I was very pleased to read that the Gen26 survey of Jewish community attitudes will open in April. Since 2008, demographers at Monash University in conjunction with the Australian Centre for Jewish Civilisations have conducted nationwide surveys across Australia’s community to provide detailed data about the Jewish community in Australia.
So, I hope that the Gen26 survey this year asks the hard questions, in particular those that will assess whether our mainstream peak federal bodies, like the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) and the Zionist Federation of Australia (ZFA), actually represent the views of a majority of Australian Jews.
The deepest tensions in Australian Jewish life today are not primarily about synagogue affiliation or even Jewish school enrolments, but rather about the widening gap between institutional narratives about who speaks for our Jewish community and who represents the majority of Australian Jews.
In recent years newer groups have emerged and insist that Australian Jewish institutions like the ECAJ and ZFA do not speak for them. In response, there has been a massive fight between mainstream community bodies and these newer groups, with each accusing the other of not representing the majority of Australian Jews.
Since October 7, there has been a profound rupture in our community between Zionist and non-Zionist Jews, and time and time again leaders within our peak bodies have reassured us that groups like the Jewish Council of Australia are loud but unrepresentative, a small and marginal fringe. Perhaps theyare. Or perhaps, they actually represent a larger slice of our Jewish community than many assume.
Comments7
Professor John Zeleznikow15 March at 04:20 am
I cannot agree with Nomi Kaltmann’s desire to use the Gen 26 survey to determine the political preferences of Australian Jews towards Israel.
Gen 26 is the third of a series of longitudinal studies of the Australian Jewish community. It is essential to have data on ageing in the community, educational needs, child care, sporting facilities and indeed where the community lives. Without such data we cannot appropriately plan for the future.
There is no doubt that the various Jewish political groups will misinterpret data which Ms. Kaltmann wishes to collect for their own purposes.
Even in these difficult times we need to plan for the future rather than engaging in futile political debates.
Judy12 March at 01:12 pm
(begin Part 02)
==> Third proposed question:
Do you believe a wide range of political perspectives … expressed …
without social or professional consequences?
What constitutes a “social / professional consequence”? A nasty note in TJI Comments? Being doxxed? Being fired? While an interesting question, I am not clear what responses would mean. Is the question trying to understand how much a Respondent self-censors?
Recommendation: Determine the purpose / goal of this question, and ask it specifically.
…
In addition to the above, it is not clear to me whether or not the Survey Results are inherently “corrupted” by “sample bias”: Where those who complete the Survey are not truly a representative sample of “the Jewish Community.” I do not recall seeing any analysis of the demographics of the respondents against the demographics of “the Jewish Community” to understand how representative the responses are – or are not. The discussion I read in the Gen17 Report indicates this is not possible to do.
One could ask, then, how appropriate is it to discuss / reference / use the results of a non-representative Survey as though it is meaningful and representative?
Peace, Judy
Judy12 March at 01:09 pm
In all GenXX Surveys-to-date, I found many of the questions ambiguous or leading / leaning toward a specific conclusion. I found myself wondering: How will this information be used, by whom, and when?
…
While I endorse the essence of three questions proposed, I find each to be ambiguous, leading, leaning.
==> First proposed question:
Which of the following best describes your current view?
* I consider myself a Zionist < etc >
How does the Survey define “Zionist” / “Zionism”? The 1800s / early-1900s definition? The current Hilltop Youth definition?
Recommendation: Provide a simple definition (and use that same definition for all questions using the terms).
…
==> Second proposed question:
How well do you feel mainstream Jewish representative organisations
reflect your views on major public issues?
What is considered a “mainstream Jewish representative organisation”? I consider JCA / ZFA / AJA / ECAJ / etc all to be equitable organisations; most people I know consider only two of the four as “mainstream.”
Recommendation: Enumerate which organisations are considered “mainstream Jewish representative organisations” and which are not.
…
(end Part 01)
Anton12 March at 06:34 am
When constructing surveys, that are then repeated again, it is important to be able to compare results to previous surveys. Changing the questions creates a problem. Adding new questions can be done. Any suggestions should be put to the Gen survey authors, not just into an op ed.
Ian Bowie12 March at 06:21 am
How ‘representative’ will the survey be? Will the statistical ‘control’ be limited to religious adherents (for whom census data is available) or somehow representative of Jewish Australians by ancestry and/or Jews who are not (or are no longer) observant and/or those who consider themselves secular Jews (for whom census data is woefully inadequate)? Will the survey be of a representative sample or, say, by invitation to names on email lists or via social media or even news media? Maybe a question could ask about views say 12 months or five years ago? Who will decide? Good luck
Mark Ian8 March at 11:00 pm
All Jewish people except psychopaths and sadomasochists were disgusted by the Barbarism and Atrocities of the October 7 2023 Hamas and Islamic Jihad attack . The extent of the Israeli Counterattack exposed Divisions between groups who wanted Gaza carpet bombed with Hundreds of Thousands of killed and injured the rest fleeing to Egypt – to the Humane who wanted all Civilians being given time to Evacuate to no fire zones with full humane relief -shelter water food and medicine . As for Israel you can be for Israel being a ultra -Nuclear and Conventional Military Power with a huge air force ,ballistic missile capacity and incredible anti-ballistic missile defence with deep underground shelters and impenetrable safe rooms for every Israeli without being a Zionist , which in any case has many definitions .
Farah-Lee7 March at 01:05 pm
Great op-ed Nomi, I hope they take note of your suggestions.