with life, with teenagers in Poland, Malta and the UK the only groups less happy than those in Germany.

21,6 percent of 15-year-olds in Germany are dissatisfied with life

A recent report by The Children’s Society, a UK charity with ties to the Church of England, has found that 21,6 percent of 15-year-olds in Germany are dissatisfied with life.

The Netherlands (6,7 percent), Finland (10,8 percent) and Denmark (11,3 percent) had the smallest percentage of 15-year-olds who reported being dissatisfied. Meanwhile, a quarter of 15-year-olds in the UK (25,2 percent) said they were dissatisfied, the highest percentage on the continent, followed by Poland (24,4 percent) and Malta (23,6 percent). Across the continent, it determined that around one in six 15-year-olds feel dissatisfied with their lives.

The report used data from the UK Longitudinal Household Survey, The Children’s Society’s annual survey and the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), to compile the results. 

Socioeconomic inequality leads to greater dissatisfaction

The report also used data from the PISA assessment to determine how socioeconomic inequality impacts life satisfaction among teens. Italy was the country where the gap in life satisfaction between the most advantaged and the most disadvantaged was most pronounced, with an 8,6 percentage point gap. Estonia (8,2 percent), the UK (8,2 percent), France (7,7 percent), Ireland (7,6 percent) and Germany followed.

The results showed that in Germany there was a 7,5 percentage point gap in life satisfaction between the most advantaged and the most disadvantaged 15-year-olds. According to 2023 figures from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), around 2,1 million children and young people in Germany are at risk of poverty.

Another 2023 study, "Wie ticken Jugendliche?" (What makes young people tick?) conducted by the Sinus-Institut in Berlin, found that the transition into work, the climate crisis and immigration are among the biggest concerns for 14 to 17-year-olds in Germany.

Net migration to Germany fell sharply in 2023, with 663.000 new people calling Germany their home. Amid a record-high worker shortage, the traffic light government has adopted new policies to encourage more skilled workers to come to Germany.

Meanwhile, the anti-immigration AfD has seen a surge in popularity among young voters, particularly since focusing PR efforts on TikTok. The recent state election in Thuringia saw 38 percent of 18 to 24-year-olds voting for the party.