Evaluation by small shopkeepers ( retail tradesmen and artisans ) of the meaning of being independent in a society which is becoming more and more a society of employees and of their own social position compared to those of other groups. Job / income / insurances / job satisfaction / leisure activities / opinions on benefits of welfare state / influence of government and other institutions and groups / political preferences / organizational membership / status and class differences / measures of social conservatism. Background variables: basic characteristics/ residence/ place of work/ occupation/employment/ income/capital assets/ education/ social class/ politics/ religion/ consumption of durables/ readership, mass media, and 'cultural' exposure/ organizational membership