Scotland’s Viewpoint is our quarterly survey of 1,000+ Scots – statistically representative of the Scottish adult population. It is conducted online over the course of 2-3 days. The first wave of the survey ran from over the weekend of 14th-17th January and the most recent wave took place three months later on the 18th and 19th of April.

As well as some key tracking questions about Scottish public opinion, we also offer space on the survey for client-confidential polling of the Scottish population.  Please get in touch with either Jim or Duncan for more information:

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12th June 2024
A Scotland-wide survey of the population suggests that when it comes to the Euros and Scotland’s chances, there’s a lot of optimism out there ..... but laced with a healthy dose of pessimism!

As an independent consumer research agency, the team at 56 Degree Insight regularly undertake major surveys to understand the views and attitudes of the Scottish population. On the eve of the Euro 2024 Finals Tournament in Germany, it feels as if Scotland is gripped by football fever. We wanted to understand a bit more about how we felt about the tournament - and in particular, Scotland’s chances. Who do we think will win the tournament, and what do we think about the participation of our nearest neighbours from south of the Border? And given its timing, so close to a General Election, how does interest and support vary across the three major parties in Scotland?

Between June 8-10, we surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,001 Scottish adults aged 16+ using our regular Scotland’s Viewpoint survey. You can download and read the results from the survey by clicking on the link below

19th December 2023
What is Scotland’s favourite Christmas TV advertisement of 2023?

Earlier in December, 56 Degree Insight undertook an online survey of 1,002 Scottish residents to uncover their views on the Christmas TV advertisements from the 8 main supermarket chains this year - which one was their favourite?

But we went beyond general preference to see how each performed on a series of typical key campaign evaluation metrics:

• VISIBILITY (spontaneous and prompted awareness and recognition),

• ENGAGEMENT (likeability, salience, trust, tone, interest, relevance and warmth)

• ACTIONS taken - how many were more persuaded to shop at each supermarket,

• and how did the ads impact the BRAND APPEAL?

There are winners in each category - however we do have an OVERALL WINNER - the most popular advertisement amongst the largest proportion of Scots this year.....

20th March 2023
Making a difference? – what actions do Scots perceive as most likely to reduce their carbon footprint

In our recent quarterly survey of the Scottish population we included a series of questions to explore the population’s perceptions on which of a series of potential behaviour changes would do most to reduce their carbon footprint and which would be less impactful. While actions relating to reducing flying, travelling by car and reducing home energy consumption were seen as likely to make the greatest difference, views on the effectiveness of other actions were much more varied. For example, less than half expected that buying more second hand items would have a large or moderate positive impact and a significant minority were unsure of the potential impact of a number of the actions we tested. These findings suggest that as we move towards a circular economy clearer information on the actual impacts of the actions we can take are needed if we are to prioritise and make a real change.

Click on the image below to find out more

6th March 2023
Still feeling the pinch - how Scots are coping with the cost of living crisis

Our quarterly survey of the Scottish population doesn’t just cover tourism attitudes and behaviours. We have also been tracking just how the Scottish population is coping right now as costs continue to rise. Our latest analysis also takes a contextual analysis of all of the issues which are keeping us awake at night and our levels of optimism for the rest of 2023. However, with the main focus on the impacts of the increasing costs of living, we discover the coping mechanisms which are being taken and how it is all impacting on our emotional wellbeing in terms of stress and worry.

Click on the image below to find out more

13th December 2022

Insights to help hospitality and tourism businesses to address recruitment and skill shortages

As tourism and hospitality businesses face significant problems recruiting skilled staff, we were delighted to partner with Edinburgh Napier University and ATHE in October to undertake a survey which aimed to find out more about the sector’s reputation and the attractiveness of hospitality and tourism as a career choice.

We found that whilst the majority of the population recognise the significant importance of tourism to the economy and support it’s development, views on the attractiveness of the sector as a career choice were somewhat polarised.

