Pakistan tops world league in selflessness

Survey reveals Pakistanis rank highest in putting others first

ISLAMABAD:

A new global survey has revealed that Pakistan ranks highest worldwide when it comes to caring for others.

Ipsos, a Paris-based survey firm, also indicates that Pakistanis are highly traditional, placing value on personal belongings as measures of success and viewing women's roles only as good mothers and wives.

Meanwhile, two-thirds of Indians believe that their society will break down within their lifetimes, with 67% agreeing with the statement, "Within my lifetime, society in my country will break down," according to the survey, presented at an event organised by the French embassy in Islamabad.

In contrast, the majority of Pakistanis do not share this concern. Only one-third anticipate such societal collapse in their lifetime. "Contrary to popular belief, Pakistanis are not expecting a breakdown," said Simon Atkinson, the chief knowledge officer at the Ipsos–the global surveyor.

Ipsos Global Trends delves into the forces driving changes in societies and markets.

Atkinson explained that, ten years ago, six major factors were driving global shifts: population growth, uneven economic development, globalisation and migration, climate change, technological advancements, and political transformations.

Now, however, these have been replaced by new challenges, including societal flux, tech acceleration, economic disparities, environmental emergencies, political splintering, and a wellness revolution.

Similarly, the survey's other findings were also interesting, aligning more closely with the views of the majority of Pakistanis.

The survey revealed that eight out of ten Pakistanis agree that "it is more important to put the needs of others before my own." This makes Pakistan the global leader in selflessness, outscoring the average for other Islamic nations by 30 points.

Pakistan's compassionate outlook even slightly surpasses India's, where 79% of respondents felt the same. "Pakistan's caring spirit shines on the global stage," remarked Simon Atkinson.

Nearly 80% of respondents stated that they measure success by their possessions. On this question, Pakistan ranked even more aspirational than China, which came in second.

Moreover, Pakistan and India tied for the top spots globally regarding the importance of achieving career prominence, encapsulated by the culturally significant notion of "Larka kya kerta hai" (What does the boy do?).

Nearly 100% of Pakistanis said that their religion and faith were very important to them - and the country was in fourth place in the world in terms of protecting their belief systems. Indonesia, Zambia and Nigeria were the other three nations above Pakistan.

Pakistan remains traditionalist on the role of women, religion, and the importance of having children, according to the findings.

Pakistan stays in first place on traditionalist views regarding women. India also joins four Islamic countries in the top 5 depicting cultural phenomena. Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Egypt are the other three traditional societies. Over 82% of Pakistanis see the main women's role as good mothers and wives.

Nearly 8 out of 10 Pakistanis also said that having children was our duty to society, coming fourth among the 50 surveyed nations and getting a ratio that was almost double the global average.