The objective of the current study, is to investigate the prevalence, patterns and profiles of welfare attitudes in Australia. The project examines negative attitudes to create an empirical backdrop that may help in discussions of attitude-driven welfare reform in Australia, but the results have relevance to other countries undergoing welfare system reform. The study reports analysis of nationally representative survey data which measures welfare attitudes via respondent endorsement of a series of statements describing attitudes and beliefs about welfare benefits, welfare payments and welfare recipients. In this way, the measures capture attitudes toward both welfare recipients and the welfare system. These items had been drawn from the pool of items used in the European Social Survey (2008) and the New Zealand Election Study (2005 and 2008), which will help to facilitate international comparison