Czech Republic: Second Most Negative Country

One of the troublesome things about living in the Czech Republic is not the alleged poor service, xenophobia, slowness of the bureaucracy or any other complaint we expats have. It is the tendency for Czechs to be negative, often exceedingly negative, toward their fellow countrymen and women. People have a right to their opinions and a certain self-deprecation is welcome over rampant national pride. In fact it can be refreshing. But over the years I can’t help but think the negativity might be a little too extreme and that it has implications for a country I currently call home.

Coming from Australia, a country where boisterous nationalism is practically a default setting, I’m aware that any opinion about one’s country which doesn’t include people wearing flags as capes or reminding anyone who will listen how much better everything is at home will possibly appear slightly derogatory. Furthermore, there is a saying here, “small but ours”,  which tends to play up the modesty. (Of course not all people live up to these ideas.)

But the negativity I have encountered was not misconstrued modesty; it was unequivocally hostile. A number of Czechs I’ve met have voiced a clear dislike for Czech people and/or the Czech country either directly to me or around me. The comments have come from a range of people who aren’t always connected.

A family friend upon meeting me at a gathering asked, “Why do you want to live in this s#!t republic?” An older man from the same social circle complained about having to drink with the Czechs, when he himself was Czech. I’ve had a woman repeatedly tell me she doesn’t like it here, though she’s lived here for the better part of her life and a younger man tell me he wished he wasn’t Czech. And I overheard one Czech colleague say to another Czech colleague “Czechs are stupid,” in Czech of course.

Some of the comments can be less severe. But it’s remarkable how often it comes up. I’ve been told numerous times how Czechs “know how to get around laws”. When going to a bank for the first time, the clerk warned me that Czechs steal. I’m not sure how that was meant to make me feel more reassured about leaving my money with them.

As much as the data seems to directly confirm the prevalence of negativity, the findings are over two decades old. What do more recent surveys show? While none address this question specifically, a number of other surveys reveal that negativity of one sort continues. However, the picture is complex.

Jan Červenka from the Sociological Institute of the Academy of Sciences (Sociologický Ústav Akademie Věd) was less concerned about the later point.

I was motivated to look into this because the negativity alarmed me but I also wanted to put that alarm into some context. I hope Mr. Červenka is right when he says that the feeling isn’t permanent. Even if it isn’t, it’s hard not to see the negativity as being a barrier to integration. It’s hard to settle here when a large chunk of the people you meet ask you constantly why you want to live here and don’t seem satisfied with the positive reasons you give.

It also has to impact on the economy and social development. Will people bother to be innovative and take risks – which improves lives for locals as much as expats – if they have ill-feelings toward others?

“As for the question of whether negative attitudes can affect the economy, I think it has influence because of our attitudes and expectations affect our behavior,” Mr. Červenka said.

I’m not suggesting flag waving jingoism is the answer, but a shift toward the center has to be better than the current mood. Maybe a little more pride is the missing ingredient.