by Christian K. Caruzo
A study published in Spain finds a majority of young Spaniards perceive mass migration as a “real threat” and associate it with rising crime, while agreeing that there are “too many migrants” in their country.
The study, titled, Jovenes Españoles 2026 (“Spanish Youth 2026”) was published by the Spanish non-profit organization Fundacion SM, and it contains an exhaustive analysis of the current reality of Spaniards aged between 15-24 during 2025 across a wide range of subjects, comparing the findings with those from 2020 and 2005.
Health, family, earning money, and free time and leisure were found to be the top most important aspects for the young people who participated in the study. Over a third at 38.4 per cent said they consider religion to be “quite or very important” on their lives, with 45 per cent identifying as Catholic, up from 31.6 per cent in 2020.
When it comes to migration, the study found notable changes in the perception that Spanish youth have towards migrants, with a significant rise in support of the concept that migrants should assimilate to Spanish customs and norms, and a documented drop in support for cultural diversity and the respect for migrants’ non-Spanish customs among respondents. The study also documented a resurgence of support in the perception of what it described as “real threats” when it comes to migration — the amount of migrants, and a growth in crime associated to mass migration.
As many as 61.7 per cent expressed that they find that the presence of migrants has led to a growth in delinquency in Spain — over twice as many as the 27.6 per cent who expressed the same sentiment in the 2020 survey.
Similarly, 65.6 per cent of respondents stated that they perceive that “there are starting to be too many migrants in Spain.” In contrast, only 34.2 per cent had said so in 2020.
When asked for their opinion on the statement, “We make things too easy for migrants,” 58.9 per cent of the young respondents expressed to be in agreement with the sentiment during 2025, up from the 30.4 per cent before.
Now, nearly three-quarters at 72 per cent of respondents said that migrants must adapt to Spanish customs and cultures, up from 47 percent in 2020. When asked for their opinion on the statement, “We must respect all migrants’ customs, unless they violate the Constitution,” 64.7 percent expressed to be in agreement.
“This trend suggests a resurgence of the perception of immigration as a massive and potentially destabilizing phenomenon,” the study stated.