Many people hold a very negative opinion with common concerns including poor pay, long hours and the challenges of dealing with difficult customers. However, we found that others had somewhat more positive expectations, feeling that a career in this sector would provide opportunities to meet and welcome people and the potential for a rewarding and interesting career, in a sector which has much potential for growth.

These mixed feelings on the attractiveness of the sector for a career translated to varied feelings when survey respondents were asked if they would recommend studying tourism or hospitality at college or university with many unsure on whether it would be a sector they’d recommend whilst other businesses sectors could look like more attractive, less risky option.

Despite these mixed opinions on the attractiveness, we found that there was much greater consensus across the population on the need to take action to improve opportunities for careers in Scottish hospitality and tourism, starting with greater collaboration between the government, industry and academia.

In other work we have done in the UK we’ve seen how this partnership approach can be extremely effective.  Earlier in2022 we were insights partner for the Westminster Works campaign which sought to address similar hospitality recruitment issues in the borough of Westminster. Informed by the research we undertook with employers, employees and job seekers, the programme has led to close collaboration between the local authority, hospitality businesses (ranging from 6 star hotels to fast food chains!) and the University of Greenwich, working together to take the steps needed to fill over 2,000 positions.  This has included agreement of a ‘pledge’ made by employers committing to fair pay and conditions, takings steps to make the sector more attractive to people who had left the workforce, more collaboration between businesses to allow career development and a more joined up approach to promoting opportunities to work in the Westminster hospitality sector (see https://westminster.works/)

If you’d like to view our infographic of results from our recent Scottish survey click on the image below … or get in touch if you’d like to discuss further.

6th September 2022

So, today, the United Kingdom has a new Prime Minister. So what do Scots believe are the key priorities just now?

In early August, in our quarterly survey of over 1,000 Scots, Scotland’s Viewpoint, we asked Scots what were the issues that were keeping them awake at night and what were the key issues that needed to be addressed. We’ve all heard about the overflowing in-box that awaits Liz Truss in Downing Street. It will be interesting to see how many of the key issues identified in our survey will be near the top of that in-box….find out what they are by clicking on the image below

25th August 2022

Scots are cutting back on their spending across the board - but the hospitality, leisure, tourism and retail sectors, are likely to be hit especially hard

With the cost of living crisis, spiralling costs seem to be the 'order of the day' across the board, and there is clear evidence that ALL sectors of the Scottish economy are going to suffer as consumers tighten their spending belts.

In the early August wave of Scotland’s Viewpoint, we asked the Scottish population where they were going to try to cut back most to try to protect the essentials in the household budget.

Download the results from the link below

18th August 2022

Encouraging signs in Scots holiday taking this year - but the cost of living crisis is impacting on the nature of these trips

At the beginning of August, the 56 Degree Insight team ran the third of our quarterly waves of ‘Scotland’s Viewpoint’ - a representative sample of over 1,000 Scots conducted online. A major focus was holiday taking behaviours collected through our proprietary Scottish Tourism Index survey.

Since the last wave of research - in April - things have changed: inflation is at a 40-year high, and energy and fuel prices are driving up the cost of living to unprecedented levels. So what impact is all of this having on our holiday choices this year?

Encouragingly for the tourism industry, Scots holidays are holding up well with almost half of us taking holidays in Scotland this year - and encouraging numbers travelling elsewhere in the UK, and a clear recovery for European breaks. Only long-haul is taking longer to recover. But several factors are impacting on our decision-making - the increased cost of living is having a major impact, but so are legacy effects from Covid, transport disruption across rail, air and ferry, and the war in Ukraine.

Click on the link below to get the full picture. As well as detailed stats on where we are taking our holidays, for holidays in Scotland, we have also looked at accommodation choices and how they are changing, as well as the planning cycle - from deciding to go, to which elements are booked in advance.

And we are delighted to incorporate some contextual information on the wider UK resident market. Our friends at Yonder Data Solutions kindly undertook a parallel run of key questions on their UK omnibus - with some interesting findings on which of the UK’s constituent countries’ residents are most likely to be taking holidays this year……

Click below to find out more.

