In 2017, the Scanlon Foundation conducted anonymous online research in addition to telephone surveys, in order to correct for the reluctance of some people to admit certain attitudes to an interviewer. The online research showed a much higher level of negative attitudes towards Muslims (41.4%).24 In July 2017, Ipsos surveyed 17,401 people aged 16–64 across 23 countries on their attitudes to religion, using an online panel system. In Australia, the sample size was more than 1,000. It found: • globally, 49% thought ‘religion does more harm than good’ • in Australia 63% agreed with this proposition • only Belgium had a higher figure than Australia, at 68%.25 The Australian Generation Z Study, conducted between 2016 and 2018 by researchers at Deakin University, Australian National University and Monash University, comprised 11 focus groups in three states with almost 100 students in Years 9 and 10 (ages 15–16). It also included a nationally representative phone survey of 1200 people aged 13–18, and 30 in-depth follow-up interviews with survey participants. The study found: • Teens were open to religious diversity, with 93% agreeing that having many different faiths in Australia made it a better place to live. • 74% of teens hold positive attitudes towards Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism; 21% hold moderate to neutral views; and 5% hold negative views. • Those who had received general religious education (GRE) were more likely to hold positive views towards religious minorities. Students who have had no GRE are about twice as likely to hold negative or neutral views. (GRE involves teaching about religions in a non-doctrinal and non-partisan way.) • Around 80% of secondary school students who had classes about diverse religions claim to have positive views of Muslims. This compares to around 70% who had not attended such classes. Freedom of religion in Australia: a focus on serious harms • July 2020 • 15