Испания: Франкодан кейінгі әлеуметтік өзгерістер мен La Movida қозғалысы

After the restoration of democracy in the late 1970s, the changes in everyday Spanish life were as radical as the political transformation. They are famously known as La Movida (The Movement). These changes were even more striking when contrasted with the values and social practices that had prevailed in Spanish society during the Francoist regime, especially during the 1940s and the 1950s. In essence, Spanish social values and attitudes were modernized at the same pace, and to the same degree, as the country's class structure, economic institutions, and political framework. Under the rule of Francisco Franco, dominant Spanish social values were strongly conservative. Both public laws and church regulations enforced a set of social structures aimed at preserving the traditional role of the family, distant and formal relations between the sexes, and controls over expression in the press, film, and the mass media, as well as over many other important social institutions. By the 1960s, however, social values were changing faster than the law, inevitably creating tension between legal codes and reality. Even the Catholic church had begun to move away from its more conservative positions by the latter part of the decade. The government responded haltingly to these changes with some new cabinet appointments and with somewhat softer restrictions on the media. Yet underneath these superficial changes, Spanish society was experiencing wrenching changes as its people came increasingly into contact with the outside world. To some extent, these changes were due to the rural exodus that had uprooted hundreds of thousands of Spaniards and had brought them into new urban social settings. In the 1960s and the 1970s, however, two other contacts were also important: the flow of European tourists to "sunny Spain" and the migration of Spain's workers to jobs in France, Switzerland, and Germany. Eventually, abortion laws were further liberalized in 2010, to allow physicians to provide elective abortions during the first trimester. (see Abortion in Spain).

Perhaps the most significant change in Spanish social values, however, was the role of women in society, which, in turn, was related to the nature of the family. Spanish society, for centuries, had embraced a code of moral values that established stringent standards of sexual conduct for women (but not for men); restricted the opportunities for professional careers for women, but honored their role as wives and (most important) mothers; and prohibited divorce, contraception, and abortion, but permitted prostitution. Currently, Spain has one of the lowest birth and fertility rates in the world, up to the point of heavily hampering the population replacement rates. One or two children families are pretty common, and the age of parents has been increasing.

After 36 years of theoconservative National Catholic Francoism, Spanish society as a whole has consistently shown a secular, left leaning trend. Over a period of 40 years of liberal democracy, the social democratic Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) spent 21 years in office, although the conservative People's Party (PP) has since then steadily grown and has recently governed for eight years. Large regions as Andalusia or Extremadura have had PSOE regional governments since democracy was re established in the country. Ecosocialist Eurocommunist United Left has traditionally been the distant fourth political force in Spain, and recently has further lost some of its presence and representation. As a result of the overexploitation of national symbols and references by the Francoist regime, patriotism is not ingrained in Spanish society. Nationalisms and regionalisms are strong in spite of the high decentralization of the Spanish state, especially in Catalonia and in the Basque country. While Roman Catholicism remains the largest nominal religion in Spain, most Spaniards especially the younger ones — choose to ignore the Catholic teachings in morals, politics or sexuality, and don't attend Mass regularly. Agnosticism and atheism enjoy social prestige, in accordance with general secularization trends in Western Europe. Other religions like Christian Protestantism or Islam are on the rise, but only linked to the increase of immigrant population from poor Muslim (Arab countries of North Africa, Middle East, Asia) or Christian majority (Latin America, Caribbean, Sub Saharan Africa, Central America, Philippines etc.) countries and the large acceptance of Evangelism among the Romani people. Culture wars are far more related to politics than to religion, and the huge lack of popularity of typically religion related issues like creationism prevent them from being used in such conflicts. Revivalist efforts by the Roman Catholic Church and other creeds have not had any significant success outside their previous sphere of influence. According to the Eurobarometer 69 (2008), only 6% of Spaniards consider religion as one of their three most important values, while the European mean is 7%. Spanish society is considered one of the most culturally liberal and LGBT friendly countries in the world, with 84% of Spaniards in 2015 believing that same sex marriage should be allowed throughout Europe. The 2019 Eurobarometer showed that 91% of Spaniards believed gay and bisexual people should enjoy the same rights as heterosexual people, and 82% supported same sex marriage. Spain became the third country in the world to legalize same sex marriage on 2005, and in June 2021, it became the sixth country to make euthanasia legal nationwide, with public support over 70%.