5th May 2022

The cost of living crisis and the war in Ukraine are causing the greatest concerns for Scots

In early January, in the first wave of Scotland’s Viewpoint, we found that rising energy prices and the likely impact on the cost of living were starting to cause concern amongst the Scottish adult population. Three months on, and concern on both issues has increased significantly - and of course, the war in Ukraine has also emerged as one of the key issues that is concerning us all.

Find out the extent to which these and other issues are having an impact by clicking on the image below

3rd May 2022

Relaunch of the Scottish Brands Reputation Index - transport & travel brands

25th April 2022

Relaunch of the Scottish Tourism Index - Scots holiday plans for 2022

On the 18th and 19th April, we ran the second wave of Scotland’s Viewpoint, interviewing 1,007 Scottish adults. Subjects covered included their views on specific issues such as cost of living and the war in Ukraine, but we also looked at the transport sector and asked Scots to rate some key transport and travel brands. More on these results over the next week or so, but today we are excited to announce the relaunch of the Scottish Tourism Index.

During the pandemic, we ran a series of consumer surveys to understand the views and behaviours of Scots in terms of holidays and breaks. The last wave of this research was in March last year. As holidays are very much ‘back on the agenda’ for many of us, we will be tracking Scots behaviours and attitudes to holidays on a quarterly basis through this survey. The first wave indicates that the proportion of Scots planning on taking holidays this year has risen significantly on last year, with particular growth in interest in European destinations. There is good news for the domestic industry as well however with over two in five of us taking holidays in Scotland this year. However, although we have moved away from the peak impacts of Coronavirus, the survey shows that it is still having an impact on holiday choices for many of us - as indeed is the ongoing war in Ukraine - both are impacting the types of holidays being considered. But the biggest impacts on holiday choice relate to the increase costs of living - the survey shows that half of us say this is having a major impact on whether or not we take holidays, and if so, the nature of that trip. Read about this and more by clicking on the link below.

1st March 2022

Which Scottish brands are we most proud of?

Scotland has a wide variety of flagship brands and organisations across every sector of industry. But which ones are the Scottish adult population most proud of? In the mid January wave of Scotland’s Viewpoint, we asked 1,000 Scots to name the brand that filled them with most pride - and asked them to give their reasons. To find out who came out on top, click on the image below……

4th February 2022

The Winter Olympics are with us – but how many of us will be watching?

With the Opening Ceremony of the Winter Olympics taking place today in Beijing, to what extent is the Scottish population both aware and interested in this event?  In the mid January wave of ‘Scotland’s Viewpoint’, we asked just how many Scots were aware of the event and where it was being held, their levels of interest in watching it – and their favourite sports to follow.  

Click on the image below to find out more

1st February 2022

Are there some signs of optimism for Scottish tourism in 2022?

After two extremely unsettling years for the travel and tourism industries, what does 2022 have in store?  We asked a representative sample of the Scottish population about their holiday intentions this year – are they considering holidays – and if so which destinations and when?  

Read the views of our 1,010 Scots from the first Scotland’s Viewpoint survey. Click on the image below, to find out more.

25th January 2022

What does Robbie Burns mean to Scots in 2022?

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face, 

Great chieftain o the puddin'-race!

Aboon them a' ye tak your place,

Painch, tripe, or thairm:

Weel are ye wordy o' a grace

As lang's my arm.

Yes, it’s a Happy Birthday today to Rabbie Burns, Scotland’s National bard – born 263 years ago today.  But how important is celebrating the occasion to Scots in 2022?  In our latest survey extract, we find out what Burns means to the Scottish population in 2022 - Click below to find out more:

24th January 2022

What are the major issues that are causing most concern for the Scottish population at the moment?

Is Coronavirus still dominating our thoughts - or is it global warming or the increasingly turbulent Russia-Ukraine situation? And what about the spiralling costs of electricity and gas - and their impacts on the cost of living? To find out what is concerning us most, read what 1,010 Scots said to us in the first Scotland’s Viewpoint survey in mid January. Click on the image below, to find out more.