Irish people tend to be less interested and informed on politics than other northern European countries, according to the latest official European survey.
According to the survey by Eurobarometer, Ireland shares this feature with other predominantly Catholic countries, compared with other Protestant northern European countries, which tend to be much more politicised.
The survey found that 64 per cent of Irish people said they were interested in current affairs, compared with an average of 67 per cent for all EU countries. The highest levels of interest were in Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden, where more than eight in 10 citizens indicated an interest in politics.
Only 59 per cent of Irish people felt they were informed about politics and current affairs, which is close to the EU average, but significantly lower than Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden, where three in four people felt informed.
Just 31 per cent of Irish respondents felt they knew how to get their voices heard when it came to politics and public affairs issues, the fourth-lowest of any EU country, and compared with more than 50 per cent in Scandinavian countries such as Finland.
The report concluded that in Catholic countries such as Ireland, Spain, Italy, Poland and Slovakia "citizens feel comparatively less interested in and well informed on politics or have greater difficulty accessing political structures".
This is in contrast to northern European countries such as Denmark and the Netherlands "marked by their Protestant culture and more politicised societies".
The survey, carried out last February, questioned more than 12,000 citizens across nearly 30 countries in Europe about attitudes towards religion, morals, politics and science.
Overall the survey found that 88 per cent of Irish people were satisfied with the life they lead, compared with an EU average of 82 per cent.
This put Ireland ninth in the European league, in contrast to other surveys, most notably last year's poll by the Economist, indicated that Irish people were the happiest in the world. The Eurobarometer survey found that the Netherlands had the highest satisfaction level.
The survey also found similar attitudes to religion and ethics in Catholic countries, where a greater proportions saw the "dignity of life" of the unborn as a very important issue.
In Ireland 73 per cent of people said they believed in God, compared with 52 per cent on average in the EU, while 73 per cent saw protection of the unborn as "very important". The survey also found that a greater proportion of Irish people (48 per cent) than in any other EU country with the exception of Spain, saw the integration of minorities as very important.