Region i gmina w świadomości respondentów

The present article contains a short analysis of the ways in which the reality in the examined communes, in relation to that of the region and Poland at large, is perceived by the inhabitants and local political leaders. The problem affects directly the people’s assessment of the activity of the local political institutions. The author makes also a comparison between the results of his research and the results of a similar research conducted in 1992. We observe that citizens, particularly the younger ones, continue to demonstrate a low level of identification with their commune or region. On the other hand, the group of people who declare themselves as very satisified, or rather satisfied with their life in the commune and region has grown in size. The division of responses concerning the degree of satisfaction with the life in the region, or Poland at large, is somewhat different among the inhabitants as opposed to the leaders. A fall or partial satisfaction with the fact of living in a given place is, admittedly, manifested by a smilar percentage of respondents in both groups, but among the leaders there are fewer persons who describe themeselves as dissatisfied or undecided. Over 1/3 of the inhabitants show a willingness to migrate, which points to their critical assessment of their immediate environment. Particularly striking in the responses given by the two groups of the respondents is their sense of the unique quality of their region, particularly with regard to the uniqueness of its economic structures and socio-cultural traditions