The poll, carried out by GlobeScan and conducted for the BBC World Service, asked over 20,000 people in 18 different countries about how they feel about themselves in terms of national identity.
For the first time since this annual tracking began in 2001, the majority of people surveyed (51 percent) reported feeling more comfortable identifying as a global citizen than a citizen of their respected country of residence.
“The poll’s finding that growing majorities of people in emerging economies identify as global citizens will challenge many people’s (and organisations’) ideas of what the future might look like.” said GlobeScan Chairman Doug Miller.
The trend towards global citizenry was especially pronounced in fast developing countries like China (71 percent) and India (67 percent), which both saw double digit increases in sentiment.
The U.S. came in under the global average with 43 percent of the population identifying as a global citizen first while Canada reported feeling the vibe a bit stronger, at 53 percent.
Russia and Germany, at 21 percent and 30 percent respectively, were the most nationalist in regards to global citizenry, with the vast majority of citizens identifying with their home countries.
The poll, which was conducted both in person and by phone between between December 2, 2015 and April 15, 2016 also asked key questions about interracial marriage and immigration, including acceptance of refugees from other countries and Syria specifically.
Check out the press release for detailed country by country breakdowns on the findings.
